Monday 1 June 2009

Bad day at the office?

Some recent gallivanting around Europe has put me in possession of a couple of obscure horror films with a workplace theme. But without visiting the IMDb and spoiling all the fun, I know next to nothing about either, other than what’s written (in Dutch) on the DVD covers...



First up, there’s Office Party, a “psychologische thriller” starring Michael Ironside and David Warner, one of whom appears to be wearing a scary mask in the stills on the box. While Ironside is touted on the front cover, however, it’s Warner who’s mentioned in the plot description on the back, so I can’t really tell which is the hero. I’m guessing it’s Warner because his character appears to be called Eugene, and I can’t imagine a masked killer going by that name (oh, how quickly we forget Eric’s Revenge). From the looks of things, I’m thinking Eugene and his co-workers are trapped inside an office building by a deranged murderer and must fight to survive the night!



Then there’s Office Killer, which – joy of joys – stars Carol Kane. Judging by the cover (a dubious practice, I hear) she’s in mousy mode, but don’t be fooled, as “she will kill her way to the top!” apparently... Just like Michael Caine in A Shock to the System, perhaps? Quite frankly, I’ll be happy enough if this is simply better than the disappointing The Temp, which it also appears to resemble. But I can’t get enough of stationery-item-related violence at the moment (Drag Me to Hell’s stapler and ruler antics had me in fits) so, if Carol gets handy with a letter opener – or even just a few paperclips – I’ll be pleased as (a hole) punch.

I’ll be scheduling Office Party and Office Killer for their performance appraisals just as soon as I find a free slot in my Filofax.

6 comments:

Amanda By Night said...

I've had Office Killer for years but have never seen it. Molly Ringwald = awesome, so I'm ashamed I haven't gotten around to it.

I haven't heard of the first one, but sounds alright. Office killer movies should be a much bigger sub-genre. It's an untouched goldmine.

Have you seen Psycho Cop 2? That's got a cool office setting and a tongue planted firmly in cheek!

Ross Horsley said...

Psycho Cop 2 is great -- much better than the original. There's something so satisfying about yuppie splatter!

Tyler said...

wonder is office killer is on region 1 dvd? *heads over to amazon to check* all-star cast, in my book.

Hud said...

Office Party sounds way cool!! I want!!!

Vardulon said...

Nice to see a shout-out to 'A Shock to the System'. I can't ever seem to find anyone else who's seen that wonderful Michael Caine movie.

And another vote for Psycho Cop 2 - it's not as (unintentionally) funny as the original, but it's still worth watching.

Anonymous said...

OFFICE KILLER is terrific. I was lucky enough to see it on the big screen in San Francisco. It's got lots of genuinely funny black humor and a few scenes that are genuinely squirm-inducing. It's sort of like DERANGED in an office setting.