Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

Spoonatects Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Gary The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

Mellow_Biafra Locked in a room for a few days with nothing to keep me entertained except Netflix. Stumbled upon this gem because I'm a huge Kelsey Grammar fan and the show just sounded awesome. The first two episodes, I felt like I needed Ritalin to keep up with all the story lines and characters being introduced.By episode five, Boss had restored my faith in television.By the end of season one, I was ready to declare Boss as one of my favorite shows of all-time. The show is expertly acted and superbly directed with a rotating roster of big name directors that weave together the stories surrounding Chicago Mayor and political boss Tom Kane. Played by Kelsey Grammar, Tom Kane is a coldly logical if sociopathic mayor who engages in the darkest of politics for the greater good of his city. Surrounding him is a cast of other political figures, employees, journalists, businessmen, crime figures and family members. Painted against a modern back drama, Boss plays like a modern opera as the stories of many people weave together to form the reality of modern politics.While Boss can be highly complex, the masterful performance of Grammar carries the show and is so engrossing that its difficult to stop watching once you start. The weaving story lines of different characters, their motivations and how they work to screw one another is one of the most engrossing experiences I've had with a television show. In the end, despite Mayor Kane coming across as the epitome of evil, you come to realize through the corruption or ignorance of the other characters that Kane is working towards the greater good.If you're a fan of Kelsey Grammar or you enjoy dark political stories, this is a can't miss show. The first few episodes are difficult to get into but are carried by Grammar's performance. However once you get into this show, it becomes highly addicting.

neppie I read in the autobiography of a successful writer that he believed his earliest, unknown novels had technically been his best. Only after he learned to create characters with redeeming values did he become popular. After a few episodes of Kesley Grammar's "Boss" suspected this might be why I couldn't (at first) be more enthusiastic about a series brilliant in every other way. I did find empathy with a couple of the characters. Hannah Ware (Emma) was intriguing as Kesley Grammar's (Mayor Kane's) problem daughter, serving in contrition at a church and free clinic. Troy Garity is equally engaging as a dedicated, ethical journalist determined to uncover a scandal. However before the end of the season was in a "love to hate" relationship with Kane that reminded me of loathing for J.R. Ewing in the age of "Dallas". Season two felt so different I questioned whether the writers were deliberately catering to our better natures. Kane began to have hallucinations that taunted his conscious like ghosts haunting Scrooge. It seemed they were going to take the easy way out with a happy ending for all. I no longer wanted likable characters. Much to my relief and chagrin, my wonderful contempt for Kane was returning as the season ended.The series caused me to research the workings of Chicago's city council, which though I believe exaggerated are accurately depicted. Also the disease of Lewd Body Dementia, which causes Mayor Kane's hallucinations (this is revealed in episode one -- not a spoiler). LBD is more common than I knew and sufferers were grateful for the attention it received because of the show.

alexvour93 I first watched boss a while ago, got bored on the 1st episode and stopped it. Then there was a time i has nothing else to watch so i started it again. And it's a show that grows on you. This series is really harsh, even more than house of cards-harsh and yet so realistic. There were specific episodes where the malice and skill and wit of the protagonist couple was more than anything you'd ever watch. Kelsey Grammar and Connie Nielsen are both extremely talented and Kitty is also an interesting character. I'm so, so sad the show didn't continue cause there was so much potential. Hope i'll see a 3rd season some day, although that's probably not possible.

paul2001sw-1 As an American political drama, 'Boss' has two obvious precedents: 'The Wire', and the real life political drama currently underway in Washington DC. 'The Wire' was written by a journalist who knew everything about Baltimore, and felt very real: it's politicians were often shown as corrupt and ambitious, but also trying to do their best for their city while held by overwhelming constraints. I mention real, national politics to make one specific point: that whatever the personal issues, the fight between the President and Congress is dramatic because it's not just a story of clashing egos: there is a huge ideological and policy gulf between Obama and the tea-partiers. And in this respect 'Boss' is very disappointing. For the "Boss" himself, a fictional Chicago mayor, politics is all about horse-trading, making deals, staying in power. But in spite of the fine (and false) sounding speeches the candidates make, there's little sense of anything being at stake beyond the careers of the characters; for sure, Mayor Kane is a Democrat (Democrats have Chicago sewn up in the real world); but after watching a whole series, I have little sense of what Kane is in politics to do, or the real world factors outside the political arena limiting his ability to do so. Indeed, the series portrayal of the real world in general is quite weak, it's a cardboard land occasionally visited by its political protagonists, a place they go to mine votes, but not somewhere a viewer can really believe exists. This wouldn't matter is the remaining element, the political deal making, was convincing, but it isn't. Some examples: (i) the mayor asks key people to deliver votes for him, but how they do this is never made clear (ii) the mayor is implicated in a pollution scandal, so his response is to publicise how much another city is suffering, so that he can appear its rescuer (iii) when the scandal doesn't go away, he regains popularity by deliberately arresting his own daughter (iv) when his aide is caught leaking, he has the aide murdered, virtually at the aide's own request. This is a fantasy version of machine politics, and the back-plot (the mayor has a terminal disease) is simultaneously unnecessary and underdeveloped. Add some over-tricksy direction (lots of scenes cut out of temporal order for no particular reason) and the result is a decidedly patchy drama: there's promise in the premise, but it's played out as sanctimonious soap opera.