Film Review: Office Christmas Party

Carol Vanstone (Jennifer Aniston) is the CEO of Zenotek, a computing firm. Her brother Clay (T.J. Miller) is the head of the Chicago branch whose profits have dipped to a meagre 6.5%. Carol’s fiat is to double the profit in three days (just before Christmas) or be prepared for laying off 80 of the branch’s 200 employees. Clay’s scheme, in conjunction with his recently divorced Chief Technical Officer Josh Parker (Jason Bateman), to impress and ensnare a big prospective client is to hold a no-holds-barred Christmas party in the office premises, with the client Walter Davis (Courtney B. Vance) in attendance, and the CEO in absentia, of course.

In the ensuing melee, the internet connection to the city is knocked out. But the innovative Zenotek staff succeed in restoring the connection and a good time is had by all except the audience, that is. Despite a motley of American TV stars, potential scene-stealers all 7 Courtney Vance, Olivia Munn, Kate McKinnon, Karan Soni and of course Jennifer Aniston, all trying their best, but with threadbare themes and hackneyed humour, OCP turn out to be a banal exercise in film-making.