| The Company Men | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | John Wells |
| Produced by | John Wells Paula Weinstein Claire Rudnick Polstein |
| Written by | John Wells |
| Starring | Ben Affleck Chris Cooper Kevin Costner Tommy Lee Jones |
| Music by | Aaron Zigman |
| Cinematography | Roger Deakins |
| Editing by | Robert Frazen |
| Studio | The Weinstein Company Battle Mountain Films Spring Creek Productions |
| Distributed by | The Weinstein Company |
| Release date(s) | January 22, 2010 (Sundance) January 21, 2011 (United States) |
| Running time | 113 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $15 Million[1] |
| Box office | $4,882,577 [1] |
The Company Men is an American drama film written and directed by John Wells. It premiered at the 26th Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2010 and had a one-week run in December 10, 2010 to be eligible for the year's Academy Awards. The film was commercially released in the United States and Canada on January 21, 2011.
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The film, set in and around Boston, Massachusetts, analyzes the effects of corporate downsizing. Ben Affleck plays an aggressive white-collar corporate ladder-climbing employee who, after losing his six-figure salary, gradually loses the trappings of his white-collar life (country club membership, Porsche, and finally his home) and ultimately has to take a job installing drywall with his blue-collar brother-in-law, played by Kevin Costner. Chris Cooper plays a middle manager who has risen from the factory floors to the corporate offices. He also loses his six-figure salary job, but because of his age is finding himself unemployable. The pressures on the two men (both of whom had comfortable, but working poor, lifestyles and have children to support) grow as weeks and months pass by with no prospects of employment. On the other side of the coin, the cushy lives of executive management are shown with both Tommy Lee Jones and Craig T. Nelson playing characters who suffer no misfortune during the trying times, until Jones' character is served his walking papers. Maria Bello plays the senior HR manager who delivers the bad news to staff whose jobs are cut. Jones is clearly in a much more comfortable position after being fired, and seemingly begins a form of retirement, seeking no other employment. However, the effects of the downsizing on others, along with his own values favoring hard work, weigh on his conscience.
The Company Men is directed by John Wells in his feature film debut. He also wrote the screenplay and produced the film. The project was first announced in January 2008 by the newly-formed production company Berk/Lane Entertainment.[2] In September 2008, actor Ben Affleck joined the cast.[3] By March 2009, actors Kevin Costner and Tommy Lee Jones joined the cast. Production began the following month in Boston, Massachusetts.[4] It completed in June 2009.[5][6][7] Partial filming for the production occurred in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston and also in the Boston suburbs of Wellesley, Framingham, and the Quincy shipyard.[8]
The Company Men had its world premiere at the 26th Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2010.[9] The film was purchased by The Weinstein Company, which committed to print and advertising commitment and a theatrical release in the United States and Canada in a mid-seven figure deal.[10]
The film had a minimal release in Los Angeles and New York City on December 10, 2010. The release lasted a week to become eligible for nominations for the 83rd Academy Awards.[11] It had a limited release in 106 theaters in the United States and Canada on January 21, 2011.[12][13]
The Company Men has received generally positive reviews. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes reports that 67% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 156 reviews, with an average score of 6.4/10.[14]
Many critics praised the film for telling a story that reflects the economic climate of the United States in the early 2000s. Rex Reed of The New York Observer cited the film "does a piercing job of making you feel the dehumanizing effects that losing a job can have on grown men, but it's more truthful and devastating than that."[15] Stephen Holden of The New York Times also notes parallels between the 2009 film Up in the Air and cites the effectiveness of the performances from Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones and Chris Cooper.[16] Chicago Tribune's Michael Phillips, however, praised the cast, but criticized the story, saying that the actual status of the economic climate "demands a tougher, gutsier script."[17]
The film was named one of the best films of 2010 by David Denby of The New Yorker.[18]