This Weekend’s Film Festival – Office Romance

Office romances are always tricky affairs. That applies to them on screen as well. With the delightful (500) DAYS OF SUMMER now on DVD and Blu-ray, This Weekend's Film Festival looks at some great screen office romances. Some of the best romantic comedies involve love in the workplace such as classics like THE APARTMENT and HIS GIRL FRIDAY, as well as contemporary satires like BROADCAST NEWS. This lineup finds shop clerks bickering, sadomasochism, high-powered business partners and a rogue sports agent and the woman that completes him.

(500) DAYS OF SUMMER finds love at a greeting card company. Tom, played by the always wonderful Joseph Gordon-Levitt, went to school to be an architect, but has fallen into a comfortable rut penning prose for birthday greetings. Summer, played by the charming Zoey Deschanel, is hired and Tom is smitten from the start, but he's too shy to make a move. After a night of karaoke with co-workers, Summer flirts with Tom and their relationship begins. Even though Summer says she doesn't believe in love, Tom thinks she is his soul mate. The film knows how office romances work when one of the participants is shy. Tom tries not so subtly to draw Summer into conversations by trying to woo her by playing her favorite music at his desk. As I said in my original review, "It understands that there are two people in a relationship and that hope and love (or infatuation) can cloud the clear signs that what one person is feeling isn’t the same as the other. How love clicks is always a mystery. As we flip through the days, we see how Tom fell hard and how Summer was simply Summer."

Miklos Laszlo's stag play PARFUMERIE has been adapted to the screen many times, but none finer than as Ernst Lubitsch's THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER. Alfred Kralik, played by James Stewart with his usual charm and wit, and Klara Novak, played with a neurotic touch by Margaret Sullavan, have been engaged in a sweet pen pal romance. Then they meet as clerks at a department store where they become adversaries. Upon arranging a meeting of the pen pals, Alfred discovers that his mystery woman is Miss Novak and from that point on he is determined to change her mind about him without revealing that he is her letter-writing Mr. Right. The story has fun with the irony of rivals being in love with one not knowing it. It also understands the dynamics of the workplace where clerks apprenticed in order to move up. As I said in my original review, "The dialogue is witty and all the actors deliver with great timing… [Lubitsch] never pulls punches with the comedy or the dramatic moments."

"I guess many boss/secretary relationships are sadomasochistic, but no other film has ever made that so literal," to quote my original review of SECRETARY. Mr. E. Edward Grey, played by the master of sexual perversion James Spader, is a tough boss. He goes through secretaries so often that he has a neon sign in the window that reads, Secretary Wanted. Freshly out of a mental institution for cutting himself, Lee Holloway, played wonderfully by Maggie Gyllenhaal, is hired. One day, Mr. Grey catches Lee cutting her thighs under her desk. This begins a sadomasochistic relationship between the two where Lee is punished with whippings for typos. But as they get closer, Mr. Grey wonders if they can put this up 24/7. As love affairs go, it's like all great loves where the pair meets needs that others couldn't. In addition to being one of the most unique romances, Steven Shainberg's twisted tale is also a biting satire of workplace relationships.

Mike Nichols' WORKING GIRL is a shrewd look at females' roles in high-powered business. Tess McGill, played in a career best performance from Melanie Griffith, is a smart woman who knows finance, but her Jersey accent, big hair and flashy clothes leave her from being taken seriously as a business mind. She gets a job as the assistant of cutthroat businesswoman Katharine Parker, in an Oscar-nominated performance from Sigourney Weaver, who tries to pass Tess's big idea off as her own. So when her boss is injured in a skiing accident, Tess assumes her identity and hooks up with businessman Jack Trainer (Harrison Ford). And when I say hooks up I mean it both romantically and professionally. As she says, Tess has a mind for business and a bod for sin. Trainer falls for both sides. As I said in my original review, "The film rides high on the 'loser can win it all' sentiment. However, it also offers intelligent commentary on the demands put on women for them to succeed in business."

JERRY MAGUIRE, one of the best romantic comedies, just happens to be an office romance as well. Jerry Maguire, played by Tom Cruise in an Oscar nominated performance, is a ruthless sports agent, who has a conflict of conscience and pushes for his company to develop closer relationships with clients instead of looking at them as simply money-making opportunities. This, of course, leads to him getting fired. On his way out, he calls for those who believe in his idea to follow him. Accountant Dorothy Boyd, played irresistibly by Rene Zellweger, pops up and joins him. He's only able to retain one client, Rod Tidwell, played by Cuba Gooding Jr. in an Oscar-winning performance. He's a cocky wide receiver who Jerry wishes would put the same heart into his playing as he does in his relationship with his wife Marcee (Regina King). Dorothy believes in Jerry, which makes him a better man. He connects with her cute son Ray (Jonathan Lipnicki), but as always he has a hard time being alone, but has difficulty emotionally committing. As I said in my original review, "The film is about putting your heart into relationships and careers."

To join in this office fling simply head to the videostore, update the Netflix queue, visit HelloMovies.com for streaming sites, check out Zap2It.com for TV listings, or help out the site by purchasing the films on DVD or Blu-ray at the links below.