30 Movies Featuring the Workplace, In Honor of Labor Day Weekend

Movie #7: Corporate Cops – RoboCop

Year – 1987

What seemed outrageous in 1987 is quickly approaching reality in Paul Verhoeven‘s incendiary action-comedy and skewer of corporate finagling. With real collapsing police departments, the degeneration of TV entertainment and the advances of robotics, RoboCop doesn’t seem too far off anymore. Although it’s doubtful that Joel Kinnaman (in the impending remake) will be as badass as Peter Weller, who humanized the character with surprising depth as he battled one of the nastiest villains to grace movies, Clarence Boddicker (played with gleeful anarchy by Kurtwood Smith). While it seems strangely tame today, the film received 11 X-ratings from the MPAA before finally gaining an R. – DG

Movie #8: Retail Hell – Clerks

Year – 1994

Filmed for just $27,000, Clerks is the film that launched Kevin Smith’s career. The story follows one day in the life of Quick Stop employee Dante Hicks (Brian O’Halloran). The film doesn’t have much of a story which is part of its charm. It’s largely a collection of conversations between Dante and his acerbic, “sort-of” co-worker Randall (Jeff Anderson). The film is by turns raunchy, nerdy and (surprisingly) touching.

The movie went on to inspire a TV show (that mercifully never aired), an animated series, countless comic books and two sequels (one in 2006, the other currently in production). But the original is still the best and always manages to remind us that when it comes to the workplace, it’s the workers, not the work which makes us care. – TOK

Movie #9: Prehistoric Workplace – Quest for Fire

Year – 1981

In what could be considered a chronicle of one of the earliest human workspaces, this 1981 adaptation (of the 1911 novel) didn’t exactly tear up U.S. box offices, gaining notoriety more for a naked Rae Dawn Chong (Tommy’s daughter) rather than for the profound look at the dawn of man it purported to be. Another bonus: it’s the first movie to feature Ron Perlman, all-around action man of awesomeness. – DG