'Horrible Bosses 2' embarrassingly silly sequel

I can understand the “horrible” part of this title, but what happened to the bosses in “Horrible Bosses 2”?

If Hollywood had a truth-in-titles law, this would be called “Horrible Businessmen and Their Idiot Partners.”

Sean Anders' witless, embarrassingly puerile sequel to his 2011 modest hit comedy struggles to be edgy and naughty, but only succeeds in eking out a few laughs from cast members straining so hard to be funny that their heads nearly explode.

Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day return as Nick, Kurt and Dale, the trio of workers preyed upon by comically predatory supervisors in the sassy and saucy original comedy.

No longer encumbered by or intimidated by awful bosses, Nick, Kurt and Dale launch their own company and devise a new product they dub “The Shower Buddy.”

But the guys lack capital.

Wait! Bert Hanson (Christoph Waltz), the Sam Walton-esque CEO of a major retail chain, offers to finance their first 100,000 units for a whopping $3 million!

High-fives all around as the guys take the deal, then go out and buy a building and set up shop to manufacture their Shower Buddy.

Oh, no! Hanson, being a savvy capitalist, reneges on his offer, which means that the guys will go bankrupt and he'll be able to snatch their budding business at supercheap auction prices. (We know this because Hanson reveals his evil plan to the guys, which can't be very smart. But, then, look who he's dealing with.)

Nick, Kurt and Dale decide to adjust the scales of justice by kidnapping Hanson's self-obsessed playboy son Rex (Chris Pine, a welcome blast of joyful sleaze), and demanding a $5 million ransom.

In a vague tip to 1966's “Gambit,” the kidnapping plays out flawlessly in the trio's imaginations. Of course, in reality things don't go as smoothly, leading up to the comedy's sole surprise, an actual murder.

Bateman and Sudeikis recycle their characters with less enthusiasm and commitment than three years ago. Day, on the other hand, winds his comic spring even tighter, turning Dale into a human squirrel on cracked nuts.

Jamie Foxx reprises his role as wannabe outlaw adviser Dean, whose nickname can't be printed in a family newspaper. Kevin Spacey, one of the horrible bosses from 2011, bookends this sequel with his snarky brand of predictable volatility.

Poor Jennifer Aniston winds up with the short end here.

Reprising her role as Dale's sex-addicted dentist boss Dr. Harris, the “Friends” alum valiantly administers comic CPR to her character, but Harris succumbs to off-putting, tasteless dialogue that Anders' stunted direction can't soften.

So, make that two murders committed in “Horrible Bosses 2.”

“Horrible Bosses 2”

★ ½

<b>Starring:</b> Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Chris Pine, Christoph Waltz, Jennifer Aniston

<b>Directed by:</b> Sean Anders

<b>Other:</b> A Warner Bros. release. Rated R for language, sexual situations. 108 minutes