Melissa McCarthy has proven she can deliver plenty of laughs, both on TV and the big screen. But a pattern is starting to emerge when it comes to her movie projects: With McCarthy’s most successful films (“Bridesmaids”, “St. Vincent”, “Spy”), she and husband Ben Falcone were NOT the screenwriters, and Falcone wasn’t behind the camera as director. However, the pair teamed-up for 2014’s underwhelming “Tammy”, and they’re at it again – with results being pretty much the same.
In “The Boss”, McCarthy plays Michelle Darnell (a character she originated at The Groundlings comedy club in LA 16 years ago). In a brief but humorous backstory we see how Darnell went from a being an orphan to eventually becoming a financial powerhouse – proudly the 47th richest woman in America and author of the self-help book Money Talks, Bulls*it Walks.
Moments later we get Darnell entering Chicago’s United Center riding on a golden phoenix to a crowd of thousands of screaming fans – some with their hair dyed a similar color red. And she sings and dances to “All I Do is Win”. All of a sudden – T-Pain runs out on stage to sing the chorus and finish the song with her. OK – we’re off to a great start.
But the momentum doesn’t last. We’re introduced to Darnell’s assistant Claire (played by Kristen Bell) and her bodyguard in a long scene that largely falls flat. A short time later Darnell is sent to prison for 5-months for insider trading. During this time, her company goes belly-up, her mansion is foreclosed on and she hardly has a dime to her name. So Claire and her daughter Rachel decide that Darnell can stay with them in their tiny apartment until she can get back on her feet.
Darnell tries to sleep on Claire’s pull-out sofa bed – and the results are hilarious. It’s no surprise that this is the scene that’s been used most often in the trailers, commercials and on McCarthy’s promotional tour because it’s the strongest gag in “The Boss”, and one of only a handful that actually work. After visiting Rachel’s scout troop and realizing that selling treats can actually be a legitimate business, Darnell recruits two dozen girls to sell brownies, and make a 10% commission from the sales. She believes “Darnell’s Darlings” will be the key to her comeback. But, of course, it won’t be that easy.
Michelle Darnell is a fun character. McCarthy delivers several smart one-liners and some offensive remarks as well – the trademark brand of humor that has gotten her movies to a nearly $1 billion domestic box office total since 2011. And in the more dramatic and sentimental moments, McCarthy proves that she can elevate this character above the base-level script, which simply doesn’t provide many genuinely entertaining situations.
Like “Tammy”, “The Boss” lacks a sharp comedic punch. A scene where Darnell goes on a talk show hosted by Gayle King is tame when it could’ve been dynamite. A brief glimpse at Darnell selling the brownies on HSN could’ve been turned into a hilarious five minute sketch. And a better developed relationship storyline between Darnell and her mentor (Kathy Bates) would’ve added some welcome bite to the story.
There are lengthy, 10+ minute stretches of “The Boss” that provide no laughs. And the script relies way too heavily on rude, tasteless humor (especially in the final half hour) and over-the-top/”shock-value” scenes, which come-off as desperate and absolutely ridiculous – including an insane brawl in the middle of a street between rival scout troops (that you’d ONLY see in the movies) and an awful climax involving a rival business mogul (Peter Dinklage).
On The Official LCJ Report Card, “The Boss” gets a C. Even with two disappointing efforts in a row, McCarthy and Falcone have already signed-on for “Life of the Party”, a college comedy that will begin shooting this summer. Here’s hoping their third time will be the charm.
Running Time: 99 min.