Horrible Bosses 2

Horrible Bosses 2, for all its problems, is fun. Yes, there’s the easy sex jokes; yes, there’s the quick and easy and largely irrelevant cultural references (Roar by Katy Perry, I’m in); yes, there’s some odd tackling of issues related to gender and race. But all that doesn’t make the film bad.

Instead Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day return to their roles and their wider stock characters. Bateman the straight man; Day, sort of unhinged, a 21st century fool; and Sudeikis in his least rewarding role – for a man that funny and sometimes-charming, it’s kind of sad that here he only gets to play the moron here.

Horrible Bosses 2 comes out with a wink and a nod, an elaborate plot to kidnap a business rival’s son (the rival being Christoph Waltz, underused; and the son Chris Pine, who exceeds expectations), which, as it is wont to do in comedy films, goes awry. By some flight of fancy they manage to bring back Kevin Spacey, who is hilarious by virtue of being Kevin Spacey in a comedy film, and Jennifer Aniston, who is beginning to prove herself as a solid ensemble comedian. As the plot becomes more convoluted, yet easy to follow, the gags continue to be cheap, but then there’s a car chase, and we can’t keep our eyes away. This is the comedy equivalent of easy listening – relax and enjoy the ride.