The frustrating thing about comedies like Office Christmas Party is that there is potential for something truly funny here. The trailers suggest a pretty rowdy good time but despite its R-rating, the film plays things relatively safe and wastes time on a main plot that takes away from the fun that could have been had at the party. Things get a bit out of hand but not nearly as much as they could have, which is the true shame about the end result.
The plot is thin but simple. When the CEO of Zenotek (Jennifer Aniston) tries to close her hard-partying brother’s branch, he (T.J. Miller) and his Chief Technical Officer (Jason Bateman) must rally their co-workers and host an epic office Christmas party in an effort to impress a potential client and close a sale that will save their jobs. Of course, things go off the rails a bit but you’ve probably seen most of those funny bits in the trailer.
There are a lot of players at work here but it’s amazing that with all of this talent we don’t get a better comedy. I was reminded a bit of Project-X while watching this film but those high school kids knew how to party with the best of them. The situations in Office Christmas Party feel like they’re trying way too hard to be raunchy and edgy. Does it have hookers and blow? Of course, what adult Christmas party is complete without that? The problem is the inclusion of all these things feel forced. The attempts at laughs are more scattershot and unconvincing as the film seems to want to throw every comedic cliché out there in order to land a laugh. I’m not saying it doesn’t have its moments (Fortune Feimster gets a lot of laughs as an overly chatty Uber driver) but with a cast of about 20 comedic performers ranging from lead roles to mere cameos, it feels like everyone is fighting for their moment and there is no real focus. Improvised comedic moments can be gold for laughs but clearly, this group needed a bit more structure.
When the film isn’t trying to be outrageous, it wants us to care about the company and the people who work there. This is a Christmas movie at the end of the day so there are some contrived moments that pad unnecessary plot points because you’re just not invested when the film attempts to have moments that are a bit more “serious.” I was actually surprised by some of the forced sentimentality on display here.
As mentioned before, there are a lot of performers at work here but the characters who function as the leads aren’t that interesting. I love Jason Bateman and think he’s hilarious in the right roles but he’s pretty boring here and it makes me wish he’d just stick to the more dramatic work that has showcased some of his raw talent rather than dealing with comedic scripts that don’t do him any favors. Then there is Jennifer Aniston, who seems to be stuck in mainstream fare that doesn’t let her stretch beyond a character she has been playing since her days on Friends. She’s a welcomed presence in films like this because she has a natural likability but I would love to see her try more. T.J. Miller is a little better because his personality seems naturally over the top for stuff like this but he’s very hit or miss throughout and he doesn’t always hit. I did like seeing Courtney B. Vance cut loose and have a bit of fun here but one could argue he looked like he had more fun playing Johnnie Cochran in The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story and that was far from a comedy.
When I first saw the trailer for Office Christmas Party, I was pretty interested in seeing it because it looked like the right blend of comedy for the slew of talent that was involved. In the end, the movie ends up being like most parties. It has a slow start, then a few people show up who make you stay a bit longer than you intended because they’re a fun distraction and then by the end of the night, you just wish you turned in before midnight.
Reel Talk gives Office Christmas Party 1.5 Reels
