BARTLEBY (2002) ¢ ¢ 1/2
D: Jonathan Parker
Crispin Glover, David Paymer, Glenne Headly,
Joe Piscopo, Maury Chaykin, Seymour Cassel,
Dick Martin, Carrie Snodgress
Crispin Glover and his trademark weirdness take on the title role in this oddball update of a story by Herman Melville. A funereal presence in a stiff black suit, Bartleby's the latest drone hired to file records in a nondescript office that's all but hermetically sealed from the outside world. His coworkers are a loud-mouthed womanizer (Joe Piscopo), an obnoxious nut case (Maury Chaykin), their exasperated boss (David Paymer), and a deadpan receptionist (Glenne Headly) with a thing for tight skirts and alliteration. They've all mastered the art of looking busy while not doing very much, and you can see where working desk-to-desk with any of them could be a challenge. Stuck together in a confined space, they create something close to workplace hell. Bartleby's problem isn't that he doesn't do very much. It's that he doesn't pretend. Asked to perform any task at all, he responds with a robotic "I would prefer not to," and goes back to staring at the air vent in the ceiling. It's hard to feel much sympathy for the guy. It's easier to sympathize with the boss who's trying to fire him. But if you've ever worked at a miserable office job, and like your comedy strange and dark, this could be worth checking out. Or would you prefer not to?
Maury Chaykin
(1949-2010)
