Perry Kate Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See

Roy Hart If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

daniel-s-cochran This past weekend while looking through films and shows to watch during a bit of free time, I happened upon this modernized version of the Bartleby story.The casting was wonderful for the parts. I would like to further explain all the details in great lengths as to shy you should take the time to watch this film. Um . . .Actually, now that I think of it . . ."I prefer not to." (Enjoyable piece) If you like a bit of dark comedy as it pertains to the corporate world, then this piece is for you.dsc

Matthew Janovic Herman Melville was a pessimist, which should be unsurprising to anyone who has read him. Taken from his short, "Bartelby the Scrivener", this is the second of two-attempts to translate this story to film. The first was a good British-version (1972) that is much-closer to the original story, but suffers from being placed outside of its American-context. "Bartelby" is about America, and is Pre-Marxist in its criticisms of American-capitalism. What is remarkable is that it was written in the 1850s (unlikely to have been influenced by Marx in any way), when we were gradually becoming a business-run nation, and moving-away from being a purely-agricultural one. This process would commence more-fully after the Civil War, but for someone like Melville, living in New York City was the writing-on-the-wall.But what makes "Bartelby" so amazing and chilling is that it resonates so strongly today. The problems we face now, due to the distortions inherent in our economic system, are still with us.If Melville said anything in his short-story, it was this: "What will become of the Bartelbys of the world?" Not everyone fits-into this job-system, and this should be no-surprise regarding an economy of "winner-takes-all", money-Godism. Under our profit-motive economy, people are simply left-behind, and Melville challenges our indifference to the needy.This was a very small-production, so I can understand why it is almost unknown. These are often the best films.The character Bartelby is more than just a non-conformist--he represents everyone who is neglected by our culture and economy. He reminds-us of the inhumanity in our daily-lives. Melville enjoins-us to help the next Bartelby we see, and acknowledge our responsibility for the way things are. The office-boss character feels he isn't responsible for Bartelby and his "I would prefer not to" difficulties, but Melville is really saying that he IS. There is an implied collective-guilt in the story that would not be addressed adequately until the Holocaust, which helps it retain a sense of the contemporary. Melville even prefigures Kafka and the school of absurdism in his story, it is genius. This film is an expert updating of this story, and it works well! It's both funny and pitch-black in its despair regarding modern life. Crispin Glover is inspired, with the qualities of a silent-film actor (Lon Chaney, or Conrad Veidt from Caligari) in his expressiveness, and there are some great slapstick-gags. This is film-making at its best, it's what you need. You will feel vindicated.

John-426 Like many people have said, I'd never heard of this film. Of course the fact that Crispin Glover stars in it made me rent it. The film's box had comments like "hilarious!", "An off-kilter delight." Off-kilter is a tame word to say the least. If you're looking for a film that's gonna make you laugh after a hard day - this is NOT it. It may cause you to become Bartelby.I'm not going to go over the plot as many reviews here already have. I'd just say that this is a VERY DARK movie, and morose at times. There are funny bits but they are creepy-funny. It IS worth seeing, because the acting is really good. But understand what this film really is - and that is: dark, surreal, strange and even a bit depressing. A great film if you're looking for something "weird" and "different" but don't expect knee-slappin' humor.

drgibson OK modern-day version of the Melville classic. It's a sometimes amusing satire on office mores and stereotypes.It runs out of steam at the end. It likely would have been better as an hour comedy-drama.I sort of like it. Others may prefer not to view it. Crispin Glover is pretty well cast as the office slacker, however. I often wondered why his career stayed in neutral after Back to the Future. Overall, six stars out of 10.