Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
On Quartile, Office Christmas Party scores 6/10 across five categories — strongest on Plot (Above Average), weakest on Cinematography (Below Average).
When Carol Vanstone, CEO of the technology company Zenotek, expresses her intention to close the Chicago branch, run by her brother Clay, he and his co-workers organize a Christmas party in an effort to impress a potential client and save their jobs. But the party gets out of control…
Office Christmas Party is a broadly competent but entirely formulaic R-rated workplace comedy. The plot follows a well-worn template — underdog office throws wild party to save themselves from corporate shutdown — with few genuine surprises. The ensemble cast (Jason Bateman, Olivia Munn, T.J. Miller, Jennifer Aniston) delivers serviceable performances but nobody is given material that stretches them; Aniston's ice-queen villain is the most memorable element but still one-note. Visually, the film is workmanlike multiplex fare with no distinctive cinematographic choices. Novelty is low: the 'wild party spirals out of control' premise is well-trodden territory and the film adds little fresh to it beyond its holiday setting. The ending is predictable and tidily resolved in the manner expected of the genre. A perfectly average entry in the mid-2010s R-rated comedy cycle — watchable but forgettable across the board.