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Office Space (1999) poster

Office Space

dir. Mike Judge · 1999

Feature
Moral Ambiguity
Mood
Comedic
Look
muted office colors contrasted with vibrant character interactions
Structure
episodic with a central conflict
Plot

In the Initech office, the insecure Peter Gibbons hates his job and the obnoxious Division VP Bill Lumbergh who has just hired two efficiency consultants to downsize the company. His best friends are two software engineers Michael Bolton and Samir Nagheenanajar, that also hate Initech, and his intrusive next door neighbor Lawrence. He believes his girlfriend Anne is cheating on him but she convinces Peter to visit the hypnotherapist Dr. Swanson. Peter tells how miserable his life is and Dr. Swanson hypnotizes him and he goes into a state of ecstasy. However, Dr. Swanson dies immediately after giving the hypnotic suggestion to Peter. Peter, in his new state, starts to date the waitress Joanna and changes his attitude which results in his being promoted by the consultants. When he discovers that Michael and Samir will be downsized, they decide to plant a virus in the banking system to embezzle fraction of cents on each financial operation into Peter's account. However Michael commits a mistake in the software on the decimal place and they siphon off over $300 thousand. The desperate trio tries to fix the problem, return the money and avoid going to prison.

Why watch

"Office Space" is a sharp, satirical exploration of corporate malaise that transforms the mundane into the absurd. With its blend of humor and social commentary, it resonates with anyone who has ever felt trapped in the grind of office life.

Cultural context
late 1990s corporate culturerise of tech startupsdisillusionment with the American Dreamthe emergence of workplace comedies
If you liked this
The OfficeClerksFight ClubThe 40-Year-Old Virgin

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