Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Week 26: Office Space

Dear Avid Reader,

"I'm different. I have a different constitution, I have a different brain, I have a different heart. I got tiger blood, man."

Thank you Carlos Irwin Estevez. You are a genius.

I Don't Really Like Talking About My Flair

Fantasy. Reality. What is the difference? I'm not sure anymore.

Everyone loves the movie Office Space. That is a given. Well at least cool people love it. All uncool people should stop reading and start watching.

I Wouldn't Say I've Been Missing It Bob

The core of the film is the "working man's blues". Job sucks, girlfriend's cheating on me, friends are no help. And of course the movie takes us on the journey of how Peter overcomes this by altering his persepctive on his life.

I'd like to take this moment to remark on how convincing the switch over from sad sack to rocks star is. For a light comedy the acting is great. Whenever I re-watch the movie, I'm always struck by how beat down Peter is early on. The time the character spends as a loser is so short, I fully expect the movie to begin when Peter walks in to Chotskies to ask Joanna out. That's how cool the movie is. It surprises me every time even though I've seen it twenty times.

The Ratio Of People To Cake Is Too Many

So as I watched the flick today and I realized that Peter's fantasy life is just like his real life, but more honest. In his fantasy he tells his bosses what he really thinks. He doesn't unleash his rage, he is simply expressing his true self. He's able to talk to Joanna in a similar way. Not in an overly romantic way, just that he want to try and date her.

The key example is how he encounters his actual work. He had been doing nothing during the hours he was working before the hypnotist, but after the session, he no longer hides this fact. Nothing actually changed except that he accepts the truth of what he actually does during the day. His fantasy is to be more honest about his reality. His fantasy, in a way, is realer than his reality.

I Can't Believe What A Bunch Of Nerds We Are, We're Looking Up "Money Laundering" In The Dictionary

The most important scene, for me, is when Tom is talking with the Bobs. Tom knows that he actually does nothing of value for the company he works for. But he also knows that he must try and keep this fact a secret in order to stay employed. In the same way the Bobs do not reveal that their intention is to find out who they can lay-off without disrupting the company's bottom line. Both parties know the truth about what is happening in the meeting, yet neither is willing engage the reality. Instead they dance. A terrible, sorrowful dance.

This scene is not really a funny scene. It is more of a tragic scene. Hiding intentions and real motives are common in life. No one wants to admit they are selfish, so a game is played instead. The rules are to see who can live with the lie for the longest period of time. Once someone cracks and reveals the truth, they lose. If Tom were to attack the Bobs for being hatchet-men, he'd be seen as rude and if he admits that he doesn't actually do any work, the Bobs can fire him and claim that they had no choice. It's lose lose.

See, no one wants to make a decision. And I'm not sure when it became the norm for managers to avoid making any decisions, but that is exactly what is happening in the workplace. Decisions are tricky things, I understand that. Once a decision is made, it can only go one of two ways, good or bad. Success of failure. And rather than risk making a wrong decision, why not try and manage something without making decisions at all? Try and make it look like your subordinates made the choice. And then, Blame the policy for being unclear. Never make a definitive call, so as to leave a way to wriggle out later. I'm kind of on a soapbox here. Rant complete, back to the essay.

I Believe You Have My Stapler

I guess I wonder what it says when someone's greatest dream is the waking world. All of this bullcrap that stops individuals from true intimacy and honest is borne out of comfort. The lies are nicer and seem less cruel than the truth. But that's just it, they only seem that way, they are actually more cruel. It's a short term gain and a long term loss. And that is what has come to define the last decade. Unsustainable debt. Trading the welfare of the future generations for the care of the current. It's no wonder that our fantasy is a return to reality.

And if we look at Ol' Charlie Sheen's current "breakdown" we can see an extreme case of what the rest of the country feels. He sees no reason to keep his true feelings inside. I don't think he's having a drug breakdown, he's the first astronaut to be launched into the new world of the hyper real. if you think you are better than everyone, that you are a warlock or battle-tested bayonet, why be ashamed of that? Why worry that other people may be put off by your arrogance? After all, you're an F-18, capable of shooting others down in mid-air.

Politeness has become the enemy. The illusion that we are forever altruistic ruining the oceans. No one can't shave straight because there's a fun-house mirror installed above the sink. The one that doesn't tell if a few pounds have been gained. The carnival has become a nightmare.

And that is why Office Space is a great movie. It's not as funny the more you watch it, but in a good way.

Until Next I Blog,

James

1 comment:

Jordan said...

Yep, I'm still reading. And recalculating based on your start date whether you're caught up or not. Lemme just get this calculator working...