WordPerfect Office Movie Reviews

Ricky Gervais has perfectly captured the absurdities of office life and filled his characters with real personality. Only a few are less than three dimensional--Chris Finch and Lee come to mind--but the rest are all human. Tim is a witty but wimpy lonely heart, Gareth an arrogant but vulnerable pain in the rear, Dawn a needy user--even David Brent, the manager ...come standup comedian who rumbles from one awkward conversation to the next, has enough humanity that you can feel sorry for him in all but his most asinine moments.

The first season of The Office was the greatest inaugural season in sitcom history.

Get it while you can, though: episodes of the second season aired on the BBC have been more angry and cruel--and less funny--and Ricky Gervais has said from the start there will be no third season.

But no, once viewers got it, and saw that David Brent was never going to improve (and would never do any work either), the BBC realised it had a major winner on its hands.

But perhaps the most extraordinary part of the story is that the BBC should give total control of the writing, direction and acting to Ricky Gervaise and his collaborator Stephen Merchant. Ricky Gervaise, a fortysomething, had had no acting or directing experience. He had never been to acting or scriptwriting classes. His only contact with the media was in the 1980s when he was a member of a failed pop group. Before he made this series, he was the manager of the students union bar at one of the London university colleges.

What happened was that, for his graduate training course at the BBC, Stephen Merchant had to create a 10-minute short. With Gervaise, he created a prototype of the Office, and the BBC liked it so much that they gave the partnership a series. It's hard to imagine that happening in the US, which tends to value training and experience rather more highly.

In truth, Gervaise plays a character very close to his own persona. Here is a manager who plays the guitar and wants to be a comedian. It is that closeness to reality that lends the series such a genuine feel. Also contributing to the feeling of reality is the sparseness of comic characters. There are only two seriously abnormal people in that office -- Brent himself and Gareth, the weekend soldier with a penchant for childish electronic toys. The rest are, I have to confess, very true to life in the English workplace.

The plot, such as it is, is not worth giving away here. Suffice to say, there is just one more series (of a further six episodes). There will be a holiday special, but otherwise the whole Office has been canned -- not for lack of popularity, but simply because Gervaise and Merchant do not believe they can better it.

Gervais and Merchant hit the spot with this DVD, containing 6, 30 minute episodes that comprise Series One as well as a lengthy interview with the 2 which comes complete with outtakes, deleted scenes and early verions of The Office.

The timescale of the Series is only a few weeks but oh so much is crammed in here from training days to nights out to Brent's philosophical musings to camera.

Merchant and Gervais admitted that they'd run out of ideas after Series 2. This is evident (Series 2 is good, nothing like Series 1, though) and this is also why we will only ever have 12 episodes plus one Christmas Special.

Sure there are many Brit 'in-jokes' that the average American will not get but there is so much more than they will not distract you from laughing.

So already you have a great comedy about how pointless, boring and horrible many jobs are these days. But beneath the comedy, there's an entire satire of modern life, and that's what makes me call this movie "genius." While it is a comedy (no tear-jerking scenes or anything like that), I found myself saying over and over "That's exactly like real life!!!!" which is why it's a genius film that every Gen X'er or younger should watch!

Watch, and laugh at the absurdity which surrounds you.

Then, a few months ago, I got an office job with an enormous corporation, and I now see the world of "Office Space" in a whole new light. It's still funny, but there's also a major undercurrent of depression beneath the humor. The movie's fictional Initech Corp. is a sterile suburban hell, where the bosses have become patronizing phonies and the workers are bitter and frustrated over their precarious, unfulfilling existence. My job isn't quite as bad, but few hours go by where I don't think of some line from the movie and realize just how accurately it describes what I go through on a daily basis. Human beings really aren't supposed to sit around at desks staring at computer screens all day, and "Office Space" perfectly captures the quiet despair that corporate lemmingdom can produce. At one point protagonist Peter Gibbons flatly states, "I don't like my job. I don't think I'm gonna go anymore." I'm sure many would like to say the same thing, but unfortunately in real life it doesn't prove to be that easy.

Viewed in this light, "Office Space" could only have worked as a comedy. For one thing it requires a razor-sharp satire, which this movie very much is, to truly highlight the absurdity of the situations faced on a daily basis in offices nationwide. For another, if the movie's examination of life on the lower rungs of corporate America weren't lightened with some laughs, viewers would be reaching for arsenic and razorblades in record time. Ron Livingston brings a definite everyman appeal to the role of Peter: you can sympathize with Peter's plight because you've probably been there, and even if you haven't you'll still be able to feel his pain because Livingston communicates it so well. Not to mention, Gary Cole gives one of THE most underappreciated performances in cinematic history as Bill Lumbergh, Peter's "evil, disgusting pig of a boss." Sure, Lumbergh's a caricature, but Cole delivers his condescending lines with such perfect tone and expression that they still haven't stopped being funny after about ten viewings. Plus, in case you need any more reason to watch, the cast also includes the always-hilarious Diedrich Bader and the always-smoking Jennifer Aniston.

As the plot progresses, "Office Space" brings in an element of wish fulfillment when Peter decides he has nothing left to lose and he might as well see what it takes to get fired. For most of its hilarious middle third the movie plays on this strain of insubordination, becoming the ultimate workplace fantasy as Peter disrespects his higher-ups and generally acts destructive around the office. There's also a scheme to rip off the company thrown in, but that's not really important. "Office Space" is so good the plot is rendered more or less secondary. Watch it, and drop out for an hour and a half.

So already you have a great comedy about how pointless, boring and horrible many jobs are these days. But beneath the comedy, there's an entire satire of modern life, and that's what makes me call this movie "genius." While it is a comedy (no tear-jerking scenes or anything like that), I found myself saying over and over "That's exactly like real life!!!!" which is why it's a genius film that every Gen X'er or younger should watch!

Watch, and laugh at the absurdity which surrounds you.

Then, a few months ago, I got an office job with an enormous corporation, and I now see the world of "Office Space" in a whole new light. It's still funny, but there's also a major undercurrent of depression beneath the humor. The movie's fictional Initech Corp. is a sterile suburban hell, where the bosses have become patronizing phonies and the workers are bitter and frustrated over their precarious, unfulfilling existence. My job isn't quite as bad, but few hours go by where I don't think of some line from the movie and realize just how accurately it describes what I go through on a daily basis. Human beings really aren't supposed to sit around at desks staring at computer screens all day, and "Office Space" perfectly captures the quiet despair that corporate lemmingdom can produce. At one point protagonist Peter Gibbons flatly states, "I don't like my job. I don't think I'm gonna go anymore." I'm sure many would like to say the same thing, but unfortunately in real life it doesn't prove to be that easy.

Viewed in this light, "Office Space" could only have worked as a comedy. For one thing it requires a razor-sharp satire, which this movie very much is, to truly highlight the absurdity of the situations faced on a daily basis in offices nationwide. For another, if the movie's examination of life on the lower rungs of corporate America weren't lightened with some laughs, viewers would be reaching for arsenic and razorblades in record time. Ron Livingston brings a definite everyman appeal to the role of Peter: you can sympathize with Peter's plight because you've probably been there, and even if you haven't you'll still be able to feel his pain because Livingston communicates it so well. Not to mention, Gary Cole gives one of THE most underappreciated performances in cinematic history as Bill Lumbergh, Peter's "evil, disgusting pig of a boss." Sure, Lumbergh's a caricature, but Cole delivers his condescending lines with such perfect tone and expression that they still haven't stopped being funny after about ten viewings. Plus, in case you need any more reason to watch, the cast also includes the always-hilarious Diedrich Bader and the always-smoking Jennifer Aniston.

As the plot progresses, "Office Space" brings in an element of wish fulfillment when Peter decides he has nothing left to lose and he might as well see what it takes to get fired. For most of its hilarious middle third the movie plays on this strain of insubordination, becoming the ultimate workplace fantasy as Peter disrespects his higher-ups and generally acts destructive around the office. There's also a scheme to rip off the company thrown in, but that's not really important. "Office Space" is so good the plot is rendered more or less secondary. Watch it, and drop out for an hour and a half.

So already you have a great comedy about how pointless, boring and horrible many jobs are these days. But beneath the comedy, there's an entire satire of modern life, and that's what makes me call this movie "genius." While it is a comedy (no tear-jerking scenes or anything like that), I found myself saying over and over "That's exactly like real life!!!!" which is why it's a genius film that every Gen X'er or younger should watch!

Watch, and laugh at the absurdity which surrounds you.

Then, a few months ago, I got an office job with an enormous corporation, and I now see the world of "Office Space" in a whole new light. It's still funny, but there's also a major undercurrent of depression beneath the humor. The movie's fictional Initech Corp. is a sterile suburban hell, where the bosses have become patronizing phonies and the workers are bitter and frustrated over their precarious, unfulfilling existence. My job isn't quite as bad, but few hours go by where I don't think of some line from the movie and realize just how accurately it describes what I go through on a daily basis. Human beings really aren't supposed to sit around at desks staring at computer screens all day, and "Office Space" perfectly captures the quiet despair that corporate lemmingdom can produce. At one point protagonist Peter Gibbons flatly states, "I don't like my job. I don't think I'm gonna go anymore." I'm sure many would like to say the same thing, but unfortunately in real life it doesn't prove to be that easy.

Viewed in this light, "Office Space" could only have worked as a comedy. For one thing it requires a razor-sharp satire, which this movie very much is, to truly highlight the absurdity of the situations faced on a daily basis in offices nationwide. For another, if the movie's examination of life on the lower rungs of corporate America weren't lightened with some laughs, viewers would be reaching for arsenic and razorblades in record time. Ron Livingston brings a definite everyman appeal to the role of Peter: you can sympathize with Peter's plight because you've probably been there, and even if you haven't you'll still be able to feel his pain because Livingston communicates it so well. Not to mention, Gary Cole gives one of THE most underappreciated performances in cinematic history as Bill Lumbergh, Peter's "evil, disgusting pig of a boss." Sure, Lumbergh's a caricature, but Cole delivers his condescending lines with such perfect tone and expression that they still haven't stopped being funny after about ten viewings. Plus, in case you need any more reason to watch, the cast also includes the always-hilarious Diedrich Bader and the always-smoking Jennifer Aniston.

As the plot progresses, "Office Space" brings in an element of wish fulfillment when Peter decides he has nothing left to lose and he might as well see what it takes to get fired. For most of its hilarious middle third the movie plays on this strain of insubordination, becoming the ultimate workplace fantasy as Peter disrespects his higher-ups and generally acts destructive around the office. There's also a scheme to rip off the company thrown in, but that's not really important. "Office Space" is so good the plot is rendered more or less secondary. Watch it, and drop out for an hour and a half.

No questions left.

U can see the king in his "normal" life , and understand better why we love him so much (his fans) .

Great DVD

Mary Astor plays Mary Linden, a secretary that helps a crass salesman named James Duneen rise up the corporate ladder until he becomes top dog of the company. She's secretly been in love with Duneen forever, and stays loving and loyal even though he likes to tramp around with all the stray alley cats he can score with. Eventually, she gets fed up with being overlooked, underappreciated, and taken advantage of. She quits, leaving the helpless Duneen to fend for himself.

The ending is rather predictable, and seemed slightly "tacked-on". Some minor comedy relief is provided by Mary's co-workers, but this is more or less an office drama. The print is remarkably clear for the age of the film. Minor blemishes and scuffs are visible throughout, but not to excess, and do not interfere with viewing.

While it wasn't groundbreaking cinema, "Behind Office Doors" was not a boring or slapdash production. It was also interesting to see a young Astor still ten years away from perhaps her most famous role, Bogart's love interest in "The Maltese Falcon".

The Roan Group has to be commended for finding such rarities as this film, and putting them on DVD.