MovieChat Forums > Employee of the Month (2006) Discussion > Employee of the Month In A Nutshell

Employee of the Month In A Nutshell

posted 18 years ago by clevernick_name
2 replies | jump to latest

Want to know why I don't it when films get hip and ironic? Because it turns a moving story into one that mocks you for caring what happens, and an intelligent film into one that plays dumb to seem cool. Here's a classic example: Matt Dillon's life spirals out of control when he's arbitrarily fired and dumped by his fiancée on the same day, and he turns to booze, hookers, and Steve Zahn for solace. At times a sober drama, occasionally an acerbic comedy (as in Zahn's misogynistic monologues), Employee of the Month is an all-around pretty entertaining picture... until the final fifteen minutes, when a tacked-on epilogue pulls the rug out from under you for bothering to get invested in the characters. There are not one, not two, but six twist endings that redefine everything you thought you knew, all in whiplash-inducing rapid succession. Layer Cake might have a similarly ironic ending, but at least it didn't lie to you before it slapped you in the face.

"Consistency is the last resort of the unimaginative."
-Oscar Wilde

[–] Kotter7579 18 years ago

The film was highly predictable, and it wasn't very good from the get-go. Sure, some funny moments were there. The friend played by Steve Zahn was a bit too loud and annoying. Still: too predictable, with the only great moments coming during the credits when we got to see "a little more" as they revealed some other stuff.

This is a highly-sophistimicated doowacky.

[–] martina-68 16 years ago

I always love the movie critic that can't get his butt of the family couch and get out and get a job to support his family, but instead stays home watching and right movie reviews while the wife is at work. Great funny movie if you watch it as your supposed to, as a simple comedy with a cute story line. Unlike George here who has to find some meaning in a film meant to entertain not to be psycho analyzed by some idiot who can't get a job. No wonder why your wife left you, in a "nutshell".