- Director : Fernando León de Aranoa
- Actors : Javier Bardem, Manolo Solo, Almudena Amor
- Studio : Cohen Media Group
- Aspect Ratio : 2.39:1
- MPAA rating : NR (Not Rated)
- Number of discs : 1
- Run time : 2 hours
- Release date : November 1, 2022
My expectations were quite high when I heard
that The Good Boss earned a record-breaking 20 nominations at the 36th
Goya Awards, winning six of them including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor,
and Best Original Screenplay. While the filmmaking is undeniably solid, I was
somewhat disappointed by the overly familiar path the narrative took in satirizing
big business and the upper class. It is well done, but also contained little
that hasn’t already been covered in many films before this one. If you don’t
mind narrative tropes being recycled, however, The Good Boss has a lot
to offer audiences onboard with a comedic take on bad behavior, both personal
and in business.
The corporate
satire follows Julio Blanco (Javier Bardem), the owner of a family-run factory
of industrial scales in a Spanish provincial town. Although Blanco likes to
give speeches claiming his employees are like family, he selfishly manipulates
them for his own gain, and firing the ones that get in the way of his goals.
Given the way he also treats his own family, including disloyalty to his wife
Adela (Sonia Almarcha), these claims may actually be relevant. With a potential
award on the line, Blanco does his best to juggle all of the issues occurring in
his factory.
At the top of
the list of problems is a recently fired employee who decides to camp outside
of the factory and protest his unjust treatment, which goes directly against
the image Blanco wants to present. The smoothness of the factory’s operations are
also thrown into disarray when Blanco’s top employee Miralles (Manolo Solo)
begins to have marital problems after his wife begins sleeping with a coworker following
his own affair with a secretary. Blanco has his own marital indiscretion when an
attractive new intern named Liliana (Almudena Amor) begins working for him.
The relationship
subplots can actually detract from the satirical aspects of the storyline, only
truly held together by an impressive lead performance from Bardem as the self-serving
boss. Although there are humorous elements to the film, some may find the ways Blanco
gets away with his deviant behavior anything but funny. While a wealthy character
able to escape taking responsibility for his actions may be realistic, it isn’t
exactly fun to watch. With that being said, The Good Boss does manage to
land the ending with a memorable final shot that is entirely dependent on
Bardem’s performance.
The Blu-ray
release for The Good Boss may not be as impressive as it could be for a
film as highly praised as this, although there are two features with interviews
by Bardem and writer/director Fernando León de Aranoa.
Entertainment Value:
/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: /10
Historical
Significance: /10
Special Features:
/10
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