MovieChat Forums > The Secret of My Succe$s (1987) Discussion > Brantley's job search in the beginning -...

Brantley's job search in the beginning - question

posted 17 years ago by gfnoyes
9 replies | jump to latest

okay, this is one thing about this movie I never understood

when Brantley showed up at the place he was supposed to work at, and found out he no longer had a job due to a hostile takeover, I thought it was bad enough that he never even called Brantley to tell him, instead of making him go to all of that expense to move out there for that job

but that's not the main thing I don't understand

when he went to that first job interview, the guy told him that they needed someone with experience

but then when he went to that second job, the woman said "What impresses me most is the amount of experience you picked up while still attending college" and then he tells her that he realized that all of those years of college would have been useless without practical hardnosed business experience

my question is - where was this experience for the first job he interviewed for? How did he have it at the next job interview, but not the first one?

and as far as her asking him if he could be a minority woman, isn't that discrimination?

I think that woman looked familiar, didn't she used to do those old Pollident commercials?

[–] xan00 17 years ago

"my question is - where was this experience for the first job he interviewed for? How did he have it at the next job interview, but not the first one?"

he just made up that he had experience for the 2nd interview because he must have assumed that since the first place was looking for experience they'd all look for experience so basically he was lying when he said he had experience.

[–] gfnoyes 17 years ago

I actually thought of that possibility, but the truth would have come out as soon as a background check was done, so I wasn't sure if that would have made too much sense

[–] pndferpnd 17 years ago

Lordy, lordy, lordy...

He didn't lie. The woman interviewer considered the stuff he did in college to be desirable experience whereas the guy at the first interview did not, and when the woman showed this, Brantley just repeated what the first guy said about "Hard-nosed, practical business experience". As far as the woman looking familiar, if you have ever seen Innerspace, she played the woman from Martin Short's dream who pulled a gun/lighter on him.

"True wisdom comes from knowing that you know nothing. That's US, Dude!"

[–] bryggreen 17 years ago

BS! I've had a few interviews and they never conducted background checks. Not every company does them. He may have lied but I can buy that no one did a backgound check on him and he got the job because he was the CEO's nephew and it didn't matter. Unless you guys know, it's who you know in this world that get's you the good jobs, not always what you know. I don't have a college degree and make $106K year in Utah and do just fine. It's who you know and not always what degree you have and what you know. Sorry, that's life ;)

b

[–] todd gaines 16 years ago

he obviously made it up. In teh first interview they told him he don't have enough experience, so he "gave himself more" for the second.

[–] chefz2 16 years ago

There's experience, and then there's experience. Many big companies don't care about your diplomas, projects or volunteer work, but will care if you were successful on the field. In other words, were you worth paying for? Other companies really like the idea that you care enough about your chosen profession to put some time and/or money behind it- it shows you're willing to work hard. Every company is different, but the key is, they want someone who knows what they are doing, and preferably, know the ropes. Kids like Brantley may have stayed awake in economics, but that doesn't mean they know how to translate that to real business. But let's say that a company does hire him, train him and load a bunch on money into his potential? Then they run the risk of another company stealing him away with more attractive offers while not having to foot the costly bill for his experience.

As for the "can you be a minority woman" thing. That's affirmative action.

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] toffeesi 14 years ago

Its one of the "jokes"

His 1st interview they say he has no experience - so in his next one his makes up a load of cock and bull which makes him sound REALLY experienced - she loves him & tells him he is perfect for the job - but the kicker is he is not a minority woman!!!

[–] greatdarkspot-1 13 years ago

He didn't make anything up, he just 'tarted up' his resume. No doubt he'd had summer jobs and the like - what he did is just put fancy titles on his summer jobs, like 'Junior Purchasing Agent'.