Review: McCarthy delivers the laughs, but ‘The Boss’ offers little else

Posted on April 15, 2016

By MARK VIOLA

Some actors, especially comedic actors, tend to get typecast in a certain kind of role. Sometimes this is forced on them by producers and sometimes it seems to be a conscious choice by the actors themselves.

The most obvious example today is Melisaa McCarthy, who in a string of movies such as “Bridesmaids,” “The Heat,” “Tammy” and others, has played pretty much the same character over and over again, one that is often loud, rude and vulgar. It’s made McCarthy a lot of money, but it’s also starting to feel pretty stale and threatens to hurt her longevity as a box office draw. Other comedic actors have suffered similar paths, including Jim Carrey and Adam Sandler.

Like Sandler, McCarthy seems to have a lot of creative control over her projects, so this may just be the type of character she likes playing. But I have to say, my favorite movies of hers have been the ones where she played against type, such as “Spy” and “St. Vincent.”

Her least successful film to date has to be “Tammy,” which she co-wrote with her husband Ben Falcone, who also directed the movie. So suffice it to say I was concerned going into “The Boss,” McCarthy’s latest project in which she once again partnered with her husband.

“The Boss” isn’t a good movie, but it is one that made me laugh quite often, which is the best thing a comedy can do, since a comedy that doesn’t make you laugh is a waste of everybody’s time and money.

The script is often a mess and pretty much the entire cast except for McCarthy seems wasted playing two-dimensional or downright cartoonish characters, but as I said, plenty of the jokes do hit their mark.

The story follows the extremely wealthy Michelle Darnell (McCarthy), whose financial empire crumbles when she’s convicted of insider trading. After spending time in prison, Michelle has no where else to go but stay on the couch of her former assistant Claire (Kristen Bell, “House of Lies”) and her daughter Rachel (Ella Anderson, “Henry Danger”).

If you’re a fan of McCarthy’s other movies, you’ll most likely find enough to laugh at here to make it worth the trip. If your enjoyment is more limited to her off-type films like “Spy”–which was also a much better written movie–you’ll probably still laugh, but like me, you probably won’t enjoy it nearly as much. If you’re not a fan of hers, there’s nothing to be found here that’s going to change your mind.

The movie is rated R for sexual content, language and brief drug use.

(This is a abbreviated version of the full review available in our printed or e-edition papers.)

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