COMPANY MEN- DO YOU LOVE YOUR JOB?
Company Men is, in its most basic form, a movie about men "downsized" during a recession from a company that got it's start in steel and grew into a multi-industry conglomerate. In its more layered and flushed out form, it is a movie about our value proposition as workers, husbands, wives and friends at home and the office.
Starting out of the gate with a first round of layoffs, Company Men is set into quick motion. The stories told of each man going through his own "crisis" is compelling, but what is more compelling is how the nature of the story causes the viewer to pan out of the moving parts on the screen and think about why these guys are being fired from a company making millions upon millions of dollars. Why does the CEO make 22 million dollars a year? Are they more interested in their stock price than the value they add to the industry or the people it employs? When is a company too big to care? As an employee, do you need to care about loyalty anymore? Can you build a successful business in our current economy without going public? Is everyone living beyond their means?
As Company Men went on, it really scared me. It made me think about being rich. It made me think about how many people are only rich on paper. It made me think about the idea of closing any savings accounts I have and putting the cash under my mattress. From opening scene to closing monologue, Company Men reminded me of something that I often forget; It's NOT just business. Corporate accountability and social responsibility is more important than ever and we need to be active participants in the right to make the work world just and right.
Company Men is a heavy movie that will most likely cause after effects. I am not going to answer all the questions I posed above. I leave it up to you. I know we all look at life differently, with different ideas of success and ethics. I hope through stories such as Company Men being told about our greed, selfishness and what could be the ultimate failure of the capitalist system, some of us will reevaluate what is important to us, our family and the world we live in.