[.ca] Office Killer (Widescreen)

From Amazon.com:
Photographer and director Cindy Sherman has obviously always been interested in film. Her well-known Untitled Film Stills, from movies that don't exist--pregnant scenes that seem as though they are in medias res but are really staged--feature diverse characters who, upon closer examination, prove to be Sherman herself, every time. Her 1998 film debut, Office Killer, takes her postmodern playfulness with such narrative frames out of the equation--and leaves us with something more flatly macabre and less subtle than Sherman's other work. Here, Carol Kane plays Dorine, a mousy, lonely, and introverted copyeditor for a consumer publication. Think for a moment what kind of person a copyeditor must be: this is the person whose job, whose passion, it is to know exactly where the apostrophe goes and to know the difference between effect and affect. The pressure can get to you. Tyrannized at home by a domineering mother and tyrannized at work by backstabbing coworkers, downsizing, and newfangled computers, Dorine finds that the copy she cleans up is her only pleasure in life. As pressure builds and builds--Kane's performance exhibits amazing mastery of body language--Dorine finally caves and steps into an insanity that, in a horrifying, animalian fashion, has its own pleasantness and reason. Despite Kane's strong acting here, she is supported by flattish performances from Molly Ringwald, Jeanne Tripplehorn, and Barbara Sukowa. It is unclear if Sherman means to serve or redefine the concept of narrative through this emotional detachment she brings to the screen. Certainly, this isn't a conventional film, and its cinematography and innovative story are indeed attention-keeping, even entertaining, on a horror-flick level at least. If her goal is to serve narrative canonically, then she fails almost miserably. If her goal is to redefine narrative, then she may have achieved something here that most critics aren't clueing into. It's just unclear what this achievement is. --Erik J. Macki

very effective black comedy/suspense/horror/hybrid:
this movie is obviously about someone who kills people in the office.and we learn very quickly who the killer is,so i don't think it's possible to give too much away.Said killer is knebbish office worker Dorine Douglas(Carol Kane).Douglas is a very lonely,insecure waif who lives with her overbearing mother.Douglas decides to begin killing people in her office,after witnessing one of her co-workers accidentally get killed.Douglas realizing she feels something akin to joy at his death.and she covers his death up.i should mention that most of her fellow workers treat her with disdain,or worse,even to the point of cruelty and hurtful remarks.so she feel justification for her feelings.soon,she dispatches another co-worker and then another.thing is,once she starts,she just keeps going and going and going.(like the Energizer Bunny)as the bodies mount up,Douglas also starts killing co-workers who are actually not that mean to her.and then,just about anyone she comes in contact with,she kills(i mean anyone).I have to say that Cane does a very good job in the role.her character becomes quite gleeful of her work,treating it something akin to getting an A plus on a report card.(you can tell Cane had a lot of fun with this role).she is a true sociopath,to be sure.and she engages in some very amusing rituals which i won't go into here.let's just say,you have to see it to believe it.so,what genre does this movie fall into?well,horror,to be sure and suspense,and most prevalent,black comedy,very black.there are also a lot of intentional campy moments.some of the situations are so absurd and over the top,you have to laugh.this movie works on all levels and it proves you don't need a ginormous(gigantic/enormous) budget to make a very effective movie.truly a unique piece of art. 4.5/5

KILLER KANE:
THE MAIN REASON to see this off-kilter black comedy is Carol Kane. Kane, once nominated for an Oscar for her role in HESTER STREET, went on to play the dispatcher on TAXI, but we've never really seen that much of her. In her role as Dorine Douglas, the titled murderer, she gives a performance that is totally awesome. Kane uses her put upon persona, her deeply infested hate and hurt to bring Dorine to vicious life. Her scene when she finds her mother dead is brilliant in its intensity and the way Kane is able to jump back and forth. It's not easy playing a wacko and getting away with it. Here, Kane shines in a performance that should not have been overlooked at Oscar time. Only Molly Ringwald as the bitchy coworker gives more than a passing performance; Jeanne Tripplehorn almost makes it, but the rest of the cast, well... Anyway, this is NOT a pleasant movie, and along with CHRISTINA'S HOUSE gives further credence to the ban on door to door selling. Worth a rent just to see Kane's killer performance!

Citizen Kane:
Photographer and director Cindy Sherman has been watching too many horror movies. This one is definitely the classic formula First an accident, then maybe another, then the trigger. Freud would be proud of this one. No matter how fun this movie looks do not try this at home. And no, this is not what is meant by downsizing. Dorine (Carol Kane) is working for a publisher that is about to downsize the office. The office is sort of dysfunctional anyway. Her character is more in line with Milton Waddams `Office Space' (1999). There may be a sub plot to this. Mean while it seems that everyone involved with making Dorine uncomfortable is invited to stay at her place. FOREVER. So get out the sticky tape and popcorn to watch this one.

Art at it's horrific core!!:
A real gem from Cindy Sherman's creepier side. Stellar casting! Molly Ringwald is stunning! Carol Kane is classic! The clear packing tape scene still gives me the willies. PURE GENIUS!!! =^..^=

An artsy horror flick!!:
I think this is a fabulous independent film. People are acting shocked and disgusted by this movie, but what did they expect?The movie, after all, is called office killer!! It's campy and over the top, like most great horror films. Watch this movie with an open mind and enjoy!!