Tim (voiced by Tobey Maguire) is a very imaginative child. He is an only child. very loved by his Mom (voiced by Lisa Kudrow) and Dad (voiced by Jimmy Kimmel). They put him to bed with as many stories as he wants and even sing his special song. Tim lives a life of bliss as the apple of their eyes. His idyllic life falls apart overnight.
Mom and Dad no longer have time for Tim’s bedtime rituals. No more books, story time and most of all…no Tim’s special song! At least, not for him. The Boss Baby (Voiced by Alec Baldwin) has taken over the house and everyone’s lives. This baby is getting all of the attention. When it seems that Mom and Dad have a moment, they are asleep.
As Mom and Dad snooze, Tim discovers that the baby can talk. This is not an ordinary baby, his brother is The Boss Baby, a secret agent sent to infiltrate Puppy Co to find out how to stop the top secret project. At first Tim and Boss Baby are at odds.
They realize, in order to get what they want (Tim, to be an only child again and The Boss Baby wants the promotion to the top spot), they need to work together. The competitive nature of the sibling dynamic is hilarious and the development of their relationship as they learn to like each other has some sweet moments.
Dreamworks based this film on the 2010 children’s book from Marla Frazee of the same title. The adaptation fleshes out the story, introducing us to the family dynamic. We also learn that the Boss Baby is there to stop the nefarious Francis Francis (voiced by Steve Buscemi) and his evil plot. Boss Baby, with his baby crew and Tim, plan to save the day.
The Actors voice the characters so well, I was immersed in the story and characters. There were more than a few laughs and one snort laugh. It is an animated feature I would definitely recommend as a go see.
The Boss Baby opens Friday, March 31st.
4 stars out of 5
Second review by Barnetty Kushner
Dreamworks Animation’s latest movie ‘Boss Baby’ seemed like a clever idea, however the execution leaves less to be desired. Boss Baby tells the story of where babies come from—sort of! There are two kinds of babies in the world. Your traditional sweet, adorable, bundles of joy, that spend their days cooing and growing up to become normal kids. And then there are the “upper management” babies. Ones that show a slight intellectual advancement. They spend their days working at Baby Corp in cubicles and running the rat race without aging a single day thanks to the invention of the “superpower” baby formula. Boss Baby (Alec Baldwin), who disguises himself as a “normal” baby, is sent to live with Tim (Miles Christopher Bakshi) and his parents. Tim’s parents work for Puppy Corp-a company that “invents” new breeds of puppies. Their company poses a threat to Baby Corp, because the adopting puppies are on the rise and having babies are on the decline. Boss Baby’s job is to figure out what the newest breed of puppy. Tim, not too thrilled about having a baby brother, catches on to pretty early in the film that Boss Baby is no ordinary baby, but a secret agent. In hopes to rid his home of the parental attention grabbing bundle of sarcasm, Tim helps Boss Baby in his plan to stop the creation of this new canine breed.
It doesn’t take a genius to see where the story is headed: brother bonding, common interests, and fears. It sets the tone for sibling rivalry and how children should act when a new brother or sister joins the family.
Alec Baldwin and his usual sarcastic, dry, witty sense of humor is really what carries this movie. The storyline is extremely far-fetched with an extreme lack of character development. It lacks heart and genuine emotional connection to any of the characters. For the most part, Boss Baby is a mediocre film with the occasional potty humor moments, and of course raises the question, “Where do babies come from?” Which I was asked by my son after we watched this movie. Oy!
2 out of 5 stars
