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Employee of the Month
What's so maddening about Employee of the Month is not that there is a twist ending – or, in this case, a couple of twist endings – but that it is non-sensical and, in fact, invalidates earlier scenes in the film.
The employee in question (though he is never given the grandest distinction of "Employee of the Month") is David (Matt Dillon). He's engaged to a wonderful woman (Christina Applegate), has a good job where he's well liked by his co-workers, and a loyal – if twisted – group of friends that includes coroner impersonator Jack (Steve Zahn) and gay unlicensed dentist Eric (Dave Foley). But David is hiding something … a lot of somethings, in fact. And as those "somethings" are revealed, his life seems to spiral out of control.
This is the darkest of dark comedies, which is not a surprise since it comes from the brain of one of the creators of Comedy Central's demented "Strangers with Candy," writer/director Mitch Rouse. It's the type of movie that expects the audience to laugh at a character like Jack, who poses as a coroner in order to rob freshly dead bodies of their jewelry, wallets and other possessions, not to mention the possibility of a office killing spree. If the viewer can manage to disconnect from that, there will be some genuinely funny moments in the madness, including a hilarious scene between David and a hooker named Whisper (played with amusing earnestness by Jenna Fischer).
But after a frantic final five minutes (followed by scenes in the credits that try gamely to piece the plot back together), it feels like the first 90 minutes were all a lie. The twists invalidate large chunks of the movie; either some scenes in the film actually now make no sense, or you have to believe that the climatic action was conceived somewhere in between a late night quasi-rendezvous with a stripper and work the next morning – not nearly enough time to put the pieces into motion. It leaves the viewer (or, to be more precise, this viewer) completely unsatisfied, especially watching on DVD. I could have skipped to the final ten minutes and gotten everything that matters in the film.
It's a shame that the film ends up sabotaged by its own script, because the performances are all top-shelf. Dillon does the difficult job of breathing life into a lead character that, at most times, is detached from his emotions, while Zahn could put himself on auto-pilot and get work in roles like these.
The DVD
Video:
The box front cover has a banner that says "Widscreen." The back cover, in the lower left corner, claims that Employee of the Month is presented in fullscreen "to fit your standard TV." The front of the box is correct – the film is presented in anamorphic widescreen at an aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The colors on the transfer seem very muted, but there are few digital flaws otherwise.
Audio:
The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is mainly in use for the music; there doesn't seem to be any directional sound or ambient effects. The dialogue is clean (well, clear, anyway), though, and the bass on the soundtrack sounds great.
Extras:
There's the theatrical trailer and a photo gallery. Otherwise, you'll get nothing and like it.
Final Thoughts:
The final big scene takes place in a hotel room, with all of the characters together. When you get to this scene, stop and take the disc out of the player. If you do that, you will end up with a much more favorable impression of Employee of the Month than I am left with, having watched a perfectly acceptable dark comedy spin and twist itself right into the ground.
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