Three Men and a Little Work Trouble

At some point earlier in the summer, I saw the trailer for Horrible Bosses. Amanda and I laughed through the entire thing. Amanda has a way about her when she laughs. I don't know what it is, but (when I hear it) I know that I can't live without her. (Yes. That was Billy Joel.) Anyway, I love to hear her laugh. And laughter is most certainly contagious. When she laughs, I laugh (usually), and when a movie makes both of us laugh to the point where our cheeks hurt, I know it's good. Horrible Bosses is one of those movies.

Nick (Jason Bateman), Dale (Charlie Day), and Kurt (Jason Sudeikis) are three best friends who love their jobs but hate their bosses. I guess that's just the nature of the beast. I've had bad bosses before, and it pretty much sucks. But I've never had a boss as bad as Dave Harken (Kevin Spacey), Dr. Julia Harris (Jennifer Aniston), or Bobby Pellitt (Colin Farrell). While the three leading men work great together and are all some of the funniest actors around, it is the three bosses that make this movie a great summer comedy. They all play characters unlike any they've played before, and it is amazing to see. The first act of the movie gives all the setup with Harken the psycho bully, Pellitt the incompetent asshole who wants to "trim the fat," and Dr. Harris the sex-addict nutcase dentist who looks an awful lot like that chick from "Friends." Trust me, you will not believe what comes out of that pretty mouth.

These bosses are so awful to their employees that Nick, Dale, and Kurt conspire to have them killed. If only they were as good at this as they were at their jobs. But that is another movie entirely. This movie is relentless in its hilarity as the three dudes plot and fail and keep plotting. There are a lot of unexpected twists and turns. One of them involves an excellent cameo by Jamie Foxx as a "hit man" whose name is worth the price of a ticket.

If you're down for a good hour-and-a-half of no-holds-barred, delightfully profane, fast-paced comedy, this is the movie you'll want to see. Like the original Hangover, it is unexpected and refreshing, which is more than I can say for The Hangover, Part II. Bateman, Day, and Sudeikis share a comedic timing that (dare I say it?) is better than the Cooper, Helms, Galifianakis trio. Jason Bateman is always great and is one of my favorite comedic actors. Jason Sudeikis is on the rise, has some great one-liners, and I can't wait to see him in the final season of HBO's "Eastbound and Down." And Charlie Day (from "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia") is especially great, and I'm glad he's getting some play on the big screen. As for the bosses, you've seen them do all that Oscar-winning, romantic comedy it-girl, and epic drama stuff, now see them all doing something completely different astounding you with antics you have to see (and hear) to believe.