I love Melville's work and expected the movie to be better. The screenwriter took too many liberties using modern day references. I thought David Paymer did a great job, but he was definitely miscast. I felt no sympathy for him. The boss was the central character, the narrator of this story. He should have been softer, more likable. No one in that story was likable. The music in the film was horrible, made me want to mute it. The sets were fake looking, too weird and colorful, like a throwback from the sixties. Why not create a little reality for the viewer, then introduce the non-conformist? That might have been more powerful. I also like Glover, I really enjoy his performances, but i think he played this one to harshly, with too much gloom. Melville's Bartleby was simply shut down, not angry in any way. Glover played angry, maybe unintentionally, but still. I'd hoped for better.
Review of Bartleby
