The wildest, funniest ‘Office Christmas Party’

CEBU, Philippines - In “Office Christmas Party,” when the CEO (Jennifer Aniston) tries to close her hard-partying brother’s branch, he (T.J. Miller) and his Chief Technical Officer (Jason Bateman) must rally their co-workers and host an epic office Christmas party in an effort to impress a potential client and close a sale that will save their jobs.

The latest comedy from directors Josh Gordon and Will Speck co-stars Kate McKinnon, Olivia Munn, Jillian Bell, Rob Corddry, Vanessa Bayer, Randall Park, Sam Richardson, Jamie Chung and Courtney B. Vance.

Once upon a time, the office Christmas party was a highly anticipated tradition, an epic night of drinking and festivities that blurred the line between co-worker and friend, employer and employee.

Since the fallout from the night’s unbridled events frequently lead to countless hangovers, lawsuits, and weeks of awkward apologies, overzealous HR departments spent decades reigning in the wild and raucous office Christmas ragers until the once legendary celebrations evolved into the staid, polite and family friendly affairs we know today as “Holiday” Parties.

“The office Christmas party is really a throwback to a less civilized time. It’s like the dire wolf skeleton you see at the La Brea Tar Pits,” says producer Scott Stuber. “The ‘Holiday’ party today is like a house-broken pug… it’s not going to hurt anyone, and it plays well with children, but somewhere, deep down it still has that dire wolf DNA.”

“An office Christmas party isn’t a religious celebration,” argues T. J. Miller, who plays Zenotek’s Chicago Branch President Clay Vanstone. “It’s a celebration of letting go and not being afraid to tell your boss what you really think without getting fired.”

Directors Will Speck and Josh Gordon were immediately drawn to the concept of a magical night where professional and social barriers were less defined. “There’s a universal wish fulfillment in having one night of the year where people live honestly, perhaps with some help from alcohol,” says Speck.

“The office Christmas party really breaks down the caste system,” says Gordon. “Suddenly everyone from the top of the food chain to the bottom is equalized and that makes for a great comedic jumping off point.”

The initial idea for the film came after a family member told producer Guymon Casady about a decadent corporate Christmas party she had recently attended.

“As she was regaling us with just the scale and the fun of it all, it occurred to me that a party like that would be the basis for a great, R-rated comedy,” says Casady. “There’s a vicarious thrill to witness that kind of chaos contained in a movie. It can go completely off the rails but you don’t have to worry about the consequences or having to clean up in the morning.”

Despite the more fantastical elements of the story, the filmmakers approached the story in a grounded way.

“We wanted to see a team of people at its most dysfunctional,” Casady explains. “Then see how barriers break, alliances shift and people connect over the course of a night. The key was keeping the fun of a no-holds-barred Christmas celebration front and center while telling these interwoven stories of the various people in the office.”

“The party is the star of the film,” says Speck, “but that makes our characters that much more important. They have to be realistic, relatable people you’d want to spend a crazy night with.”

Aniston stars as pragmatic CEO Carol Vanstone who announces plans to shut down one of her underperforming branchs days before Christmas.

Realizing no mere Holiday party can lift the spirits of his employees, eccentric branch president (and Carol’s kid brother) Clay Vanstone  enlists the help of Chief Technical Officer Josh and Lead Systems Engineer Tracey (Olivia Munn) to make their own Christmas miracle.

Rather than play Carol as a villain, Aniston framed her character in terms of her relationship with Clay in their youth. “She has incredible resentment toward him because he’s a goof off and got every break growing up. She’s wants to prove herself as the smartest, most competent person in the room. Sadly, she didn’t really develop her soft, fuzzy side,” says Aniston.

“Office Christmas Party” marks Aniston’s fifth collaboration with Bateman and second with Speck and Gordon.

“Jen and Jason are very close friends,” says producer Scott Stuber. “They spend a lot of time together on and off camera, which results in their great chemistry. The relaxed, fluidity of their performance style really sets the tone for the whole cast.”

When assembling the all-star cast of disgruntled office workers, Bateman provided the first piece of the puzzle in the role of Josh, the office’s designated adult.

Two of Hollywood’s funniest comedians – T.J. Miller (“Deadpool,” “Transformers: Age of Extinction”) and Kate McKinnon (“Saturday Night Live,” “Ghostbusters”) – bring the shenanigans in “Office Christmas Party.”

For the character of Clay, the directors needed an actor who could bring equal parts mayhem and legitimacy. They found both in stand-up comedian and actor T.J. Miller.

“I subconsciously based my character on an actual boss I had once who believed you could have a great time and still get your work done,” Miller recalls. “She never saw having fun as an obstacle to productivity, and that’s a philosophy I’ve used to inform Clay’s management strategy.”

Once Clay hatches the plan for the Christmas party, he immediately encounters opposition from Mary (Kate McKinnon), their rules-obsessed Head of Human Resources.

“Mary takes her job very seriously, and wants everyone to be safe and comfortable,” says McKinnon. “The irony is a lot of her rules make people uncomfortable.”

“Office Christmas Party” is now showing in Philippine cinemas. (FREEMAN)