Melissa McCarthy originally created the character of a grandstanding, ruthlessly selfish businesswoman for the Los Angeles comedy troupe The Groundlings, but what worked in sketch form falls disappointingly flat when stretched to feature length in The Boss.
The plot finds McCarthy’s cutthroat capitalist Michelle Darnell trying to rebuild her business empire after getting sent to prison for insider trading. Released from jail, she foists herself on her former personal assistant, Kristen Bell’s single mom Claire, and seizes the opportunity of using Claire’s homemade brownies as the basis for a new business.
Her great wheeze is to recruit Girl Scouts (Claire’s daughter is one) to flog the brownies, which leads to a titanic, comically over-the-top street scrap when ‘Darnell’s Darlings’ encounter a rival troop. For the most part, though, the comedy here is depressingly crass and unnecessarily foul-mouthed.
Certificate 15. Runtime 99 mins. Director Ben Falcone
The Boss is available on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital Download from Universal Pictures (UK).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8GAMZqJqjs
Blu-ray Special Features Alternate Ending: Falcon Rangers Deleted Scenes: Convention Center Opening / White Sox / Claire Gets Hired at Her New Job / Claire Plays Chess With Rachel / Darnell Enterprises Building Lobby / Walking to Dandelion Meeting / Hallway Prior to Dandelion Meeting / Michelle Plays Chess With Rachel / Michelle Visits Tito / Helipad Epilogue Extended/Alternate Scenes: Bed Flip Scene / Carrot Top / They Do Look Moist / Kendo / Michelle Returns the Key / Security Guard - Extended / Breaking Into Renault's - Extended Gag Reel Michelle Darnell - Original Sketch Origin Story Peter Dinklage Gets To The Point Everybody Loves Kristen Bell DVD Special Features Alternate Ending: Falcon Rangers Deleted Scenes: Convention Center Opening / White Sox / Claire Gets Hired at Her New Job / Claire Plays Chess With Rachel / Darnell Enterprises Building Lobby / Walking to Dandelion Meeting / Hallway Prior to Dandelion Meeting / Michelle Plays Chess With Rachel / Michelle Visits Tito / Helipad Epilogue Extended/Alternate Scenes: Bed Flip Scene/ Carrot Top / They Do Look Moist / Kendo / Michelle Returns the Key / Security Guard - Extended / Breaking Into Renault's - Extended Gag Reel
