A documentary film crew follows David Brent, regional manager of the Slough branch of Paper Merchants, Wernham Hogg as he and his 'team' go about their business. As David works he... more
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level, it disdains all the conventions of television sitcoms: there are no punch lines, no jokes, no laugh tracks, and no cute happy endings. More profoundly, it...
level, it disdains all the conventions of television sitcoms: there are no punch lines, no jokes, no laugh tracks, and no cute happyendings. More profoundly, it'...
behavior! Recognize those "special" people with this prestigious work trophy! Present personally to the honored co-worker, or just leave it in his or her office for the subtle touch. I keep thinking of all the people who have worked hard to earn this trophy! This is just too funny!About The Office TrophyWork trophy stands 5" high, plastic construction, with weighted base. Packaged in clear plastic presentation box that proclaims "In recognition of your constant idiotic questions about how to perform the simplest of tasks."There are 4 Office Trophys available:Brown Noser Of The YearControl Freak Of The YearComplete Dumbass Of The YearUltimate Slacker Of The YearPlease See Drop Down Menu AboveOffice Trophy
level, it disdains all the conventions of television sitcoms: there are no punch lines, no jokes, no laugh tracks and no cute happy endings. More profoundly, it's not what we're used to thinking of as funny. Most of the fervently devoted fan base that the programme acquired watched with a discomfortingly thrilling combination of identification and mortification. The paradox is that its best moments are almost physically unwatchable.Set in the offices of a fictional Slough paper merchant,The Officeis filmed in the style of a reality television programme. The writing is subtle and deft, the acting wonderful and the characters beautifully drawn: the cadaverous team leader Gareth, a paradigm of Andy McNab's readership; the monstrous sales rep, Chris Finch; and the decent but long-suffering everyman Tim, whose ambition and imagination have been crushed out of him by the banality of the life he dreams uselessly of escaping. The show is stolen, as it was intended to be, by insufferable office manager David Brent, played by cowriter Ricky Gervais. Brent will become a name as emblematic for a particular kind of British grotesque as Alan Partridge or Basil Fawlty, but he is a deeper character than either. Partridge and Fawlty are exaggerations of reality, and therefore safely comic figures. Brent is as appalling as only reality can be. --Andrew MuellerOn the DVDThe Office, Series 1is tastefully packaged as a two-disc set appropriately adorned with John Betjeman's poem "Slough". The special features occupy the second disc and consist of a laid-back 39-minute documentary entitled "How I Made The Office by Ricky Gervais", with co-writer Stephen Merchant and the cast contributing. Here we discover that Gervais spends his time on set "mucking around and annoying people", and that actress Lucy Davis (Dawn) is the daughter of Jasper Carrott; as well as seeing parts of the original short film and the original BBC pilot episode; plus we get to enjoy many examples of the cast corpsing throughout endless retakes. There are also a handful of deleted scenes, none of which were deleted because they weren't funny. --Mark Walker
standards of the first. Indeed, it ventured beyond caricature and satire, touching on the very edge of darkness. Ricky Gervais was once again excruciatingly superb as David Brent, a subtly shaded modern English comic grotesque in the desperate and self-deluding tradition of Alan Partridge and Basil Fawlty.In this series, however, Brent's to-camera assertions concerning his man-management qualities and executive capabilities are seriously challenged when the Slough and Swindon branches are merged and his former Swindon equivalent Neil takes over as area manager. To compensate Brent cultivates his pathologically mistaken image of himself as an entertainer/motivator/comedian whose stage happens to be the workplace. This culminates in a comically disastrous motivational session ending with a sing-along of Tina Turner's "Simply the Best", which is greeted, typically, with stunned, appalled silence.Meanwhile, Tim, who can only maintain his sanity by teasing the priggish, puddingbowl-haired Gareth, continues to wrestle with his yearning for receptionist Dawn, a sympathetic character persisting with a relationship with a yobbish bloke about whom she still maintains unspoken reservations. As ever, it's the awkward, reality TV-style pauses and silences, the furtive, meaningful and unmet glances across the emotional gulf of the open-plan office, that say it all here.As for Brent, his own breakdown is prefaced by a moment of hideous hilarity--an impromptu office dance, a mixture of "Flashdance and MC Hammer" as Brent describes it, but in reality bad beyond description. Then, when his fate is sealed, he at last reveals himself as a humiliated and broken man in a memorable finale to perhaps the greatest British sitcom, besidesFawlty Towers, ever made. All this and Keith too. --David StubbsOn the DVD:The Office, Series 2is a single-disc release unlike the more generous Series 1. Extra features are enjoyable nonetheless. Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant feature in a gleefully shambolic video diary--highlights of which include Gervais flicking elastic bands at his cowriter and taping their editor to his swivel chair. The ubiquitous Gervais also mockingly introduces some outtakes (mostly of him corpsingthroughout dozens of takes) and a series of deleted scenes, notably of Gareth arriving in his horrendous cycle shorts. --Mark Walker
level, it disdains all the conventions of television sitcoms: there are no punch lines, no jokes, no laugh tracks and no cute happy endings. More profoundly, it's not what we're used to thinking of as funny. Most of the fervently devoted fan base that the programme acquired watched with a discomfortingly thrilling combination of identification and mortification. The paradox is that its best moments are almost physically unwatchable.Set in the offices of a fictional Slough paper merchant,The Officeis filmed in the style of a reality television programme. The writing is subtle and deft, the acting wonderful and the characters beautifully drawn: the cadaverous team leader Gareth, a paradigm of Andy McNab's readership; the monstrous sales rep, Chris Finch; and the decent but long-suffering everyman Tim, whose ambition and imagination have been crushed out of him by the banality of the life he dreams uselessly of escaping. The show is stolen, as it was intended to be, by insufferable office manager David Brent, played by cowriter Ricky Gervais. Brent will become a name as emblematic for a particular kind of British grotesque as Alan Partridge or Basil Fawlty, but he is a deeper character than either. Partridge and Fawlty are exaggerations of reality, and therefore safely comic figures. Brent is as appalling as only reality can be. --Andrew MuellerOn the DVDThe Office, Series 1is tastefully packaged as a two-disc set appropriately adorned with John Betjeman's poem "Slough". The special features occupy the second disc and consist of a laid-back 39-minute documentary entitled "How I Made The Office by Ricky Gervais", with co-writer Stephen Merchant and the cast contributing. Here we discover that Gervais spends his time on set "mucking around and annoying people", and that actress Lucy Davis (Dawn) is the daughter of Jasper Carrott; as well as seeing parts of the original short film and the original BBC pilot episode; plus we get to enjoy many examples of the cast corpsing throughout endless retakes. There are also a handful of deleted scenes, none of which were deleted because they weren't funny. --Mark Walker
Advantages: Funniest British comedy in years Disadvantages: Only two series and two specials long
Nearly two years after the demise of the office it remains a relevant and still much talked about televisual phenomenon. Nothing about this DVD collection is spectacular, from the mundane packaging to the fairly standard extras. But these are minor qualms and quibbles, the genius of this collection does not lie in mere aesthetics like so many others out there (naming no names, I don't know any), the joy is in the 7 ½ of epic comedy hours contained ... ...merchants in Slough, herein lies the genius of The Office.
The office headed by the hapless David Brent (Ricky Gervais) is an incongruous mix of everyday folk with more than slightly exaggerated personality traits. Gareth (Mackenzie Crook) the typically over anxious TA lieutenant with delusions of power in a small office environment. Tim (Martin Freeman) the practical joker who's every move is frustrated by those around him, not least his advances ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Superb performances, lots of laughs Disadvantages: The intentionally cringe-worthy sense of humour isn't to everyone's taste
Quite simply the best British comedy since Fawlty Towers. Ricky Gervais and his stunning cast produce outrageously funny moments in the television mockumentary of a paper merchants in Slough. Gervais plays the erratic and egotistical boss, David Brent, who is on a permanent quest to entertain his employees, usually at the expense of the company.
The sub-stories, such as the love triangle between Dawn, Tim and Lee also add to the series.
The first ... ...is brilliantly capped off with the two extended episodes, which originally aired as Christmas specials on the BBC.
Quite simple the most complete and most compelling comedy series you are ever likely to see, and with perhaps the best ending to a comedy series in history. Gervais and co-writer Steve Merchant deserve all the praise and awards they received for this.
Simple a masterpiece. ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful
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somewhat helpful
13.02.2008
(14.02.2008)
I love it! Review ofThe Office - Complete (Box Set)by
josie.marie
Advantages: the laughs and love of characters Disadvantages: cost if you dont buy the box set
Definately worth buying the box set for the difference in price you would pay buying them seperately and then later realising you want them all! You have to stick with the first two episodes to get really into it. I would say i enjoyed series 2 the best but im not sure if its because its better or because i felt i understood the characters more by then, i think if i watched series 1 again now i'd enjoy it just as much. I never caught it when it was ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful
Advantages: A well made movie - overall Disadvantages: A bit predictable at times, but just let it take you
...Being a great fan of Brian DePalma, I will watch any of his films with ease - The Untouchables, Carlito's Way and Mission Impossible undoubtably great films - so when "Snake Eyes" didn't do to well at the boxoffice back in 1998 I was surprised, but chuffed because it makes it all the more special.
"Snake Eyes" is setcompletely in a sports arena on the night of a huge boxing match. Nicholas Cage plays Ricky Santoro, an Atlanta cop with all the stereotypical vices (women, drink, gambling). He is asked to attend the fight by Kevin Dunne (Gary Sinise) as an important member of the government is also at the fight. Dunne is head of security for the evening, and when our government friend is assisnated - all hell breaks loose - 40,000 suspects are held in the arena and the investigation starts...
"Snake Eyes" is a highly overlooked...
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Actor(s): Ricky Gervais, Martin Freeman, Mackenzie Crook, Lucy Davis
Director(s): Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant
Genre: Comedy
Classification: 15 years and over
Running Time: 7 hours 17 minutes
Video Category: Television
Country Of Origin: United Kingdom
Release details
DVD Region: Region 2 (Europe)
Studio(s): 2 ENTERTAIN VIDEO; SONY DADC
Release date: 22/11/2004
No of Discs: 4
Catalogue No: BBCDVD 1502
Barcode: 5014503150228
DVD Description
A documentary film crew follows David Brent, regional manager of the Slough branch of Paper Merchants, Wernham Hogg as he and his 'team' go about their business. As David works he manages to alienate, belittle, embarrass and offend just about everyone who works with him... Features the all the episodes from Series One and Two, plus the two Christmas Specials.
![The Office - Complete Series One&Two and The Christmas Specials [2001]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/65500646.jpg)
![The Office - The Complete First Series [2001]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/65509831.jpg)
![The Office - The Complete Second Series [2001]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/65507461.jpg)
12.03.2001