Rating: 
Summary: A Tale of Reality that Corporate America Denies or Covers Up
Review: Whew,When the director set out to make this film, he did not intend to make the kind of "feel good" movie where the bad guy(s) get what's coming to them and the heroes live happily ever after. Handsome, suave, smile and shake your hand while putting a sharp knife in your back - Chad, (Aaron Eckhart) proposes a cruel contest where he and a more laid-back and non-threatening company type man, Howard set out to meet, romance, seduce, and ultimately dump without warning, an otherwise (as dictated by societal norms) un-datable woman, all in the name of striking a blow by the common, middle management and well-meaning man who has been wronged by the sterotypical gold-digging woman who will only use a man until he can no longer provide her an avenue to a better life. Chad's plan seems to have only one victim, and that is the woman who the pair will use and abuse prior to leaving her high and dry and without anything left including her pride. As we can determine early on, Chad is the type who does not have any trouble meeting and obtaining the company of women, but his counterpart is the type who is not as comfortable or confident with his own ability to meet and please women, and therefore tends to date much less, but for longer periods of time, and he is the one who normally gets "dumped" per se. This movie will have your jaw dropping on many occasions, especially if you have never met the Chad type in the work place or at social gatherings. Ladies, please know that this Chad person probably exists, but his character is truly the composite of every man who your parents and friends have warned you about and every woman who has ever had her heart savagely broken into pieces has a story about. Let this film entertain you and let the characters repulse you, but don't look for any "Shawshank Redemption" type of endings, and when it ends, bask in the awe of being glad that you don't know any Chads, but that every back-stabbing weasel in the corporate office is a potential Chad if you put enough blood in the water. In real life, this would have been a text book case of sexual harassment and/or professional misconduct in the workplace! Summary, a good movie to watch alone, with same-sex friends, or with someone whom you have dated for a long enough time so that you don't set off any early alarms as to "Could he/she be doing this to me?" Happy Viewing, Steve
Rating:
Summary: Not for everyone...
Review: There's a reason that "In the Company of Men", a low budget independent film, the first from writer-director Neil Labute, won an award at the Sundance Film Festival. The reason is not that it is an enjoyable film, but rather that LaBute demonstrates what so few filmmakers are willing to achieve: that film can be art, and not everybody is supposed to understand or like what you are saying. LaBute captures the self-absorption and resulting cruelty that EVERY alpha male raised in a fraternal corporate environment ever subscribed to - all roled into the unforgettable character of Chad. Using his persuasive skills to get his boss, Howard (Matt Malloy) to go along in this exercise of cruelty, Chad plays the game to the max. Along the way the audience gets the feel for the impersonable, alien corporate environment and good old boy atmosphere so recognizable in the U.S. Chad is portrayed instinctively by young actor Aaron Eckhart, who has traveled with LaBute through this and all subsequent films, sometimes in minor character roles. Eckhart and LaBute obviously have their pacing and teamwork together - Eckhart portrays Chad effortlessly! LaBute should be congratulated for not allowing "the happy ending", instead twisting his conclusion to find yet another villainous side of Chad. The DVD is dark, with few special features, and since almost all of the film takes place indoors (an early LaBute signature), the darkness of the tale is heightened by the appearance of the film. Striking out as a writer/director with a "different voice" (ala John Sayles) LaBute made his mark with "In the Company of Men" - and it is a fascinating study for serious film watchers.
Rating: 
Summary: If you've ever been jilted by a woman....
Review: Try this one on for size and comfort. Interesting background on this. I had recently been having some major problems with my ex wife, my friend had been cheated on and dumped by his girlfriend. We decide to rent In The Company of Men. Instead of being shocked and disgusted by Chad, this guy became our champion. In the time we watched this film, he became every man's cult hero. Just a guy who was ruthless and didn't give a damn. It turned our broken hearts into pure steel. The scene where he brutally dumps the def girl, we played over and over and over again, laughing our heads off. It was a healing experience. Needless to say neither of us could be as cold as Chad, but it was nice to pretend if for a little while. So any guy out there who has had a woman lie, cheat or break your heart. Pop this one in for a spin and let some male agression pour out in one big blow.
Rating:
Summary: Good video, but it's hard to watch the cruelty
Review: Cruelty takes many forms. This film is about the emotional kind. Two young corporate men, on a six-week company assignment in a small city, plot to seduce and then dump an vulnerable deaf young woman. The idea is to hurt someone and some of this is hard to watch, especially when the more vicscious of the two makes sick jokes about her handicap. The actors are unknowns but they do an outstanding job, and the screenplay is well written, although a bit long. Some interesting concepts are raised, particularly about the one-upmanship and power plays that hurt and destroy. At the end of the movie, one of the men deeply regrets what he has done and realizes he has also be duped by his supposed friend. "Why?" he asks. "Because I could," is the answer.
Rating:
Summary: Stunning
Review: In the Company of Men is a strikingly original and intelligent film. As others have commented, the set design is thin, and the cinematography stark and, at times, a little bland, but these factors only provide a less obtrusive background for the real forces present on screen - dazzling peformances and a biting, at times hilarious, and at times heartbreaking, script. Eckhart's performance is sensational. He portrays a truly evil man of a frightening variety - he is not an idealogue, nor does he even care about committing cruel acts in the presence of an audience. He inflicts cruelty for very personal satisfaction. In fact, Eckhart is so good that you begin to question the real motives behind is behavior, and this ambiguity makes his final act with his victim even more troubling. Stacy Edwards is excellent as the victim, and, unlike a reviewer below, I found her both beautiful and strong. She is treated abhorrently, and the scene where she realizes the truth is searing, but she is a surivor, and a redemptive figure. Her treatment by Eckhart is all the more foreign because she is a wonderful, attractive person whose disability, which induces the practical joke in the first place, seems irrelevant, and even a source of unique strength by the film's end. Matt Malloy does well as the dupe - a man who has a few shreds of decency left under a coat of acceptance-seeking-at-any-cost fibers. He loses something that he can never recover in exchange for a few scraps of false manhood. The torture he feels by the film's end is achingly immediate, yet it is impossible to sympathize with or even pity him. This movie makes you think, and, if you watch it with others, debate. It is multi-layered, and, although not a thriller in the traditional sense, has more than enough emotional twists. Fantastic.
Rating:
Summary: Meat and gristle and hatred
Review: I usually do not review movies on Amazon unless it is a movie that is profound and left me pondering. This is one such movie. For those of you guys who are interested in watching/buying it, may I suggest that you do not watch it on a romantic "movie night out." This show will evaporate any romantic mood you may have. Trust me on this one. It can turn your girlfriend into a misandrist. For the ladies, if you want to watch it, please prepare yourself and keep an open mind... As most reviewers already said, this is one heck of a disturbing movie. The premise is that 2 men (Chad and Howard) are out to "play" a woman, make her fall in love, and then rip her heart out, figuratively speaking. Since it isn't a Hollywood stylized movie, don't expect a happy and cozy ending. Some of the scenes are quite provocative yet realistic. I can see it happening in ordinary day-to-day living. You're more likely to see a scene in this movie than a scene in than cutesy "My Best Friend's Wedding." Because this is a dark comedy, most people will not be comfortable with it. It isn't something we expect to see, since it conflicts a lot with our own moral ethics. The technicalities of the movie is quite poor, and I'm going to have to deduct 1 star for that. Video and sound quality is really awful, poorer than the average Indie movie. There are very few sound effects, hardly any musical, and the voice recordings have static. Video quality is grainy and low in saturation, it really look like playing from a VCR (even though I'm watching the DVD version). Here's more extraneous info: my take on the moral of this story is that if you are a guy, don't be a jerk like Chad. But also, don't be a wishy-washy weakling like Howard; stand your ground, and don't get pushed around. Both characters have their strengths and weakness. But I think both end up being the losers, even though the movie victimizes Howard more since he is the "nice guy." I thought Howard would have more of a backbone, but I am disappointed that in the end, he never really stood up for himself.
Rating:
Summary: Saga of Chad
Review: Why is Chad so frightening? Because Society is full of Chads. Around every corner there is some version of Chad: a cruel, unscrupulous, good-looking, highly intelligent person along his lines, who will not only NOT get what's coming to him, but through guile, hypocrisy and ruthlessness rise and devour. In addition, elements of Chad exist in almost everyone, male or female, which if given a chance to operate without personal cost, will always tend to assert themselves to RULE and EXPLOIT the weak. In a Hollywood movie Chad would've ended up ruined for his evil deeds while the Hollywood Chads behind the scenes collected a fat profit laughing their heads off at the naivete of the public. In LaButte's Indie film Chad gets it all, beautiful woman, position and sadistic kicks without any personal cost whatever. "In the Company of Men" is not a 'great' film by any means, but an especially important one nevertheless. LaButte and Eckhart's fully realized 'white collar' villain commemorates, for easier identification, the readily sensed but rather vague 'evil techniques' of countless Chad-type predators throughout society. Future victims of Chads now possess a secret weapon; and not only that, the Chadlike elements present within every person will, for anyone who has seen this film, find it harder to assert themselves without complex and ever more evasive rationalizations.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant and Provocative
Review: I consider this to be one of the best films of the 90s. Not only is it wickedly funny and heartwrenchingly cruel, it has that rare power of causing extreme feelings in jaded movie viewers. People either absolutely love this movie or absolutely hate it. I believe that the ability to cause such viewer dissension is the true genius of Neil LaBute. Regardless of whether you liked it or hated it at least "In the Company of Men" made you feel something. Most movies nowadays are so afraid to stray from trite formulaic storylines that we viewers leave the theater with no feelings and no lasting impressions of what we just saw. At least "In the Company of Men" makes you uncomfortable, makes you squirm, and makes you think that yes, people have an astounding capacity for cruelty. I think most people who hated this movie hated it because it hit a little too close to home. No one wants to think about the times that they have been cruel to others. Unfortunately, every one of us can see a little bit of Chad in ourselves and that is what repells and horrifies us. Get over the low budget look and see the film for what it really is. It is not a sickeningly sugary Meg Ryan/Tom Hanks piece of drivel. Those of you who do not like to be challenged or pushed to think by a movie should stick with the standard Hollywood eye candy fare. "In the Company of Men" is so much more and to fully appreciate it, one must have an open mind. Movies nowadays, sell moviegoers vicarious dreams populated with beautiful people and fairytale endings. But they are just that, dreams. "In the Company of Men" shows us the harsh reality and for those who can't handle the real world, bury your head in the sand and rent a Julia Roberts flick. The real twister of the movie(and one that many viewers do not grasp) is that Chad really does fall in love with his victim but even love does not conquer all. His love for her is not enough to make him care about what happens to her after he's completed his destructive plan. Instead of hating Chad, we should pity him. He is so numb and dead inside that even love cannot make him feel.
Rating:
Summary: PERVERSELY SADISTIC BUT INTRIGUING
Review: A fairly unusual indie offering with mean characters. Not Hannibal type evil mean with bizarre psychological underpinnings or deep-seated childhood traumas. Just plain-jane obnoxious jerks indulging in unabashed stupidity, perversion, racism, etc. The movie may as well have been called "In the Company of Jerks". On the scale of off-beat, this is a way off, with its shoestring budget perhaps the only justification. The dialogue may irk some folks, there is a lot of it. But if you like conversations and are looking for something different to take out for a spin, this should fit the bill. Lots of long takes, fixed camera, and the music (or lack of it) is perfect to create the overall gruff feel. Worthy rental.
Rating:
Summary: Horrifying
Review: Neil Labute's In The Company of Men is a misogynistic look at the way men has to conquer women in and out of the bedroom. The great Aaron Eckhart plays a womanizer who makes a bet with a fellow co-worker to seduce a young deaf woman, and dump her in order to feed their misogynistic egos. In their pursuit of this innocent woman, they wine and dine her, and ultimately humiliate her in such a way that can only be describes as inhuman, and evil. Neil Labute's psychological masterpiece is a very sobering look at the game both sexes play, and the cruelty that we can inflict on ourselves. Prepare to be disturbed.
|
