Horrible Bosses 2

***
UK Release Date: November 28th 2014

Dale, Kurt and Nick decide to start their own business but things don't go as planned because of a slick investor, prompting the trio to pull off a harebrained and misguided kidnapping scheme.

Director: Sean Anders (That's My Boy)

Starring: Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx, Chris Pine, Christoph Waltz, Kevin Spacey, Jonathan Banks

Horrible Bosses treated us to a bumbling trio that cave under pressure and get themselves into further trouble. But what a likeable, bumbling trio they are. Nick (Bateman), Kurt (Sudeikis) and Dale (Day) hate their bosses, a lot. Their idea to bump off their bosses to get themselves out of a rut are outrageous. This time round, the guys have toned down their plots and shenanigans by replacing murderous adventures with kidnapping ones. Don't be too disappointed though, as there are plenty of the same antics on show.

If anything there's a touch more squabbling going on, as we see from the very first scene. Nick, Kurt and Dale are on a morning T.V. show, advertising their new product, the 'Shower Buddy' ('I prefer the Shower Daddy' says Dale). It's as ill named as it sounds. The threesome are their own bosses now, so no more problems, right? Wrong.

Christoph Waltz's investment tycoon Bert Hanson takes a shine to their product, but backs out at the last minute, leaving Nick, Kurt and Dale in financial trouble. Their plan? To kidnap Hanson's arrogant, obnoxious son, Rex (Chris Pine). 

Waltz's horrible boss isn't as impressive as Aniston's sex-driven dentist, Spacey's maniacal businessman or Colin Farrell's drugged up scoundrel. He's underwritten, but so are the good guys. Dale blurts out the truth when he's under pressure, Nick tries to play the good Samaritan (just like he does in all his films) and Kurt's consistently inappropriate. Their characters never pass the development they got in the first film. Spacey and Aniston provide welcome cameos, with the latter of the two pushing her nymphomaniac trouble-maker to a whole new level. Chris Pine reaps rewards, with a twist that differs from the first involving his funny yet destructive character. Jamie Foxx's Motherfucker Jones is a little too familiar, but funny all the same.

Verdict: Not as good as the first, but contains plenty of assets from it that we loved so much. A gradual improvement rather than a consistent one.

3/5