OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY

Jason Bateman   Olivia Munn   T. J. Miller   Jennifer Anniston   Kate McKinnon   Courtney B. Vance   Rob Corddry

          This is a movie for people who like silliness and absurdity, who think heavy drinking, drugs and major destruction are funny—and there were certainly those present at the screening I attended.  The more outrageous the comment or behavior, the more they laughed.  So if this is your cup of tea, the way you relax during a stressful time of the year, then Office Christmas Party is for you.

         The father of Carol (Anniston) and Clay (Miller) left them his successful IT company, and Carol, Miss Goody-Two-Shoes in the family, runs it with an iron fist (no velvet glove).  Her biggest irritant is her brother Clay who was always favored by their father, despite his messing up and his sister being the much high achiever.  The situation right before Christmas is that Carol intends to lay off 40% of the employees in Clay’s branch because although they earned a profit, it wasn’t high enough for Carol.  And above all there would be no Christmas party and no end-of-year bonuses.

         Leave it to Hollywood to solve the problem with the biggest party blowout ever, one that will host a major athlete, as well as a potential billionaire partner.  Of course, it won’t go smoothly, and most of the story chronicles the mayhem and havoc that will ensue, ending up with the, nowadays required, car chase.  You will guess ahead of time how it will all turn out.

        The movie is so formulaic, not only will the viewer be able to figure out the conclusion, but from moment to moment, he/she will be able to anticipate what will happen next, given a stereotypical set-up.  The major flaw in the film is the script from six(!) writers drawn from who knows how many previous movies.  The direction (Josh Gordon and Will Speck), music (Theodore Shapiro), cinematography (Jeff Cutter), and acting are of reasonable quality; it’s just that with a story this lame and without any creativity whatsoever the whole show is doomed.

        If there is any weight to this picture at all, it is in its depiction of sibling rivalry and how parents might script out their children’s lives unfairly.  Unfortunately, the siblings are shown to be so one-dimensional, they become caricatures, and while change takes place, it’s not plausible from what came before.

This is a Christmas party you probably won’t want to go to.

Grade:  F                                    By Donna R. Copeland

MOTHER'S DAY

Julia Roberts   Kate Hudson   Jennifer Anniston   Jason Sudeikis   Timothy Olyphant   

Britt Robertson   Margo Martindale   Aasif Mandvi

          Mother’s Day is for people who like sitcoms, and this will be a treat for them because it extends for two hours.  Sitcoms are noted for their canned laughter tracks, but this film has a script that is canned.  Pick any incident/joke/situation in sitcoms, and it is plugged in here somewhere, pulling your heartstrings one moment, making you laugh at another, pulling for worries and tears at still another, and on and on.  When a character goes to a vending machine for candy, it reminded me of how the filmmakers seemed to have gone to a machine for script scenes and pushed just about every button.

       We see a newly divorced couple where the ex-husband has taken a younger, more attractive wife, a successful career woman who has yet to experience the ultimate satisfaction of motherhood (but at least she’s not the stereotypical b----), a mixed race marriage, an adopted child as an adult looking for her mother (she can’t commit to a relationship until she finds her), and a Lesbian couple.  They all run into the usual problems—clearly of their own making—develop insight, make discoveries, and all of it is wrapped up into a tidy bow at the end. 

      On the more positive side, the actors’ skills in their art/craft are readily apparent.  Foremost is Julia Roberts (Miranda) as the charming, attractive product pusher on television.  She is Pretty Woman become wiser and more sophisticated.  (As an aside, Garry Marshall directed that and this picture.)  Britt Robertson (Kristin) is captivating in her portrayal of complex emotions and ambivalence.  Jason Sudeikis (Bradley) and Timothy Olyphant (Henry) are convincing as men at sea, feeling out of control in life.  Jennifer Anniston (Sandy) and Kate Hudson (Jesse) have been well schooled to expertise in their roles.  Margo Martindale (Flo) always meshes hand-in-glove with mothers of a certain type (although she is not by any means restricted in her range, e.g., on television’s “The Americans”, in which she plays a Russian spy.  Other supporting characters’ performances are exemplary, which may speak to Marshall’s direction and to Gail Goldberg’s and Barbara J. McCarthy’s casting.

      I have no idea what the premise is of Mother’s Day—it’s certainly not a weighty message.  I think that to some extent, it is Hollywood producers’ fantasy that somehow life bumps along, and everybody gains insight and a good heart and it will all turn out in the end.  Mothers will be tolerant and forgiving, divorcees will pull together putting the past behind them and becoming loving friends, and above all, mothers and children will be reunited lovingly. 

        So spake Zarathrustra.  Not.  Alas for this script, Zarathrustra observed that to plunge the depths of the world, creativity is required; a “recipe” as presented here is not sufficient.

A collection of stories that may or may not ring true.

Grade:  C-                                    By Donna R. Copeland