The Boss Baby succeeds at what it does for one reason and one reason only… Alec Baldwin, who voices the title character. Well, maybe two. The concept is actually somewhat novel and in the form of an animated film that plays well for adults as well as the youngest movie goers — that is pretty rare.
The film has landed on digital download, Blu-Ray and DVD and takes us inside the vivid imagination of a young boy. It actually is quite confounding. Is the entire movie in this little boy’s head as he prepares for the arrival of his new baby brother? After all, that is one coping method for dealing with the arrival of a new sibling. Or, is this actually what is occurring and we’re getting it from said boy’s mind? Pretty deep for an animated movie, no? Yes, why yes it is… but then again, it is best not to go too intellectual on a film that still has its fair share of potty humor that grabs as those lowest hanging fruits!
As The Boss Baby arrives, the audience is whisked off to a world where there is a baby factory run by these adorable (and adult-like) infants who are killer in the competition department when it comes to the attention and adoration of humans and the house pets.
The Tom McGrath directed picture isn’t very deep and what’s most fascinating about it is it is perfect for children. Clearly, that is its targeted audience. But, there are a slew of humorous aspects that seem to be shooting straight for the adult funny bone.
Tim (Miles Bakshi) was happy as an only child, I mean who wouldn’t be? Then when a baby brother arrives, all sorts of chaos happens to his world on a multitude of levels. It’s certainly an original idea for an animated film and in this day and age where originality is lacking, both in animated and live action features, that has to be commended. But again, it doesn’t dive too deep… and that’s OK. One can see why the film opened at number one when it hit theaters earlier this year.
The film doesn’t have a slew of messages of lessons to be learned, but does a solid job of painting the picture for sibling rivalry, the need for family to foster an enriching environment so both children know how much they are loved and cherished. How the brothers learn to get along is a treat… through the Tim discovering that the sole purpose of the baby corporation is to prevent babies from going extinct. See, puppies are developing a prototype that would allow them to stay young and cute forever, and infants believe that is a threat to their entire existence.
The Boss Baby falls apart a bit in the third act as it kind of is hindered by its one-dimensional (maybe two-dimensional) plot. Overall, the film is still a fun one if you have kids… particularly if they are children with siblings.
When it comes to additional content, as is the case lately with most animated features, there is a bevy of bonus features.
There is a terrific group of secondary characters and they get the spotlight in the featurette The Boss Baby’s Undercover Team. It is a short look at the characters and the voice talent – such as Steve Buscemi, Jimmy Kimmell, Tobey Maguire and Lisa Kudrow.
There are two bonus features that must be witnessed back-to-back, as they are intertwined in the larger conflict of the film, Babycorp and You and The Forever Puppy Infomercial. The latter is hosted by Buschemi’s character, Francis E. Francis, and is a delightful advertisement for those aforementioned forever puppies. The former is an instructional video for new employees to the Babycorp company, run by our favorite Boss Baby.
The evening news is the setting for a short bit, Babies vs. Puppies: Who Do You Love?, that asks an important question that lies at the heart of the film. Who will win in this cute-off? Guess we’ll see…
Given the sibling rivalry nature in The Boss Baby, a brilliant addition to the home video bonus features is The Great Sibling Competition that finds the crew and cast members chiming in on their own experience with brothers and sisters. It’s charming. It’s humorous. It’s relatable.
The new short movie The Boss Baby and Tim’s Treasure Hunt Through Time is literally short (only three-and-a-half-minutes). It’s a great idea for an animated quickie that finds The Boss Baby’s Gandalf-inspired character on a quick trip through his brother’s imaginary adventures.
We’re not the biggest fan of deleted scenes, but it is rare to get one for an animated movie. So, when all is said and done, check out the aptly titled Happy Accidents: The Deleted Scenes of The Boss Baby. McGrath and producer Ramsey Naito present a number of never-before-scenes in their rawest early stages.
Film Grade: B-
Bonus Features: B