Monday Movie Review: Like a Boss
Alright, so I still have a bunch of movies on my awards list to see, like 1917 and Just Mercy, and I definitely will see them, but when I was checking times for this week, I just couldn’t help myself. I wasn’t in the mood for something dark and depressing (or dark but then turns out okay) and so I bought my ticket for Like a Boss.
Like a Boss centers on lifelong best friends Mel (Rose Byrne) and Mia (Tiffany Haddish) who grew up together and ended up starting their own makeup company. When the company starts to struggle financially, they accept an offer from Claire Luna (Salma Hayek). The caveat of the offer is if one of the girls ever quits the company, Claire will get a controlling interest in the brand. Mel and Mia promise that will never happen because they are BFFs. But of course, differences in opinion over where the brand should go cause a rift between the two friends, helped along by Claire, who is scheming to drive them apart so she can get controlling interest. In the end, friendship is saved and a new idea is born, and they all lived happily ever after.
First and foremost, there were several laugh out loud moments during this movie. Tiffany Haddish is hilarious and I have never been disappointed when seeing one of her movies because she nails it every time. I love Rose Byrne and she was fine, but definitely not the scene stealer of this movie. Lots of standouts round out the supporting cast, most notably Billy Porter and Jessica St. Clair. Jennifer Coolidge was the only real letdown performance wise. Normally I love her, but her character felt kind of flat to me.
Look, this movie isn’t great. The writing is meh at best, but there is a lot to be applauded here. I loved watching a movie centered on female run businesses. I loved that there is no love story at all. I loved watching two lifelong friends who manage to continue to be friends even after going through some shit. And I loved being able to go to the theater for an hour and a half and legitimately laugh out loud. This movie isn’t going to be an award-winner or a box office smash, but it made me happy, and sometimes that’s all we need.
Overall Grade: B-
