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The Boss Baby (2017), PG, ★★


I am not a fan of "baby talking" movies or "baby" comedies except Three Men and a Baby, Look Who's Talking and Raising Arizona. The Baby Geniuses movies (I think the sequel is the worst movie ever made.), Baby's Day Out, The Back-Up Plan, What to Expect What You're Expecting, She's Having a Baby, etc. is like a nightmare list. Maybe, the penultimate film on the list was not one of the worst movies but it was disappointing because there was some potential. Now, we have another baby movie now in the animated world and I am sorry say that even though Dreamworks Animation tries so hard to make a very good, it felt like I was participating in a focus group watching a sketch for some merchandise for a baby brand with a couple of laughs than watching a movie with a "story".

Seven-year-old Tim Templeton (voiced by Miles Bakshi) has been the sole child of his parents, Ted and Janice (voiced by Jimmy Kimmel and Lisa Kudrow), who play with him in all of his imaginative adventures. Tim is narrating (Tobey Maguire) as an adult as he stats that both his parents work at the marketing department at PuppyCo, which he thinks is a cool job. One day, he is asked by his parents how he would feel if he had a baby brother, and Tim replies that he is enough, unaware that his mother is pregnant with another child.

His world changes as their parents bring home a suit-wearing baby that was supplied into management from BabyCorp because he was not ticklish. Tim looks out the window and to his surprise he sees The Boss Baby (voiced by Alec Baldwin) strutting up to the front door with his briefcase. Just like any other baby, Ted and Janice focus on entertaining and watch the Boss Baby while Tim is being shut out. However, Tim gets suspicious towards the baby and as he hears an adult voice on the phone in the baby's room. Tim catches the Boss Baby talking as an adult on the phone and forces the baby to admit that he can hear him talk. Boss Baby warns Tim that if he cannot get his act together, the parents will "fire" him. He is basically sent by BabyCorp to stop his parents from unveiling a new puppy that would leave babies without love.


The movie was average at best with a few laughs and some vibrant animation, however, the story is riddled with predictable jokes and a couple of holes into the main storyline that the movie becomes more boring than curious and entertaining. The main storyline is illogical because the Boss Baby wants to prevent PuppyCo to unveil a new puppy so babies can have all of the attention from the puppies. Ok, from the perspective of a parent, which I am not, but here is some common sense: get a familial puppy first and when ready, have a baby or the other way around, have a baby, let him or her grow up a bit and then discuss of having a puppy. If puppies have all the attention, the babies would cry, rot and die because of no attention or care. Watch Trainspotting. The plan is a little bit hokey but in conclusion, it is real stupid and goes into several territories that got my head filled with boredom and a bit of confusion.

Alec Baldwin does a real good portraying a baby and spoofing off both Glengarry Glen Ross ("cookies are for closers" instead of "coffee is for closers") and also a couple of noticeable jabs at Donald Trump, a character he spoofs on Saturday Night Live. The movie could have done some justice revolving around the baby with a very good screenplay and better jokes than the typical slapstick and baby jokes.

However, this movie is not for me so I cannot be unfair to the young demographic. It will appeal to the younger viewers but I was baffled by how its concept starts clever and insightful then it boggles down to become pedantic, boring and suped with chase sequences that become more filler than exciting. The movie, however, does redeems itself with a sweet and insightful ending revolving around Tim and the Boss Baby as siblings that should have been the meat of the story instead of this corporate plotline. This movie is not the complete equivalent of a baby's fecal matter (it is not awful) but I felt that the script should be more thought of and needed more re-writes.

**


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