Office Space (Widescreen)

 

 

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This is one of the most comforting movies I know. When you get home from Dilbertland, and the world seems insane, pop this movie in and laugh at someone having it truly rough. It's cheaper than hypnotherapy.

I feel so strongly about the healing nature of this film, I will often purchase a copy and send it to a friend when they describe a particularly brain fryingly stupid day in corporate America.

And it's also a great quote movie. Watch it and the next day you'll be walking around saying, "Why should I? He's the one that sucks."

The DVD itself is light on features, but regardless, you'll want this movie on hand for emergencies. Let someone else fill out the TPS reports, and enjoy.

Bah! 2 scenes do not a movie make. Mike Judge can't decide whether he wants to be Franz Kafka or in the Hallmark Hall of Fame, so he settles for something that would make Joan Lunden titter with suppressed amusement.

Bravely lambasting office politics in a manner that only someone who has never worked in an office could enjoy, Judge then moves on to tougher fare. Waitressing in a restaraunt not the most pleasant experience? I mean, Oh my gosh, I was stunned by his searing portrayal of the disenfranchisment of Coporate America and it's inevitable Ennui-inducing Weltanschauung. Verfremdungseffekte like White men rapping and Jennifer Anniston being "Homey and down to earth" only further emphasized the moral of this story (In true Brecht fashion) - when the Proletariat fulfilled its Hegelian destiny and been run beneath the wheels of enterprise, only the Uebermensch-next-door will be able to "Take up arms" and stem the tide. If you thought what I just said was right on, go finish that poem you've been working on.

A cinematic masterpiece for anyone who likes to snicker at the misfortunes of others and fancies themselves luckily outside the world of grunts and laborers. Buy it for your Philosophy Grad-Student get togethers. Goes well with Rolling Rock.

Now, Office Space might look like a movie about this young guy whose whole viewpoint on cubicle hell is changed when his occupational hypnotherapist dies in the middle of a hypnosis session, leaving him with a wonderfully carefree attitude toward the job he despises - but it's not. The real star of this movie is Milton Waddams (Stephen Root), the mumbling, thoroughly mistreated oddball who is pushed beyond his limits after the boss, among other things, steals his stapler. He really loved that stapler, which is why he continued to use it after the company went with a completely different stapler manufacturer. When you're stuck in a cubicle for forty hours a week and forced to watch all sorts of Who Stole My Cheese nonsense taking place all around you, when you're always the odd man out when the boss' yearly birthday cake gets handed out, when you're forced to change cubicles over and over again for no good reason whatsoever, you become Milton. With no control over your life's direction, you cling to any little thing you can find in your three-walled domain - a favorite stapler, your chair (which you really should put your name on, if you want to make sure someone doesn't pull the old switcheroo on you), and the all-consuming importance of locks for your shelves (which the movie completely leaves out, for some reason). Your bosses make fun of you behind your back and think of ways to make your life even more miserable, and you start mumbling all the time. Yes, Milton truly represents those unfortunate enough to be trapped inside cubicle farms.

However, since the movie does give young Peter Gibbons (Ron Livingston) and his buddies most of the screen time, I'll talk about them as well. That Pete's really got his head on straight as the movie begins; he has already learned that work is a form of torture that makes every day worse than the one before until you get old and die. His buddies at work are pretty spot-on as well, knowing that the hiring of a consultant means a labor reduction is imminent. Then Peter sees this hypnotherapist who gets him nice and relaxed, with all of his work-related worries washed away - and keels over dead, leaving Peter in a state that can only be described as carefree. He just stops going to work for awhile, but when he does pop in (just to pick up his address book), he goes ahead and talks to the two Bobs (the consultants). His straight-shooting, incredibly honest answers about how little he actually does at the company convince the Bobs that he is upper management material. While Peter's being promoted, though, his buddies Michael Bolton (David Herman) - no, he's not related to that dreadful singer - and Samir Nagheenanajar (Ajay Naidu) are being laid off. That's when Peter comes up with a plan - well, actually, the whole idea was Michael's, but Peter talks him and Samir into actually doing it. They plant a virus-type routine, designed to skim off a fraction of a cent from every transaction, inside the computer system. The plan ends up working too well, though, putting Peter and the guys into quite a potential pickle.

I think the film sort of loses its focus during the final half hour. Up until that point, it's a dead-on parody of cubicle life. You've got your fax machine designed to jam as often as possible, your boss who speaks to you as if you're intellectually challenged and never hears a word you say, a whole range of annoying co-workers, etc.. The whole "Didn't you get the memo?" routine captures the very essence of life in the cubicle jungle. A great supporting cast, including Jennifer Aniston as Joanna, a waitress who just says no to "flair," and Diedrich Bader as Peter's next-door-neighbor, really round out the film remarkably well. Even the genius behind the whole film, Mike Judge, joins the fun as Joanna's flair-obsessed manager. Office Space is just a tremendously funny movie that shines the mirror of hilarious truth on the ridiculous nature of far too many modern companies.

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5.0 out of 5 stars I am writing this from an office cubical.
Current events mixed with old tales and office lure mix to create one of the best comedies around. This film along with the red Swingline stapler had achieved cult status... Read more

Published on May 28 2006 by bernie

1.0 out of 5 stars I wasn't very impressed...
Totally stupid, although pretty realistic. It didn't get me to care for the 2-D characters and it got kinda boring after a while. Read more

Published on April 17 2006 by RICK

5.0 out of 5 stars Did you get the memo?
Office Space is a very funny, on the mark movie about working in cubicles, having a dead end job and brain dead bosses. Read more

Published on Aug 14 2005 by Kilgore

5.0 out of 5 stars THE comedy movie to see from the late 90s
If you see one comedy from the late 90s, see this one! The cast is great, and the story is better. The only person I know who didn't like this movie just doesn't understand the... Read more

Published on July 19 2004 by Hugo Calendar

5.0 out of 5 stars A MODERN CULT CLASSIC
Having seen and enjoyed bits and pieces of this movie countless times on cable (usually on Comedy Central) over the last couple of years, I finally broke down and purchased it to... Read more

Published on July 12 2004 by M. R. ZOGLIO

5.0 out of 5 stars You hate your job? You'll love this movie!
Office Space is a hilarious comedy directed by Mike Judge, the man who brought us Beavis and Butthead (he provided the voices for both characters as well), and starring Ron... Read more

Published on July 7 2004 by S. Sarhan

4.0 out of 5 stars "'PC Load Letter'? What the --- does that mean?"
Writer/director Mike Judge's understated satire of flourescent cubicle-angst keeps the tone subdued and lets the absurdity simply show itself. Read more

Published on July 7 2004 by C. Gardner

5.0 out of 5 stars Doesn't Everybody Have A Beef With The Office Xerox Machine
This movie is so wildly funny because it taps into the psyche of every disgruntled worker out there. Read more

Published on Jun 30 2004 by Nick Rocco

4.0 out of 5 stars Clerks for Computer Programmers
Does anybody remember the black and white film about two convenience store workers that came out in 1994? Well it was called Clerks. It was an awesome film. Read more

Published on Jun 29 2004 by Chris Borden

5.0 out of 5 stars My Dream of Doing Nothing
It's very abnormal for a movie made by Mike Judge with Jennifer Aniston as a co-star to be so profound, but this movie manages to define and brilliantly satirize day to day life... Read more

Published on Jun 28 2004 by Andy

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