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Director Lars von Trier ditches the pretensions but keeps his misanthropy in The Boss of it All, a surprisingly sharp and witty comedy about office life gone haywire.
All Critics (66) | Top Critics (23) | Fresh (49) | Rotten (17) | DVD (4)
In some ways, I enjoyed this movie more than any of his features, and yet it's sad that he has drawn in his horns so much. Feb 29, 2008 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…
In some ways, I enjoyed this movie more than any of his features, and yet it's sad that he has drawn in his horns so much.
Peter Bradshaw
In the humor department, The Boss of It All elicits few belly laughs but lots of thoughtful chuckles. Sep 14, 2007 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…
In the humor department, The Boss of It All elicits few belly laughs but lots of thoughtful chuckles.
John Monaghan
Scenes are thus punctuated by as many jump cuts as punch lines--a technique that amplifies the sly humor. Sep 14, 2007 | Full Review…
Scenes are thus punctuated by as many jump cuts as punch lines--a technique that amplifies the sly humor.
Andrea Gronvall
Perverse humor pervades the films of Lars von Trier. Jul 23, 2007 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…
Perverse humor pervades the films of Lars von Trier.
Bill Stamets
Bone-dry but completely assured, both in its visual strategy and its wry deconstruction of the workplace comedy genre. Jul 14, 2007 | Rating: 3.5/4
Bone-dry but completely assured, both in its visual strategy and its wry deconstruction of the workplace comedy genre.
Michael Phillips
How fitting for the film that a computer is calling the shots. But how disappointing for us that it can't punch up a script. Jul 13, 2007 | Rating: 2.5/4 | Full Review…
How fitting for the film that a computer is calling the shots. But how disappointing for us that it can't punch up a script.
Geoff Pevere
If The Boss of It All is forgettable, it's not for its airiness, but for its failed artiness, and for von Trier's failure to be true to his art. Aug 24, 2017 | Full Review…
If The Boss of It All is forgettable, it's not for its airiness, but for its failed artiness, and for von Trier's failure to be true to his art.
Michael Joshua Rowin
An appealing low-budget quirky spoof on corporations. Aug 27, 2009 | Rating: B | Full Review…
An appealing low-budget quirky spoof on corporations.
Dennis Schwartz
A bit of a shambles, but perhaps in its lack of von Trier's usual pretensions will lie the charm of this film for some. Feb 29, 2008 | Rating: 2/5
A bit of a shambles, but perhaps in its lack of von Trier's usual pretensions will lie the charm of this film for some.
Derek Malcolm
Full of in-jokes for Von Trier fans and oddly shot, the quirkiness will probably be lost on those unfamiliar with the Dogme 95 man's work. Feb 29, 2008 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…
Full of in-jokes for Von Trier fans and oddly shot, the quirkiness will probably be lost on those unfamiliar with the Dogme 95 man's work.
Von Trier has evidently been watching The Office, and replicates both its soulless setting and fly-on-the-desk camera-style, not to mention the Brentian fear of being unpopular. Feb 29, 2008 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…
Von Trier has evidently been watching The Office, and replicates both its soulless setting and fly-on-the-desk camera-style, not to mention the Brentian fear of being unpopular.
Anthony Quinn
The script and story are what matter. They are as neat and interlocked as nail scissors. They are also grimly funny. Feb 29, 2008 | Full Review…
The script and story are what matter. They are as neat and interlocked as nail scissors. They are also grimly funny.
Nigel Andrews
I think The Boss of it All is the only von Trier film I truly dislike. Breaking the Waves was another, initially, and though I definitely still have my misgivings about it a second viewing sort of brought me around on the film's merits. This is a marginally clever treatment of viewership and an unconventional look at comedy in general, but in the scope of his filmography I don't think it really offers anything new. The idea of him creating a comedy so heavily reliant on cliche that he himself has to apologize through narration for the film is sort of interesting, but the novelty doesn't sustain 98 minutes' worth of viewing. It's funny how intent can so radically change a comedy's reception. This is, all told, the most generic office comedy of errors you could possibly imagine, and some people seem to think it's exceptionally funny. It's really not even remotely on its own terms, with von Trier's lampshading providing the only real chuckles, and even that isn't all that inspired. Not recommended, unless you're hellbent on watching all of his films.
Super Reviewer
Pretentious & unengaging, Comedy,Von Trier style
Disappointing update to the Dogme school restrictions with an automavision shooting system. Von Trier may have found it an interesting technical exercise but it added nothing to the format for me. The sense of humor is assumably hilarious in Denmark but it didn't tickle me. The plot loses its tenuous grip on reality altogether at the end.
[font=Century Gothic]"The Boss of It All" is a surprisingly deft comedy by Lars von Trier about an actor, Kristoffer(Jens Albinus), who is hired to impersonate the imaginary boss of a software company by the real boss, Ravn(Peter Gantzler), to seal a deal.(Ravn invented the imaginary boss, so none of the tough decisions would be blamed on him. He just wants to be liked, like everybody else.) But the meeting goes awry, and Kristoffer has to keep the charade up for a week, while the deal is completed...[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]Along with being a critique of corporate culture, "The Boss of It All" is also an example of Lars von Trier taking aim at actors.(To be honest, I've never known any director to have a kind word about actors.) But he also turns the camera on himself, quite literally in a couple of instances, and by admitting the thinness of Ravn's plan(yes Kristoffer is a bit of a numbskull, but he definitely could have used more information to go on), he also admits to the weaknesses in his script which does not have an especially strong plot and the ending is rather awkward. [/font]
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