Rating: 
Summary: Office Temps finally get their due in the movies
Review: Anyone who has ever worked as an office temp can identify with the feelings of uselessness and frustration that is protrayed by all 4 of the main characters in this film. Each girl wants to make their mark on this little corner of corporate America; but they meet with constant obstacles. The ultimate goal is to become a permanant employee of the Dilbert-esque company. The corporation is so boring that the only way to describe it is "beige." However, when a complete outsider is hired, strange things start to happen at work. The silent permanent employee is perfectly cast in her role. She never utters a word; yet she speaks volumes. Imagine a meek little church mouse in pitifully thick Coke-bottle glasses who is assigned to be the personal secretary of the President of the company. She squares-off with Toni Collette (who is wonderful, as always) and the sparks fly despite her lack of words. This video is great for anyone in the mood to completely concentrate on a film. It was my favorite Independent Film of 1998.
Rating: 
Summary: Brilliantly Boring!
Review: This movie was full of zany and often wacko characters that you just wish you worked with. When a shy reserved woman comes to work at a credit office as a temp, she meets 3 other temps who bring out the fun in her. Lisa Kudrow is excellent, and suprisingly is not her usual airhead. Parker Posey was hillarious, and brought out a character only she could. This is a boring tale about 4 friends who find spice in their bland life. Although strange and unusual, this movie made me want to keep watching. IT'S PRETTY COOL!!
Rating:
Summary: A great Human Resources Film
Review: I was very impressed with this little gem of a film. Toni Collette is brilliant with her role. She has come a long way from "Muriels Wedding" and has made quite a name for herself as a character actor. Lisa Kudrow plays a great cynic. Parker Posey holds her trademark dark spritely self and does a great scene where she gets fired. All in all this movie presents a excellent interpretation of todays American office politics and how people in todays workforce are underpaid, underappreciated and are continually thrown to the way side. This movie holds well and makes you feel right along with what is going on within the film. I saw this movie on Starz just recently and I recommend seeing it for free first before buying this on DVD since this movie isn't all that great on DVD with the exception of wide screen format. Cheers!
Rating:
Summary: surprisingly good!
Review: I'd never heard of this film before seeing it. It was showing on Austar TV and I was just flicking through channels before stumbling across it. I found after the first 5 minutes of just watching the start out of curiousity I ended up getting completely hooked and watching the entire film -- and I loved it. I never really cared much for Toni Collete or Lisa Kudrow but I do love Parker Posey. As soon as I saw her first appear in the film I just knew this wasn't going to be any ordinary comedy. All the actors in this film deliver flawless performances and the characters are just like most people you encounter in the workplace. It's deliciously cynical and dark, making fun out of the most ordinary and mundane situations - but it has a very profound and thought-provoking message in the end that makes the film seem sad overall. This film has everything; comedy, drama, suspense and a touch of romance. A clever and edgey comedy which may appeal to those who enjoyed films such as Ghost World or Office Space. 5 stars are not enough!
Rating:
Summary: If you like dark comedies
Review: You might raise my rating by one; if you dislike them, lower it by one star.
Several temps work in a non-descript office. They share the fate of the ignored, unappreciated temporary worker who is neither a member of the staff, nor an outsider. Call them in-betweeners.
Toni Collette stars as the prototypical mousy temp. Lisa Kudrow and Parker Posey are her co-workers.
There really isn't much of a plot, beyond the strange interactions between the female temps and the 'real' employees of the company. Toni Collette plays Iris Chapman, who is hired after passing a typing test of sorts, using invoices she's not to mess up because they are 'expensive'. She gets the job in spite of botching more than a few of the expensive forms, which she puts in her purse, then disposes of them in the company restroom.
The film is long on atmospherics, long, lazy shots of the impersonal office, complete with the madding muzak music constantly playing in the background. I was expecting for one of these women to go berserk, but the meltdowns seemed to be mainly internal.
I'd recommend this movie for the thoughful moviegoer who can appreciate a slow, deliberate film that seeks to explain and explore the repressed and the timid in the workplace, and how they manage to (generally) maintain their sanity in an indifferent world.
Rating:
Summary: Funny, yet can hit a little close to home
Review: As someone who has been both a "perm" and a "temp," I find much in "Clockwatchers" to be completely truthful. Where "Office Space" (a movie I also loved) offered a cathartic revenge fantasy, "Clockwatchers" dares to tell it like it is -- that dead-end jobs really have no way out or up -- even if it is dreary and depressing.There is humor, but rather than the cartoonish humor of "Office Space," "Clockwatchers" shows the ridiculous in little everyday workplace happenings: playing with the adjustment mechanisms on your chair, popping sheets of bubble wrap, or using Liquid Paper as nail polish. The weird combination of emotions that these temps go through -- hopelessness and ambition, despair and frivolity, anger mixed with s**t-eating grins -- are extremely realistic and something that those in a similar work situation can probably easily relate to. The performances are outstanding, especially Toni Collette and Parker Posey. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Small Movie, Big Kudos
Review: I liked this film a lot. Besides the fact that I like to support smaller, independent films (especially since this one features a lot of women in front of and behind the scenes), CLOCKWATCHERS is simply an entertaining show! It has a smart tone, and is a close cousin to OFFICE SPACE (featuring that *other* FRIENDS star, Jennifer Aniston). The story is engrossing and concerns a pack of temps. Toni Collette plays Iris, who starts out as a timid, shy and introverted person. Her encounters with the other girls changes her (especially with the outspoken and quirky character played by Parker Posey - she's great in this!). Toni Collette is very good here - and although she is an Academy Award nominated actress (THE SIXTH SENSE) it's funny how the director's use of a new shade of lipstick is filmatic shorthand for the character change Iris goes through! Lisa Kudrow is not quite as ditzy as she usually is on FRIENDS. It's nice to see her in a different mode. There's not much more story than that. If you've been a temp or work in an office environment you will appreciate this film. The film's theme is about sleepwalking through life and making your mark. Most of the girls cow to the corporate machine. One of them scratches "I was here" on her desk - just to make her mark. There's an interesting subplot about an office thief that gets tied into the movie's theme nicely. Please rent or buy this film. It's not SPIDERMAN, but it deserves your attention. Again, it is a "small-character-study" sort of film. But it is very well done, with excellent performances from its cast.
Rating:
Summary: A MUST SEE!
Review: Clockwatchers is a terrific film that will appeal to anyone who has ever had a job s/he hated, especially if it involved working in an office setting. If you laugh it will be because you are tickled by how accurately the film portrays the nuances of a disfunctional work environment. The characters are fully developed, having common bonds as well as lives outside of the office (complete with their own personal problems and hang-ups). Also, the film works on more than one layer. On the surface, it is a story about a shy girl working in an office and how it changes her. But more than that, it is about how we view work and what we must endure to earn a living. Most importantly, the film is has a lot to say about the concept of time and how we choose to spend it. Spending it watching Clockwatchers is a wise investment! Buy it, watch it, rent it -- LOVE IT!
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