THE GOOD BOSS
****
Director: Fernando León de Aranoa
Screenwriter: Fernando León de Aranoa
Principal cast:
Javier Bardem
Monolo Solo
Almudena Amor
Óscar de la Fuente
Sonia Almarcha
Fernando Albizu
Country: Spain
Classification: M
Runtime: 120 mins.
Australian release date: 14 April 2022.
The Good Boss (El Buen Patrón), directed and written by Fernando León de Aranoa, marks a welcome return to our screens since his A Perfect Day in 2015 and 2017’s Loving Pablo (which, coincidentally, is screening in the upcoming 2022 Spanish Film Festival). The wait has been worth it because his latest film is a sheer delight and stars one of Spain’s most acclaimed actors, Javier Bardem, as the psychopathic boss of a small factory on the outskirts of a provincial city. Bardem excels as the master manipulator who has no regard for his workers but imagines that he’s the head of one big, happy family. It’s a textbook depiction of someone who seeks total control of the people around him/her and hides their duplicity behind a caring façade (and haven’t we all met someone like that). León de Aranoa’s comedy was a huge hit in Spain and won six Goya Awards (the Spanish Oscars), including Best Film and Best Actor for Bardem.
The Básculas Blanco factory wall is emblazoned with the words ‘Effort, Balance, Fidelity,’ and they could be regarded as a wry comment on what goes on between the walls. There’s lot of effort but very little balance and fidelity. The business specialises in the manufacture of industrial scales; it is a family-owned company passed down from the founding father to his son, Julio Blanco (Bardem), and it’s about to be visited by a local committee to determine if it will take out the top award for excellence in business. It’s an honour that Blanco is determined to win at any cost. Things start to go awry, however, when a series of events combine to chip away at the boss’s veneer of dignified calm: a sacked employee, José (Óscar de la Fuente), sets up a protest site across from the entrance to the factory when his request to be reinstated is ignored; the firm’s manager, long-term employee Miralles (Manolo Solo), starts making serious mistakes because his personal life is falling apart; and a new young intern, Liliana (Almudena Amor), becomes a major distraction for Blanco. As the breakdown in the workplace accelerates, Blanco’s cool demeanour starts to unravel and he becomes increasingly reckless as he meddles in his employees’ lives and crosses the ethical line separating concern and self-interest. Soon the puppet-master is getting a lesson in what it’s like when you’re not in control and Fate is pulling the strings, not you.
Psychopaths love to control and manipulate others; they are found in offices and businesses and sitting on committees right across the globe, and Bardem - replete with an overblown grey wig - nails his portrayal of one of these skilful, charming and calculating types. He exudes a creepy charisma that is hard to resist, even if, at a deeper level, you feel he can’t be trusted. Bardem convinces you that Blanco really does believe that he’s a caring, sharing kind of guy, such is his skill in displaying both the light and shade of the man. With much current-day discussion about toxic workplaces, the theme of The Good Boss is very timely; it’s a cross-cultural comedy that makes for some uncomfortable viewing. As Léon de Aranoa puts it, “Jealousy, abuse, betrayal, power, vassalage, rivalry, revenge, ambition, sex, and even death, all the grand themes of classical tragedy, fit inside the convoluted web of interests, pettiness, and ambitions of a small weighing scales manufacturing company that could be in any provincial city, anywhere,” but he adds that, “There is also humour in the amorality of the boss, in his scheming and excesses, as oneself is always the first victim of one’s actions.”
Screenwriter: Fernando León de Aranoa
Principal cast:
Javier Bardem
Monolo Solo
Almudena Amor
Óscar de la Fuente
Sonia Almarcha
Fernando Albizu
Country: Spain
Classification: M
Runtime: 120 mins.
Australian release date: 14 April 2022.
The Good Boss (El Buen Patrón), directed and written by Fernando León de Aranoa, marks a welcome return to our screens since his A Perfect Day in 2015 and 2017’s Loving Pablo (which, coincidentally, is screening in the upcoming 2022 Spanish Film Festival). The wait has been worth it because his latest film is a sheer delight and stars one of Spain’s most acclaimed actors, Javier Bardem, as the psychopathic boss of a small factory on the outskirts of a provincial city. Bardem excels as the master manipulator who has no regard for his workers but imagines that he’s the head of one big, happy family. It’s a textbook depiction of someone who seeks total control of the people around him/her and hides their duplicity behind a caring façade (and haven’t we all met someone like that). León de Aranoa’s comedy was a huge hit in Spain and won six Goya Awards (the Spanish Oscars), including Best Film and Best Actor for Bardem.
The Básculas Blanco factory wall is emblazoned with the words ‘Effort, Balance, Fidelity,’ and they could be regarded as a wry comment on what goes on between the walls. There’s lot of effort but very little balance and fidelity. The business specialises in the manufacture of industrial scales; it is a family-owned company passed down from the founding father to his son, Julio Blanco (Bardem), and it’s about to be visited by a local committee to determine if it will take out the top award for excellence in business. It’s an honour that Blanco is determined to win at any cost. Things start to go awry, however, when a series of events combine to chip away at the boss’s veneer of dignified calm: a sacked employee, José (Óscar de la Fuente), sets up a protest site across from the entrance to the factory when his request to be reinstated is ignored; the firm’s manager, long-term employee Miralles (Manolo Solo), starts making serious mistakes because his personal life is falling apart; and a new young intern, Liliana (Almudena Amor), becomes a major distraction for Blanco. As the breakdown in the workplace accelerates, Blanco’s cool demeanour starts to unravel and he becomes increasingly reckless as he meddles in his employees’ lives and crosses the ethical line separating concern and self-interest. Soon the puppet-master is getting a lesson in what it’s like when you’re not in control and Fate is pulling the strings, not you.
Psychopaths love to control and manipulate others; they are found in offices and businesses and sitting on committees right across the globe, and Bardem - replete with an overblown grey wig - nails his portrayal of one of these skilful, charming and calculating types. He exudes a creepy charisma that is hard to resist, even if, at a deeper level, you feel he can’t be trusted. Bardem convinces you that Blanco really does believe that he’s a caring, sharing kind of guy, such is his skill in displaying both the light and shade of the man. With much current-day discussion about toxic workplaces, the theme of The Good Boss is very timely; it’s a cross-cultural comedy that makes for some uncomfortable viewing. As Léon de Aranoa puts it, “Jealousy, abuse, betrayal, power, vassalage, rivalry, revenge, ambition, sex, and even death, all the grand themes of classical tragedy, fit inside the convoluted web of interests, pettiness, and ambitions of a small weighing scales manufacturing company that could be in any provincial city, anywhere,” but he adds that, “There is also humour in the amorality of the boss, in his scheming and excesses, as oneself is always the first victim of one’s actions.”