The worlds that writer-director Mike Judge creates are so richly observed and true to life that it's almost (almost) worth waiting a decade for a spiritual sequel to Office Space. Idiocracy, while a clever satire in its own right, never quite comes to fruition the way these two movies do. With Judge at the helm, it's comedy first, life lessons later (or not at all).Jason Bateman plays Joel, the owner of an extract plant on the verge of being bought out by General Mills. Naturally, this is the moment when Joel is beset by problems: his wife (Kristen Wiig) has ceased having sex with him, a freak accident puts an employee (Clifton Collins Jr.) out of commission, and a grifter (Mila Kunis) arrives to capitalize on this disaster.
While the movie sort of gives shortshrift to Wiig's hilarity in favour of Kunis' charms, it's also got one helluva supporting cast to offer plenty of other laughs from Ben Affleck's delightfully spaced out bartender to Dustin Milligan's hilariously blank gigolo to David Koechner's insanely obtuse neighbour.
At the centre of it all, we have Bateman playing what surely must be known as a Jason Bateman-type. It's sort of a wry everyman who reacts to the insanity around him with deadpan hilarity. There are variations: on Arrested Development, for example, Michael was also a complete narcissist. Mind you, that's not all he can do (cf. the sleaze he played in State of Play). On the other hand, who doesn't love this character? Who doesn't want to see Bateman grow rich playing him? If anything, the conflict that moves much of the plot forward is the movie's least believable element: who wouldn't have sex with Jason Bateman?
And even if you're not into that (but let's admit it: you are), Judge's instant (cult?) classic set pieces and set ups should keep you in quotes for weeks to come. Is there any better reason to see a movie? B+
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