BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
(FOUR) OFFICE SPACE
This a “money comedy” about sticking it to the man. It’s not often that you’d think of “comedy about money” when it comes to the cult classic “Office Space”, but the movie is definitely about money when you put thought into it. The movie centers around software engineers who are getting fired or are just fed up with the system. So in order to take their revenge on their dead end job employers they install a hack program into the systems main frame. This computer “virus” was to take the remainders, the fractions of pennies that were left over and then transfer them over to the three disenfranchised computer geeks. This backfires on them when they discover they’ve stolen over $300,000 in just the first few days. So in their paranoia, they panic and even more hilarity ensues.
(THREE) GREEDY
I sadly feel like this movie isn’t known by nearly enough people out there. It came out in 1994 and I think I saw it soon after on a rented VHS from “Blockbuster”. This movie had a great cast including the late great Phil Hartman, Nancy Travis, Ed Begley Jr., and a few other surprises but it was Michael J Fox and Kirk Douglas that rocked this. The movie was about a wheel chair bound old man named “Joe”, played by Douglas, who was very wealthy and lived the life of luxury to back it up. His family all suck up to him in droves and it’s hilarious. One family name all their kids, including girls, variations of “Joe” including a young Kristen Dunst playing “Jolene”. It’s all chaotic and over the top until Michael J. Fox shows up as “Uncle Joe’s” long lost nephew. The twist at the end is predictable in hindsight, but I remember being shocked as hell the first time I saw it and never forgot it. If you’ve not seen this movie and come across it, I’d recommend it. It’s a fun ride with a great cast… a greedy cast.
(TWO) BREWSTER’S MILLIONS
This 1985 comedy is all about money. Richard Pryor and his friend John Candy play for a second rate minor league baseball team. They end up in jail about a bar fight, but get out when a mysterious man offers Pryor(“Brewster”) an insane deal. He is challenged to take one million and walk away or earn $300 with a month’s worth of work. He takes the challenge and his oh so complicated job is to SPEND $30 Million in 30 days. In today’s world that doesn’t sound that hard, but the rules state you cannot have anything to show for it, only 5% to charity and 5% to gambling. Obviously, watching Pryor attempt this feat is hilarious. This is a comedy classic. I don’t get why this movie isn’t mentioned in the same breath as Pryor’s other big works. He’s just awesome in this. This raises the hypothetical question of “how would you spend $30 million in 30 days and have nothing to show for it”. It’s really all about excess and to many folk that’s the ultimate dream after security. Self included.
(ONE) TRADING PLACES
What is there to say about this one? It’s one of the greatest “rag to riches/riches to rags” stories of all time. In 1983 it was even nominated for a Golden Globe, which for an R-Rated comedy is a pretty big deal. Denholm Elliot and Jamie Lee Curtis even won British Academy Awards for this movie. But we all know the true stars of this masterpiece were Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy. I feel like I’m insulting the reader by going over the plot, but I must. It’s about a rich guy played by Aykroyd and a poor guy played by Murphy. Two snobby old rich men place a bet on if they could reverse their roles so the rich and poor man becomes part a social project. The prudish Aykroyd is pushed to live on the streets and fend for himself as Murphy is pampered and given the keys to the world. The reaction of both men in their new environments is hilarious. The little time the two stars share on screen is magical, but this entire movie is a perfect example of what a comedy movie should represent.
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