Gut Wreching Realism

Rating: 9/10 (15 January 2010)

I went and saw this movie after hearing all the buzz, and decided I needed to see it for myself. Besides the friend I was with, I was the youngest person there by 30 years (I'm 24). Minutes into the movie, I realized why.
Many of the early firings are people that valued themselves as "Company Men" and the air of hopelessness that surrounds the idea that a loyal employee of 15+ years isn't safe from downsizing is all too real. My own father recently lost his job at the company he's worked for 28 years.
The desperation the fresh faced college grad has after realizing the gravity of her job is a rude awakening to a generation that already has huge trust issues. We're expected to be loyal to companies we work for, yet they reserve the right to fire us at the drop of a hat. It's a wonder that my generation is so fickle in who we share our lives with.
The most flooring part of the movie comes when George Clooney's character and the girl walk into an office almost completely devoid of life and proceed to fire people who work at desks without walls, completely vulnerable.
Vera's character made me absolutely sick, I won't completely spoil the end of the movie, but I hated her character after developing this bond with her for the first hour.
In the end we assume George Clooney's character flies off into the sunset back into his hopeless life, absent of any meaningful relationships.
The movie is a "dark comedy" but some of the subject matter is so real and close to home, that I forgot about the funny parts altogether. I have never seen a movie that is so "for it's time" and I appreciate what Reitman created.