{"id":7265,"date":"2011-11-10T13:49:14","date_gmt":"2011-11-10T11:49:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/?p=7265"},"modified":"2011-11-11T18:02:39","modified_gmt":"2011-11-11T16:02:39","slug":"the-company-men-starring-ben-affleck-tommy-lee-jones-chris-cooper-maria-bello-kevin-costner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/the-company-men-starring-ben-affleck-tommy-lee-jones-chris-cooper-maria-bello-kevin-costner\/","title":{"rendered":"The Company Men starring Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper, Maria Bello & Kevin Costner"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/a>
The Company Men starring Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper, Maria Bello & Kevin Costner. Image via prlog.org<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Bobby Walker (Ben Affleck<\/a>) has really made it: he is a white-collar that makes 120K a year+ bonuses, he drives a Porsche, goes golfing, has\u00a0 a beautiful house he can barely afford as well as a wife and 2 kids.<\/p>\n

Phil Woodward (Chris Cooper<\/a>) is pushing 60, and has climbed up considerably well in the corporate ladder.<\/p>\n

Gene McClary (Tommy Lee Jones<\/a>) is in the board of directors of the company both Bobby and Phil are working for, and is leading a very comfortable lifestyle.<\/p>\n

However when a economic crisis hits the US, James Salinger (Craig T. Nelson), the CEO of their company, \u00a0starts letting a lot of men go, starting with Bobby, who has been one of Gene\u2019s favorite employees. Bobby finds that he hasn\u2019t exactly saved money, and the expenses seem too much for an unemployed man to cover. He also realizes that his 12-year-experience doesn\u2019t mean much in a competitive marketplace where much younger guys are willing to work for less. As he begrudgingly gets unemployment assistance, the CEO lets more people go and the company starts getting out of Gene\u2019s control. Phil is also fired, and Gene\u2019s reaction doesn\u2019t reflect well on his affair with the head of human resources, Sally Wilcox (Maria Bello<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Bobby\u2019s wife gets back to work, and he unwillingly accepts the job offer of Jack (Kevin Costner<\/a>), his wife\u2019s brother. He doesn\u2019t enjoy having to work in construction under a man who believes all corporate white-collars are unworthy of their salaries, but he doesn\u2019t have any other options left. Phil takes it much, much harder and Gene struggles with his values and keeps disapproving James\u2019 actions\u2026until Sally has to fire him as well.<\/p>\n

3 former company men all get depressed and furious, and they all come up different solutions to their problems\u2026<\/p>\n

*<\/p>\n

Thoughts, Other Criticisms and Endnote<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Company Men is a slow-paced, albeit effective drama about how much people give to their careers, what these careers demand and how they cope when the company they have built their careers at\u00a0 suddenly lets them go. It is realistic, a little sad and does offer some quite obvious (yet valuable) life lessons.<\/p>\n

While some viewers have criticized the movie for aiming to make us feel sorry about a bunch of rich white guys, they are actually missing the point. The movie is about how the lives of 3 white collar men turn upside down. What, because they earned much more money than the average movie-goer, their story is not worth telling? Would those viewers not be crushed if the careers they gave their life to\/depended upon\/defined themselves with were taken away from them?<\/p>\n

With Ben Affleck\u2019s character, he suddenly finds himself without any money- with a family to take care of, his frustration is understandable.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t always upper middle class. And you know the last job Jim Carrey<\/a> would want on earth? It is being a custodian. Not because he looks down on the profession. It is because he was actually broke, and worked as a custodian. It is understandable that Afflec’s Bobby doesn’t want to do construction work until he absolutely has to….<\/p>\n

With Chris Cooper, it is how he defines himself. He is from a generation where people gave their lives to one company. He doesn\u2019t know what to do. Sure, it is sad, and a little pathetic maybe. But his job is all he knows\u2026<\/p>\n

With Tommy Lee Jones, it is the betrayal of a friend, the lack of empathy in his friend and how values millions over the lives of other people\u2026<\/p>\n

So of course you can criticize the characters for caring too much about one company, the course of one career. You can judge them for not being prepared. But it is hard to prepare for a big downhill, if things went on very smoothly for a very long time.<\/p>\n

So, no, this movie is not about 3 rich guys who suddenly find themselves penniless. The only guy who finds himself penniless is the one who wasn\u2019t rich to begin with.\u00a0 The Company Men is about how much value we place on our careers\/jobs, how precaution matters, how we should have more than just our jobs\/education to define us and how life really requires us to have a back-up plan. It may not be the most original story around, but guess what- my father experienced what Affleck went through. He went through what Cooper went through too, although thankfully he got over it just fine because my mom has always been great with managing money. I find it hard to believe that people who really watched this movie-from beginning to end- couldn\u2019t find something they could relate to.<\/p>\n

Some complained that the women in the film weren\u2019t depicted in the best light. At best, they had been loyal wives who picked their husband\u2019s career over theirs. At worst, they were either successful businesswomen who didn\u2019t mind sleeping with married men or materialistic women who just lived through their husband\u2019s wealth. But come on\u2026Not all movies have to give us amazing female characters. There are a lot of women who prioritize their husband\u2019s money, their career and just sit at home and look after the kids. It\u2019s their choice. And just because I am not like that, I am not going to give up on a perfectly good movie because the female characters aren\u2019t that great. And look at the title of the movie\u2026Does it look like it\u2019ll be an effective study of the modern woman?<\/p>\n

*<\/p>\n

Is this a movie you absolutely have to see? No. It is good, emotional and has good acting. Sure, you can ignore it. After all, it is not life-altering. It is not mind-blowing. It doesn\u2019t reinvent anything. And it\u2019s more about facing reality than being entertained. But it is solid, the actors are great and it doesn\u2019t make you regret you saw it<\/strong>. Rated at 6.8 on IMDB, it all depends on how interested you are in the core story. Because it is delivered well.<\/p>\n

Written and directed by John Wells.<\/p>\n

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Also on Ben Affleck:<\/h3>\n

He\u00a0 is Just Not That Into You<\/a><\/p>\n

Ben Affleck Trivia: 13 Facts About Ben Affleck Movies, His Wife Jennifer Garner and More<\/a><\/p>\n

Also on Maria Bello:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The Jane Austen Book Club starring Maria Bello, Hugh Dancy, Emily Blunt, Kevin Zegers<\/a><\/p>\n

Six Diverse Movies From The Beautiful Actress Maria Bello<\/a><\/p>\n

Also on Kevin Costner<\/strong>:<\/h3>\n

Nicholas Sparks vs Happy Endings- Kevin Costner\u2019s Message in a Bottle<\/a><\/p>\n

Kevin Costner: An Amazing Lead Who Should Just Stay Away From Sci-Fi<\/a><\/p>\n

When Adultery is OK- Revenge (Movie Review of Revenge, Starring Kevin Costner and Anthony Quinn)<\/a><\/p>\n

Cheating Celebrity Trivia: 8 Celebs Thay Cheated \u2013 feat. Kevin Costner<\/a><\/p>\n

The New Daughter starring Kevin Costner<\/a><\/p>\n

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