Review: (Winnipeg) Offices (Fringe)

O Story, Where Art Thou?
by Edgar Governo
@pseudohistorian

Given that Offices was written by Ethan Coen, one half of the Coen Brothers (known for movies such as Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski, and No Country for Old Men), perhaps it should come as no surprise that I felt about the same coming out of it as I do after seeing a Coen Brothers movie: I like individual quotes and scenes, but the whole never comes together for me, and it seems like they could get where they're going without all of the pointless tangents.

There are some interesting themes here about ordinary people going after the life that actually makes them happy and resisting the corporate system in which they're caught--reminiscent of what comes up in something like Barton Fink or even Burn After Reading--but it's all lost in a sea of random bits about co-workers secretly having sex under desks and a MacGuffin of a missing briefcase.

I did enjoy the video transitions between scenes to indicate changes in location (rendered as different sets of blueprints), along with a stand-alone video at the beginning about remembering to wear pants to your job interview, but other than one hilarious line ("Don't act so superior just because you're a bum!"), the dialogue holds little interest outside of its authorship. Sometimes, it's better just to keep things blood simple.

Offices is at the Winnipeg Fringe