Movies can take us to some fantastical places, but some of the best movies take place in the real world, giving audiences a glimpse of what it’s like to be a person on the job. Here are a few classic films that pay tribute to workers.
9 to 5 (1980)
Dolly Parton was already a music superstar by the time she starred in “9 to 5,” but this movie put her permanently on the pop culture map. Also starring the wonderful Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, the film tells the story of three women who work at the offices of “Consolidated Companies” and deal with a sexist egotist of a boss played by Dabney Coleman. One day, the trio (almost accidentally) kidnap him and set in motion a plan to get even. Making over $100 million at the box office, the movie inspired both a successful sitcom spinoff and a full Broadway musical version (with songs by Dolly, of course).
Clerks (1994)
The day-to-day drudgery of working in retail is perfectly captured in “Clerks,” Kevin Smith’s debut feature film. Anyone who has ever worked behind a counter has dealt with customers like the ones Dante and Randall face. (“What do you mean there’s no ice? You mean I gotta drink this coffee hot?”) Beyond presenting a look at a day in the life of a store employee, the film became famous for its rapid-fire and hilarious dialogue, as the leads spend the movie talking about everything from their personal lives to the lives of their customers to whether independent contractors were killed on the Death Star. The ultra-low-budget movie became a cult favorite, launching Smith’s career and leading to a sequel in 2006 (and another currently planned).
Modern Times (1936)
Charlie Chaplin had been away from making movies for half a decade in the 1930s. When he returned, it was with a hilarious fable skewering how automation and monotony had become the order of the day for factory workers. Made during the height of the Great Depression, “Modern Times” was a perfect movie for its time, but audiences haven’t lost their love of it in the ensuing years. With its deeper meaning and some of the most hilarious physical comedy ever committed to film, “Modern Times” was one of the first films chosen by the Library of Congress for preservation in 1989.
Gung Ho (1986)
In the mid-1980s, the idea of foriegn companies taking over American auto manufacturers was very much a reality for workers. Ron Howard’s 1986 comedy “Gung Ho” put audiences on the floor of a plant in Pennsylvania, which reopens under new ownership by a Japanese company after campaigning by a plant foreman (played by Michael Keaton when he was just hitting his stride as a comedy star). The resulting film is one of the few movies to give a hands-on look at the making of automobiles, with plenty of odd couple humor thrown in as the American workers try to adjust to the cultural differences introduced by their new bosses. The movie’s success led to a very short-lived TV version starring Scott Bakula.
Office Space (1999)
An on-the-nose satire of soul-crushing desk work, “Office Space” was kind of a flop when it first hit theaters in 1999. But as time has gone on and more people got to see Mike Judge’s hilarious film, it burrowed itself into the mind (and memes) of pop culture. Starring Ron Livingston as a programmer who begins to rebel against everything his employer stands for, the movie is wall-to-wall with now-iconic moments and characters. Mike Judge had already made his stamp in media with his creations Beavis and Butthead, as well as “King of the Hill,” but few movies have become as beloved among the desk-bound masses of the workforce as “Office Space.”
