Review: Like a Boss (BD)

Lifelong friends Mia (Tiffany Haddish) and Mel (Rose Byrne) have supported each other through every challenge since elementary school. Now adults, they launch their own cosmetics company. While their ideas are innovative, they struggle to gain traction with customers. An enticing offer from cosmetics magnate Claire Luna (Salma Hayek) arrives, presenting a potential solution but also threatening Mia and Mel’s friendship.

Summarizing Like a Boss without revealing the entire plot proves challenging, as further elaboration would essentially encapsulate the complete narrative. The script lacks depth, and Like a Boss stands out as one of the shorter contemporary films. With few movies now clocking in under 90 minutes, Like a Boss, at 83 minutes, benefits from brevity as perhaps its sole advantage.

Movies, theatrical productions, books, and fairy tales commonly adhere to a three-act structure: introduction of the central conflict, escalation of the conflict, and resolution. In the abbreviated 83-minute runtime of Like a Boss, the climax of the second act occurs roughly 69 minutes into the film, leaving approximately 10 minutes for resolution, followed by the end credits.

Beyond its unconventional structure, the film suffers from a lack of compelling engagement and falls short of the comedic potential inherent in its premise. Haddish and Byrne, portraying “best friends” Mel and Mia, exhibit minimal chemistry, hindering the believability of their relationship. The dialogue and attempts at humor consistently feel forced and fail to resonate. While I’ve been a fan of Hayek since Desperado in 1994, her performance in Like a Boss veers into excessive caricature.

Director Miguel Arteta‘s direction fails to coalesce the film’s elements, resulting in a disjointed experience where the actors seem to operate independently, undermining narrative cohesion.

The Blu-ray edition from Paramount offers commendable visual quality with sharp, clear imagery and vibrant colors. The audio presentation is perfectly adequate, and given the film’s limited reliance on special effects, it proves sufficient. The supplementary material includes a standard promotional documentary featuring mutual praise among the cast and crew. Additionally, deleted scenes are included, which I typically avoid due to their exclusion. However, I was intrigued by the possibility that these scenes might provide additional context or extend the abbreviated third act. Ultimately, they proved to be two brief, inconsequential scenes that were justifiably omitted.

In conclusion, the viewing experience was largely disappointing. While the foundational elements possessed potential, the execution resulted in a lackluster outcome. The rating receives a slight elevation due to the Blu-ray edition’s satisfactory technical presentation.