Office Christmas Party
(2016)Party like your job depends on it.
TJ Miller (Silicon Valley), Kate McKinnon (Ghostbusters), Jason Bateman and Jennifer Aniston lead this Christmas comedy about an office party that skyrockets into lunacy. From the directors of Blades of Glory.... More
When his uptight CEO sister (Aniston) threatens to shut down his branch, the manager (Miller) throws an epic Christmas party in order to land a big client and save the day.Hide
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Directed by Josh Gordon, Will Speck
Starring T.J. Miller, Kate McKinnon, Jason Bateman, Jennifer Aniston, Olivia Munn, Jamie Chung, Abbey Lee, Karan Soni, Jillian Bell, Rob Corddry
Written by Justin Malen, Laura Solon, Dan Mazer
Out Now (On-Demand,
DVD or Blu-Ray)
On Demand, DVD & Blu-Ray
Available from 6 providers
Flicks Review
BY Steve Newall Flicks Writer
Jason Bateman and Jennifer Aniston are in another comedy together, and so you can pretty much guess what that means - he’ll sleepwalk through being the everyman emotional core of the pic, and she’ll be some version of mainstream-friendly outrageous. They’re but two of the core cast of Office Christmas Party, which at times resembles a Frankenstein’s hybrid between their prior generic comedy fare like Horrible Bosses and sprawling ensemble-driven multi-narratives in the vein of Love Actually or New Year’s Eve.... More
As the title suggests, Office Christmas Party relies on a threadbare comedy trope - the crazy, out-of-control party - and comedians stranded mid-way between cameos and true supporting roles (T.J. Miller, Kate McKinnon, Vanessa Bayer, Rob Corddry). No-one really steps up to own proceedings, let alone the writers, and as a consequence the film drifts along from familiar beat to familiar beat without anyone giving the 100% needed to elevate this beyond a simply functional comedy. In fact, it falls to Courtney B. Vance (deserving Emmy-winner as Johnny Cochran in The People v. OJ Simpson) to ramp things up, playing against type as a straight-laced dude who - wait for it - loses his shit when - hold on - he gets a faceful of cocaine due to a mishap with a snow machine.
Like many a real office Christmas, you’d be correct to go into this film with low expectations. They’ll eventually be met - but no more - with a few chuckles, even a laugh along the way, but the overall experience won’t be anything you’ll particularly care to remember the following day.Hide
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Office Christmas Party
BY Adeybaby nobody
I generally see anything with Jason Bateman in it. His reactions to absurd situations can generally carry a movie. Throw in the Silicon Valley guy, SNL's Hillary Clinton and a half-decent script and you should have the ingredients for 90 minutes of distraction. It's the half-decent script that is missing. You can really tell that they got the title and worked backwards. Certainly don't see it on a big screen - it only emphasises the hollowness.
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The Press Reviews
The perfect seasonal gift. Or would be, if only Office Christmas Party delivered its gags with a little more frequency. Full Review
Everyone’s favourite Ghostbuster does the film a heap of small mercies... Full Review
It’s a frenetic grab bag of strained shtick, however expertly delivered by ace comic performers. Full Review
In a year of Bad Moms, Bad Santas and Bad Neighbours, this is, essentially, Bad Employees: another irresponsible-adults comedy, another great cast, and another erratic script. Catch it for McKinnon. Full Review
Turn them loose, and this cast has nearly endless potential to be outrageous, and yet, the script...keeps interrupting the festivities with unnecessary details about whether the company will even be around tomorrow. Full Review
It's a film destined for iTunes rental status, but kept from flatlining with a pretty dependable string of stupid yet funny one-liners... Full Review
Sometimes the movie, directed by Josh Gordon and Will Speck, is too obviously just a framework for its stars to deploy goofy schtick, but the overall package is naughty, inappropriate fun. Full Review
If you brave it sober, many of the jokes fall flat, the party scenes become grating and the characters become borderline insufferable. Full Review
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