Office Space (Mike Judge, 1999) - When a Man Loves a Woman

[cvranizan]

The movie “Office Space” is a comical depiction of the boring lives of stereotypical, corporate office employees. While the focus of the movie is on comedy, it addresses the sad reality that many people grow up to live monotonous lives due to a job they do not enjoy. Peter Gibbons is the protagonist and the embodiment of the average person living just to get by in a job they hate. He is an incredibly boring character, his only definitive trait is his hatred for work. All the main characters seem to be constantly irritated about something but Peter is the only one that is simply unhappy with his situation. Michael Bolton hates his name, Samir Nagheenanajar is a frustrated minority, Milton is just not having a good time for obvious reasons, and the list goes on for nearly every character. The movie does an excellent job of showing the pains of white-collar life in contrast to a more easy going blue-collar living using a variety of elements.

The most outstanding contrast is seen in the music used throughout the movie. The soundtrack consists almost entirely of rap and hip-hop in a set composed of dull cubicles and formally dressed men. The music is not just thrown in at random times however. Every time that the characters are hurting their company, which symbolizes corporate America as a whole, the rap is accompanying them in the background. For example, when Peter returns to work, pulls down the encouraging work sign, puts fish guts on his TPS reports and knocks his cubicle wall over, the song “Damn It Feels Good to Be a Gangsta” is taking over all other sound. This repeats when the three are uploading the virus and when they are destroying the copy machine. Since rap and hip-hop are stereotypically against authority and government it makes sense that it would play at these moments. The most effective scene illustrating this, in my opinion, is when gun shots sound over the clicks of Michael's mouse as he is installing the virus to steal from the company. It is funny but helps in the movies efforts to have faces of society clash.

The other the way the movie contrasts these classes of society is through Peter's neighbor Lawrence. With his mullet and overall sloppy appearance he cannot be mistaken as an outsider amongst every other character. Through Lawrence, the movie shows that being on a higher rung of society does not mean that one will necessarily be more happy. For example, when asked what he would do with a million dollars, Lawrence simply wants to do two chicks at the same time. This along side his excitement at the breast exam on TV shows that he is more than content with simple, natural things in life as lower class people may need to be in order to be happy. He may be kind of creepy but he does not need a fancy job to enjoy himself. Peter eventually gets to this point in his life when he is working with Lawrence in construction instead of taking another job in an office. It is at this final scene of the film that he is truly happy, cleaning up the remnants of the corporation that was destroyed by its own abusive actions.

Office Space is a great movie for a lot of reasons beyond its comedy. It seems every character could be analyzed to show some commentary on the way society is run, but in the end it illustrates that white-collar life is not something to strive for. It leads to a robotic existence instead of a meaningful life. Everyone should find a career in life that makes them happy, it may happen indirectly but it has to happen sometime.

[ltauber]

A consistent theme in Office Space is the exhibition of collar color, and hierarchical ranking in a breauracratic work place. Peter and his employees work dead end desk jobs, filled with nothing but monotony and banality. Their boss bill lumberer, never ceases to remind them that they are less and lower than he is on this viscous chain.
In a purely physical comparison bill demonstrates his "superiority" through his stance, (shoulders up and chest out). Additionally Bill is dressed more ornately with a distinct white collar, suspenders, pattered tie, large glasses, and the classic slicked back hair-do. Although both peter and bill are white collar workers, bill is the prototypical, exaggerated image of a white collar worker. Lumberg is always propping himself u against peters desk, nearly anomalistically marking his territory, over the one small patch of land which is peters. the concept of managerial excess is displayed in several scenes, the most prominent regarding the tps reports. peter forgot to put a cover sheet on his tps reports, and his eight different bosses will never let him forget this. the point of them each condescending and scolding peter is to highlight the fact that the company is being over lead. the concept of superfluous management it touched on once again when two people, both named bob, are hired to begin letting people go form Innotech.
not only is there an excess in relation to quantity of managerial staff, but there is an an excess of quality being displayed by them. These managerial staff employees common excess attention for minute and arbitrary reasons.mocking the social relationship between boss and employee, their jobs are also deemed a similar relationship. peter deals with his daily work tasks (typing, filing) in the same way that he deals with his office superiors. indifference. It is only when peter becomes so disassociated with this world, by slipping into a nearly subconscious relaxed state, can he start to rebel. Peter replaces his indifference with a newly discovered confidence in challenging this institution. Peter is told eight times to put a tsp cover on, because his managers need feed their egos and self assurance. By telling someone the same instruction multiple times, is assumes that they are unintelligent and that disrespect. The fact that Milton wasn't allowed to have a fairly necessary office supply, his beloved red stapler; but the entire office was allowed a break time to celebrate Lumberg's 41st birthday…a pretty unsubstantial one if you ask me. Office space is a movie that although reflects a lot of dark and suppresses truths about the american social system, is also incredibly funny. Its comedy if effective due to its relatability, and desire to connect with others who share similar frustrations.

[Lsogn]

I agree with Cvranizan that the music chosen for the soundtrack is an effective way to push the story forward and it also emphasizes the emotional response by the characters towards authority. Additionally, it reveals how opposite they seem, at times, from the music they’re listening to. Even in the opening scene, Michael Bolton is shown in his car listening to rap and acting hard core on his way to work, but then he quickly locks his doors when a man selling flowers along the highway walks near his car. A similar example of this occurs when they have to look up in the dictionary what it means to launder money.

All of these instances throughout the film seem to reveal a clashing of identities which is interesting because in the cubicle world in which they live, they appear to be stripped of any identity they have during their working hours and are only seen as a “tool” to help a large corporation produce greater profit. This film has many parallels to Kafka’s Metamorphosis. Peter Gibbons seems similar to Gregor Samsa in that his boss is always hustling him to work harder and longer and he is stripped of his identity due to such a dehumanizing work place.

One way to explore how the film “Office Space” thinks is to examine the very title of the film itself. First of all, a closer look shows what the title is not. Namely: “Office Time.” It is also not “Office Acts” or even “Office Talk” where human behaviors and dialogues might be emphasized. The title instead references multiple layers of the meaning of “space” and on one level addresses the physical nature of the landscape where people assemble to work. There are perceived limitations within the boundaries of the space presented in the film. Also, within the confines of this setting there are hierarchies and a framework of expectations of the roles the characters display in this work place. At times, there is an exaggeration--where behaviors are overdrawn--of the dynamics at play in the corporate world and how they impact the individual. During a typical workday, Peter Gibbons “spaces out” as a way to survive the oppressive setting of his office space.

[kflagg]

Like others have mentioned in this thread, I find that Office Space is highly critical of the corporate environment, and the incompetent hierarchy that runs it. Clueless drones are scattered throughout the film. When the main character, Peter Gibbons reaches his desk at work in the morning, he is surrounded by the buzz of office people. One chubby red-headed woman stands out in particular as she continuously answers her telephone in the same cheerful manner. “Corporate accounts payable, Nina speaking. Just a moment.” The look of disgust on Peter’s face is unmistakable. This woman represents all that he hates about corporate life. While she does her job with a ridiculous amount of energy, Peter sits in his cubicle of despair, counting down the seconds until his next break.

Every time I see this movie, I become a little more depressed by it. It is an unfortunately realistic take on business life, and it should scare every young person who watches it. Young people like to think they will never become a part of the machine. Yet every year, young people take these menial jobs and become drones for some large company. It is clear that Michael, Samir and Peter hate their jobs and yet they lack the courage to change their lives for the better.

The recurrence of gangsta rap music and Navy SEAL posters is subtle, but very important to show what kind of people Michael, Samir and Peter are. Michael’s admiration for the SEALS gives me the feeling that he has not quite grown up yet, and he still dreams of doing a job that is noble and daring. While he sits staring at a computer screen all day, he must dream of being out in some remote corner of the world, fighting in an elite fighting force. The gangsta rap is a way in which Michael expresses his dislike for authority. Again, this reminds me of a teenage kid, rebelling against his parents by listening to vulgar music.

There is a happy ending in this movie for Peter. He finds a job he can take pride in, and he finds a woman he likes to be with. Michael and Samir on the other hand, still lack the courage and vision to take a simple job that they can find pride in. But with the help of Lawrence and Milton, Peter finds some sort of purpose to his life with a job that he enjoys. Like most of Mike Judge’s other work, Office Space celebrates the working class. We see in the end that maybe working outside and getting your hands dirty is not a bad way to make a living. He still might be a drone but he is a drone that is creating things, not fixing bank numbers for Y2K.

[MRHigh]

The non-diegetic soundtrack of Office Space casts a seemingly disjointed light on the narrative events of the movie. It would seem to be out of place in the cubical environment. However, I argue that the music plays a critical role in the formation of the themes and motifs in the film: homophobia and inner-class oppression.

It is important to note that the genre of rap does not acutely classify the music used in Office Space. Aficionados of the larger genre of Hip-Hop (of which I am one) would call the music Gangster Rap. The distinction between Hip-Hop and Gangster Rap is made primarily in lyrical content. While Hip-Hop, traditionally exemplified by “old school” artists such as Jurassic 5 and KRS-1 talk about the day-to-day struggles of life as they perceive it, Gangster Rapper’s speak specifically about life as a “Gangster.” Artists exemplifying this include Easy-E, Mac Dre and 50 Cent (though additional classification my be included based on the area of origination). Traditionally Gangster Rappers are more concerned with a Gangster image and reputation. In addition, Gangster Rap as a whole is primarily made by and directed to the black population. Though this has become less true in recent years, it is still a safe, and insightful generalization today.

As it relates to content of lyrics, Gangster Rap speaks primarily of black on black crime. Selling Crack in the hood, killing rival gang members or drug dealers; these are generally (in the context of the song) related to crimes committed by blacks, against blacks. Now, one might ask, “How does this relate to Office Space, a movie who’s cast of main characters is constructed primarily of white men?” One must first consider the image of a gangster in the larger American sense. To be a Gangster one must be a member of a group (gang) that commits crime. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, most people thought of gangsters as Mafioso. At this time, being a Mobster was something that white men did. This was not entirely due to racist views of the time. It had more to do with the psychology of organized crime. Within a gang, there must be rules (Honor among thieves), for the gang to operate rather then implode. The first rule of all gangs is that no member can rat. In addition most gangs had rules regarding who was fair game and who was off limits. Though no rule was absolute (criminals tend to break the rules) rules where recognized among gang members. Even more interesting then the Mafioso’s exclusion of blacks as members, was their general exclusion of blacks as victims. This was due in large part to another key aspect of organized crime. Crime organizations operate under the cooperation of the community, they gain this cooperation though acts of charity and good will, as well as bribery and physical threats. If a Mobster is to persecute the black community, they must gain cooperation. This would require an equal amount of good will and intimidation. Racism and old world thinking made this undesirable to the point of simply avoiding the situation all together. The primary concern of the Mafia was protection of its people; white criminals and furthering their goals.

In many ways the black gangster is comparable to the Mafioso. He is not concerned with the outside world, those not related to his lively hood. In contrast to the Mafioso, the black gangster has been called a product of his environment (though the same could be said for Irish and Italian Immigrants in the late 19th century). Gangster Rappers adopted this sentiment. In the song “Still in the Game” The rapper Vellquan said, “Trapped in the gutter, all we know is this block shit, the fast life, its like we never had life, the only future I see is from last night.” For this reason, the black gangster is the image which Office Space adopts.

The office workers at InterTec fell oppressed by the social status. Repressed by social the harbor a great deal of anger, as displace by the road rage scene as well as numerous encounters with the fax machine. This anger is extremely similar to the anger expressed in Gangster Rap. Similarly, the characters work in an environment dominated by white men, all seemingly intent on screwing their co-workers. Yet the system of management can be seen to provide a code of conduct, one which justifies the seemingly criminal acts of management against lower raking members of the company. The honor among thieves mentality is extended to the crime which Peter and friends commit against the company. They are stealing from other white-collar men, people who deserve it. They believe this primarily because they are members of this group. This may be compared to the selling of crack in the Gangster Rap world. Using the community they perceive as oppressive to their lives. The necessity for a world populated entirely by white-collar men to facilitate their “criminal” activities is exemplified by the scene between Peter and his new girlfriend when Peter try’s to explain his crime. She see’s his actions as wrong, he writes her off seeing as she doesn’t understand that the victims of the crime are “bad people,” having taken advantage of Peter and his coworkers.

In this way, Gangster Rap perfectly describes the world in which the main characters live and work. Gangster Rap also possesses another similarity to the film; Homophobia.

The workers in the office are generally afraid of homosexuality. In contrast, Peters redneck neighbor is not. This is directly related to his blue-collar job. The fraise “Fuckin-A” plays into this them. Peters Neighbor uses this term in the affirmative. The expression refers to fucking in the ass. Peter never uses this term until he is working as a construction worker. The fear of Homosexuality can be seen as a product of the office environment. In order to get ahead in the office one must “fuck” his coworkers and his subordinates. The message of the movie is that in a career where getting ahead is important, screwing people is key. Those participating are understandable self-conscious of this. As a blue-collar worker this is not a necessity. As such, they say “Fuckin-A” mocking the dog eat dog corporate world. Yet the Film doesn’t portray blue collar work much better then the corporate world. In the blue-collar world, as shown by Peters neighbor, the goal is a good women, or two. That is all, no more, no less.

As I see it, the film’s moral is that those who seek to get ahead will have to fuck and be fucked and those who don’t want to fuck men, will seek to fuck women. The darkness of the movie comes from the question of whether there is anything to life beyond fucking?

[L Rosenfield]

I agree that the soundtrack to "Office Space" compliments the movie as well as points out many satirical elements of the film. The characters in this film are basically have all hit some sort of road block in their lives. They are miserable and put up with things that they really shouldn't have to put up with if they wanted to make themselves happy. Instead of giving themselves the lives they deserve, they continue on with their dusty days... until Peterman brings around a change. Peter, the protagonist of the story, decides to put his foot down and follow his bliss... which is so easy to do, but so hard at the same time because then he'd be pretty financially insecure. He recruits his friends who are just about as miserable as himself and they pull off the ultimate gangster move... embezzlement. They take something from the company that took so much away from their lives. In a sense, this is a very juvenile act, but they all got something out of it. An adventure.

[P Baird]

I don’t believe that it is essential to have a career that makes you happy (though it helps, no argument there) in order to live happily. As Michael Bolton states, “if everyone listened to her, there would be no janitors cause no one would want to pick up shit if they had a million dollars.” There will always be jobs in the world that people would rather not do, and don’t find any enjoyment in, however this does not mean they are doomed a Gibbons-esque lifestyle for the remainder of their career. These people simply find their pleasures in life outside of work.

Take for example the custodial worker who works in my residence hall, not a glamourous job by any means but he always seem friendly and approachable. Last Friday while passing in the hall we exchanged brief hi/howareyous to which he replied, “Good, but I’ll be a lot in a couple hours when I’m hunting.” This is what Peter Gibbons lacked. When we see Peter’s home, it doesn’t look all that dissimilar from the IntiTech offices. It’s devoid of color, art, photographs. It is the representation of the lifestyle that Peter has set up for himself. How can Peter expect to escape from a job he hates when there is obviously nothing he feels passionate about outside of work? Peter does have fishing and kung-fu, but rather than focusing on those things that he does enjoy in life (as the custodial worker does) he only focuses on the negative aspects of his life, his job.
Peter’s hesitant approach to things in life also contributes to his unhappiness. He “gets the feeling” that his girlfriend might be cheating on him, but he doesn’t do anything about it. He’s angry about not being able to go fishing with Lawrence, however he doesn’t do anything about it until Lawrence convinces him to try to duck out of work early. Peter is frustrated with the way things are going in his life yet he refuses to try to fix these problems on his own. There will always be jobs in the world that one does not derive pleasure from, but as long as your not a Peter about it and can find some kind of pleasure or passion outside of work there is no reason you can’t work at one of these jobs, and lead a fulfilling happy life.