Horrible Bosses 2 like its comedy sequels that have come before (see The Hangover 2 & 3), is the definition of unnecessary and kind of lazy in its jokes. On the plus side Chris Pine was a hoot to watch in a completely comedic role (vs. the balance of snark and drama in the Star Trek movies) and the three stooges at least looked like they were having a good time which helped pass the time.
Horrible Bosses 2
(2014)
REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall
Genre(s): Comedy, Crime
Warner Bros. | R – 108 min. / 116 min. – $35.99 | February 24, 2015
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MOVIE INFO: Directed by: Sean Anders Writer(s): Michael Markowitz (characters); Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley and Sean Anders & John Morris (story), Sean Anders & John Morris (screenplay) Cast: Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx, Chris Pine, Kevin Spacey, Christoph Waltz DISC INFO: Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1) |
** Click Here to Purchase Horrible Bosses 2 on Blu-ray from Amazon.com **
THE MOVIE – 2.5/5
There’s no surprise that more often than not, especially when it comes to comedies, certain sequels only exist as quick cash grabs, look no further than the recently released Hot Tub Time Machine 2 or before The Hangover 2 and 3. Now we have Horrible Bosses 2 coming three years after the original which netted a respectable $209 million worldwide gross. As for the sequel… well, it’s apparent not many really needed any further expansion on the story or these characters bringing in about half the amount as the first.
Our story opens with the three stooges – Nick (JASON BATEMAN), Kurt (JASON SUDEIKIS) and Dale (CHARLIE DAY) – on the verge of success on their own as they have developed a product called the Shower Buddy, an all-in-one tool that washes and shampoos your hair. After a seemingly failed appearance on an L.A. morning talk show, they receive a call from Rex Hanson (CHRIS PINE) offering to team with the stooges and distribute their Shower Buddy. They refuse his offer believing they can get more and in reality, Rex isn’t the head of this catalogue company (like the defunct Skymall) but it’s his father Bert (CHRISTOPH WALTZ) in charge and he makes a deal with the trio.
Soon, the three rent out a warehouse, hire a crew and begin manufacturing en mass, 1000 Shower Buddy’s. Now their own bosses, and riches around the corner, things seem to be looking up but they are royally screwed over in a shrewd move by Bert. Yep, so it’s on again as Nick, Kurt and Dale seek vengeance, though Nick is once again the more level-headed one poo-pooing the various ideas learning from their mistakes in the previous movie. Eventually their grand plan is to kidnap Rex and ransom him for a couple hundred grand to save their business from financial ruin. This plan also involves stealing knock-out gas from dentist Dr. Julia Harris (JENNIFER ANISTON). Along with Harris, other friends and foes show up including the jailed Dave Harken (KEVIN SPACEY) and Dean Jones (JAMIE FOXX), the latter offering assistance and advice.
Horrible Bosses 2 is really your typical sequel. It’s more or less the same plot, same characters and same jokes, and in this version, none of them particularly work save for a fun kidnapping scheme fantasy segment and a fantastic performance from Chris Pine who was one of the few bright spots; not to be outdone, Jennifer Aniston is great in her minimal screen time.
Not much else more to the movie. It’s a movie made to make a quick buck for the studio, which doesn’t necessarily always mean its bad film, but the laughs are few and far between but at least the cast were having a good time together which makes the time spent far more tolerable than it deserved to be.
SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.25/5
This release comes with a matted slip cover. Inside the standard HD slip case is the redemption code for the Digital Copy and a regular DVD Copy.
Extended Cut (1:55:49; HD) – This version is about 8-minutes longer but having watched the theatrical version, I can’t comment on if it’s any better (doubtful though).
Endless Laughter Guaranteed (17:28; HD) – In this featurette, Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis do what it takes to make one another laugh.
Let the Sexual Healing Begin (2:24; HD) follows the road to recovery with the Sex Addict Group.
Who Invented the Shower Buddy? (1:29; HD) is another mock featurette on who created the “million dollar” idea.
Nick Kurt Dale Inc.: Employee Testimonials (2:13; HD) – The employees at NKD talk about their bosses and the environment.
It’s the Shower Buddy Infomercial (1:10; HD) – The Shower Buddy gets the Billy Mays infomercial makeover.
High Speed Crash Course (2:47; HD) is a featurette on the car chase sequence.
Off the Cuff: One-Liners You Didn’t See (TRT 16:48; HD) is a collection of scenes in what amounts to be Line-O-Ramas.
VIDEO – 4.0/5
Warner releases Horrible Bosses 2 on Blu-ray presented in its original 2.40 widescreen aspect ratio and a 1080p high-definition transfer. It’s a fairly average looking video for a recent release with good detail levels and colors appear to be vibrant enough though it is generally a darker looking movie. I didn’t notice any signs of artifacting or pixilation making for an adequate transfer.
AUDIO – 4.0/5
The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track it’s anything spectacular yet gets the job done. The bulk of the film is dialogue and on that front it’s a fine sounding track with the soundtrack filling out the remainder channels well enough. But that’s about it, depth is limited in an otherwise so-so lossless track.
OVERALL – 2.5/5
Overall, Horrible Bosses 2 like its comedy sequels that have come before (see The Hangover 2 & 3), is the definition of unnecessary and kind of lazy in its jokes. On the plus side Chris Pine was a hoot to watch in a completely comedic role (vs. the balance of snark and drama in the Star Trek movies) and the three stooges at least looked like they were having a good time which helped pass the time. The Blu-ray released by Warner offers good audio/video but the features are limited.
Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 02/27/2015
Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.
