Product: Office Space (1999)
Rating: 5.0
Working for a living is hardly living at all
I have a theory about upward mobility as it exists in a corporate workplace (actually, I've been relaying this theory for so long that I no longer remember if it is my own, or if I've stolen it from someone smarter than I; If it's the latter, I apologize for my thievery). If one is ambitious enough, and good enough at their job, they will get promoted. If they are still ambitious, and good enough at this new job, they will get promoted again. This process continues until said person reaches the limits of their abilities. Then they are promoted one last time, into a job that they can't possibly handle. This is where they stay for the rest of their working lives. I've seen it happen time and time again at my place of work, and it's this kind of sophistic reasoning that gets spoofed so mercilessly -- and so perfectly -- in "Office Space".Writer/Director Mike Judge has crafted a spot on depiction of office life in the latter part of the twentieth century. Technology has advanced to such a degree that those who fail to understand it are either relegated to being its slaves (a running joke here has a nefarious fax machine tormenting two programmers) or promoted to management. Those in the latter category, made obsolete by technological advancements and having no real duties themselves, are relegated to becoming bothersome micromanagers, in the hopes that their stock rises a quarter of a point. Everyone is worried about job security, and rightly so, for the average worker is about as interchangeable as the coffee machine, and respected less. And anyone with any semblance of a soul is constantly involved in bemoaning the wastefulness of their lives.Peter Gibbons (Ron Livingstone) is one such troubled soul. He's involved in his company's Y2K readiness project (with the benefit of hindsight, the pointlessness of this task is made even more pointed). But he despises his job. Tormented by ennui but hampered by lethargy, he sees no way out. A fateful visit to a career-counseling hypnotist frees him from his shackles, by allowing him to relax into his job. His newfound candidness is, of course, rewarded with a promotion. Livingstone imbues Peter with a bland everymaness that is at once appealing and relatable. He is surrounded by a madcap menagerie of accurately depicted office drones.David Herman (as the unfortunately named Michael Bolton) and Ajay Naidu play Peter's clueless programmer buddies, rebellious enough to constantly plot against the company, but too scared to do anything about it. The three of them share my favourite scene in the movie, when the aforementioned fax machine is smuggled out of the office, and beaten mercilessly with a baseball bat. Judge handles the scene like a hit in a mob movie, or a drive-by shooting, adding aggressive hip-hop music to the soundtrack, to play up the ridiculousness of the situation. The scene is played as horrific, but turns out truly hilarious. Other office citizens include John C. McGinley and Paul Willson, who play gleefully insipid consultants, brought in to give the company an excuse to downsize, and Richard Riehle as a paranoid lifer, whose job may or may not be redundant.The biggest cheers in the cast go to Gary Cole and Stephen Root. The former plays VP Bill Lumbergh. He's every employee's worst nightmare: a lifeless, endlessly droning, boring, malicious, and unimaginative manager. Brought to life through a costume that includes unfashionable glasses, shirts that match collar to cuffs, and an ever-present coffee mug, Lumbergh subtly terrorizes all who serve him with salutations that make him appear interested, but in fact amplifies the apathy he has for his employees. Cole nails Lumbergh perfectly, allowing the man's slime to ooze from every pore. Stephen Root, in the film's showiest role, plays Milton, a milquetoast, asocial, "squirrelly looking guy". Saddled with coke bottle thick glasses and an inflamed complexion, Milton is the ultimate social outcast. Root gives Milton an under-his-breath lispy voice, easy to overlook. So much so that his repeated threats to "burn the building down" if not granted any respect go unnoticed. The passive aggressive cat and mouse game fought between Lumbergh and Milton over a stapler (!) provide for some of the film's best and most telling moments.Jennifer Aniston, who plays Livingstone's love interest, does fine work with an underwritten role. She brings a kind of quirky restlessness to Joanna the waitress (tormented by a witless boss of her own, played by Mike Judge himself), although her desperation shines through as well (otherwise, why would she torture herself working at a classless establishment as "Chotchkie's"?)."Office Space" will touch a nerve with anyone whose ever worked in a large office. In fact, if you've ever encountered schizophrenic traffic (the film's opening scene follows Peter on his morning commute; he's caught in a hilarious catch-22, as any lane he changes to slows to a stop, just as the lane he's just come from starts to move), been bothered by door-to-door magazine salesmen, gotten zinged by static electricity, or been maligned by any of a dozen other inconveniences of modern urban life, you'll find something here to relate to. And, ultimately, laugh at.