O Poderoso Chefinho

He's cute! He has got a big head! And he is in theaters this weekend. He is the Boss Baby and his movie is the focus of this review. Hi fans, Robbie K is back again with another review, and this time on the latest animation movie to hit the silver screen. What does this animated feature film have in store? I'm happy to share some thoughts on the subject, so why don't we get started shall we?

LIKES: • Good animation • Cute • Unique Twist on a story • Incredibly Fun • Funny and Clever • Movie References

Summary: As you saw in the trailers, Boss Baby is another example of how incredible our animation technology is and this time it is wrapped up in a cute as a button package. This film may be one of the most adorable animation pieces to hit this year, and many will fall in love with the whimsical charm of this film.

Now that we have the obvious wrapped up let us get to the real gold of this film. It's difficult to find a unique twist on a story, but the risk taken with Boss Baby's story was well executed. The tale has many layers to it involving adapting to new family members, pursuit of your dreams, and of course what is better babies or puppies. With surprising detail and character development, the story is very entertaining and fun as baby and brother try to stop the dastardly puppies from taking over. And the best part is… the whole adventure is fun and fast paced, with seldom a boredom moment in this fast-moving flick.

Let's hit the comedy now. Boss Baby again excels in this aspect providing a variable mix of comedic styles to entertain all ages. Young (and young at heart) will enjoy the simplistic comedy that involves the characters dropping mindless (meme-worthy) one liners, various screams of fear, and dopey run-ins with a wall. The real comedic diamonds though are the cleverer puns, one-liners, and adult references hidden in this movie. Alec Baldwin's sarcastic delivery and edginess worked for me, adding just the right touches to maximize the laughs. Yet, I'm a sucker for all the movie references integrated into this plot and how key they were to the adventure. And if you are nerd like me, you may get an extra thrill keeping your eye out for the next reference.

DISLIKES: • Predictable • A bit of a stretch • A little preachy at times • More Babycorp use • Better Editing

Summary: Despite how much I enjoyed the story, much of it is still predictable. Boss Baby has some surprising twists, but no manner of fun, can hide the blatantly obvious ending that is to come. While predictability is difficult to avoid, Boss Baby could have tidied things up a bit to give the finale a little more flare. In addition, they could have worked hard to not be so preachy near the end about the importance of family and all that lovey-dovey mush that animation films do all the time.

Let's talk about some developmental issues I had with the movies. First off, the movie has moments that are a bit of a stretch. Yes, I know this movie is ridiculous and a stretch to begin with, but hear me out. Boss Baby's adult cast are a bit idiotic at best, somehow not hovering over the newborns to hear them speaking. If that wasn't enough, some of the more dangerous stunts involved were also not as "noticeable", which after some point should have been discovered. Although fun, this ridiculousness didn't fit so much into the grand scheme of the plot. Next up is Babycorp, the organization the boss baby works for. This large plot point has dramatic build up and gets a large sequence to explain the wonders of this magnificent corporation. Yet after that, the film fails to deliver more on the potential plot points that could have come with it. Had the trailers not built up the baby vs. puppy rivalry as they did, I could have let this go, but with all the advertising I would have liked to see more of this.

Finally, the editing of the movie. Boss Baby has a lot of great parts that foster imagination, love, and all those positive qualities we love in an animated movie. However, much of these moments were not necessary, often just extending the run time under the guise of character development. While I don't think they needed to eliminate these parts (after all it is only 90 minutes), they certainly could have altered these scenes to be a little more relevant to the adventure.

The VERDICT:

Despite all the lower scores, Boss Baby was an entertaining spectacle that is fun, funny, and clever at many points. This movie is certainly adorable and is the perfect family film (for all ages) to hit the screen this year. Yes, it is simplistic and silly, and doesn't have as much magic as a Disney film, but it's nice to have unique, story that doesn't involve making a political ordeal out of it. This reviewer recommends this one for the theater for group outings and those with kids, but definitely check this one out when it hits homes.

My scores are: Animation/Comedy/Family: 7.5 Movie Overall: 6.5

First of all, recognize that this is a children's movie. So, a completely coherent plot isn't even the icing on the cake. It's more like one extra and very beautiful icing flower on top of the icing on the cake. What I'm saying is not all kids' movies totally make sense, so don't get too mad at Boss Baby for not totally making sense.

The standard movie of this ilk is littered with inconsistencies and overlooked logical flaws. In that sense, Boss Baby is a standard movie.

In a much different sense, Boss Baby is far, far from standard. It's brimming with creativity and bold stylistic choices. Not everything works, but enough does to justify the attempts.

The creative dynamic comes from the nature of the storytelling. The movie unfolds through the wildly inventive eyes of 7-year-old Tim. His boundless imagination makes him a questionable narrator, like Amy Dunne in Gone Girl, except he's not a psychotic murderer.

At any moment, Tim can suddenly morph into a ninja (to give one example) and his perceived world morphs accordingly to fit his current fantasy. This creates a number of whimsical and forceful action sequences that will mesmerize children and should keep adults at least mildly amused.

Digging a bit deeper, the movie is really about the love between brothers. Well, that and the obvious yet still funny metaphor that babies are really in charge. The brotherly moments work surprisingly well for the most part. They even elicited in me some of the intended emotions during a few key scenes when the baby realized that Tim cared for him and vice versa.

Despite being completely predictable, these moments are still touching. Maybe it's the cartoon cuteness or maybe the filmmakers tactfully achieved something here. Either way, it works.

Overall, I came away more satisfied than I anticipated, partly because I accepted Boss Baby for what it was. Your kids will enjoy this movie. If you relax your critical analysis, and most importantly give into the cuteness, you may enjoy it too.

DreamWorks has always favored frivolous humor over meaningful insight. They aren't Pixar. This isn't necessarily always a bad thing as they have had some solid hits in the recent years. Kung Fu Panda remains my favorite of the series from the studio. With The Boss Baby, their signature humor remains intact. I laughed quite often in the early stages of the film. Alec Baldwin is hilarious voicing the baby at the center, however, while I admire DreamWorks for getting ambitious with the concept of the film, it is almost so high-concept, that the core audience will be completely lost and the adults will shrug at how convoluted the many twists in the plot are. Still, The Boss Baby is frequently bouncy and frenetic and will entertain the kiddies, even if they don't get all the plot points. In the end, however, the need of the directors to pile on a thickly saccharine ending that keeps rolling on, makes the film end rather disingenuously.

I saw this move with three children, 8, 7 and 3 years of age. They all wanted to see this movie rather than watch 'Beauty and the Beast'. When given the option, it was a uniform cry of "boss baby, boss baby". So off I went. I thought it would be awful. There were single male and female adults of all ages in the audience, as well as parents with children. My 3 year old laughed a lot in the beginning saying "boss baby is funny". After that, she got a bit lost and restless, but got settled again in the second half. The others were focused throughout and said they liked it more than than the 'trolls movie'.

I laughed a lot. The reference to other movies and adult themes was very clever and funny (ie Matrix, Elvis impersonators, etc). The Boss baby character is hilarious. I loved the reflections on parenthood, feeding the baby, dummy sucking, milk bottles, diapers (nappies), vomit, lack of sleep, etc. Sibling competition for parental attention is demonstrated well. The new baby is always the 'boss baby' in any family! The story made me wonder- was it all the child's imagination? The ending was heartwarming and overall, this movie was a nice surprise.

This film tells the story of a seven year old boy, who has very busy but loving parents. One day, his parents bring home a baby boy. He gets intensely jealous from sibling rivalry, until he discovers that the baby can talk and is actually working for a company.

"The Boss Baby" is a really fun film for the whole family. The baby is super cute, and everyone will fall in love with the baby in an instant. The sibling rivalry plot is convincing, then the fantasy kicks in. The jokes are funny and family friendly. Actually everything about the film, from the plot to the characters are likable, fun and cute. I was very entertained.