- The story centers on a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing at a major company - and how that affects them, their families, and their communities.
- When the GTX Corporation must cut jobs to improve the company's balance sheet during the 2010 recession, thousands of employees will take the hit, like Bobby Walker (Ben Affleck). Bobby learns the real life consequences of not having a job. Not only does he see a change to his family lifestyle, and the loss of his home, but also his feelings of self-worth.—Douglas Young (the-movie-guy)
- An ensemble drama that addresses the effects of downsizing on the upper class American family. For high flying Bobby Walker, his lucrative job at GTX has given him the American Dream: a big house in the suburbs, a silver Porsche in his garage and a beautiful family. But when Bobby is one of the thousands laid off by his company in the wake of an ongoing recession, Bobby must join the lines of the unemployed, but also deal with the effects it has on he and his family. Among the others laid off is Phil Woodward, an executive who rose from the factory floor to the corporate offices, but is now finding himself competing with men half his age as he reenters the job market. Meanwhile, Gene McClary is the number two executive at GTX and the vocal opposition to the layoffs, as he witnesses them happening to his friends and colleagues.—robgordon
- GTX is a conglomerate based in Boston. In difficult economic times including what some may see as mismanagement by those in power, the company has to restructure leading to several rounds of firings, while those let go may or may not know that the company founder and CEO James Salinger is still going ahead with the plan to build a new headquarters building which would include his lavish new office. The stories of three of those fired are told, each in executive positions earning six figures, each in different levels of the executive, and each at a different stage of their life and thus career. In a changing job market than when they started working for GTX, they may have to reinvent themselves to get another job, which they may not be willing or able to do, especially if that reinvention does not afford them the lifestyle to which working for GTX has made them accustomed. Those who were fired in a later round of restructuring and thus who saw what happened to some of their colleagues let go in earlier rounds, may have a different perspective of their post GTX life.—Huggo
- The movie opens with Bobby arriving at work, bragging to coworkers about his golf round that morning. An onscreen news feed tells us the date is September 15, 2008. Bobby is a sales manager in ship manufacturing at GTX, a large firm in Massachusetts with multiple businesses. Shortly after arriving to work this day Bobby is fired as part of a round of corporate downsizing. His boss Phil is avoiding his own office, afraid he might also be called upstairs to get canned. Cut to a meeting involving Phil's boss, Gene, the executive over Phil and Bobby's whole division. Gene is part of a panel from the company giving answers to financial analysts about GTX's financial projections. Gene is honest in sharing his thoughts, refusing to paint a rosy picture, much to the chagrin of the other panelists. When Gene gets back to his office Phil is waiting and informs him of the layoffs. Gene was unaware the company was closing major sections of his division and firing people. Gene then interrupts the CEO, Jim, in the middle of a meeting to complain about these actions taking place without his consent or knowledge. Jim explains it was necessary but Gene does not seem placated, just resigned to the facts. A short time later Jim comes to Gene's office and briefly reminisces about old times, giving the strong impression that they have been friends for a really long time. Jim then tells Gene, nicely but firmly, that he cannot openly challenge Jim's authority in front of the other executives. There is an unspoken threat in the way Jim delivers this message to Gene. Interspersed with all the above scenes and throughout the movie are short scenes in their homes that indicate that Bobby, Phil and Gene all have very expensive homes and lavish lifestyles. We also learn that Gene's marriage is strained and he is having an affair with Sally in HR at GTX.
Bobby then goes to a party at his brother-in-law Jack's home, where Jack openly needles Bobby about his corporate job. Based on their interactions it is clear they dislike each other. Next we see Bobby at the placement firm that GTX has hired to help its workers with their transition to other jobs. Bobby is openly disdainful of the process and is rude to Danny, an engineer from another company who is also in transition. Next we see Gene meet Bobby for lunch, offering to call in favors to help him land a job. Again Bobby is rude, rejecting Gene's offer because he is confident he will find employment soon. Next we see Bobby and his wife Maggie, Jack's sister, discussing their increasingly precarious financial situation. It is clear from the discussion that Bobby is in denial of how dire their circumstances really are. Exact time lines are never given but as scenes progress we are given indicators that months are passing by without progress on the job front for Bobby. He goes to an interview he thought was for a local sales job and discovers it was actually for a job in Arkansas and pays less than half his previous salary. Bobby is very rude to the interviewer and storms out cursing. During a variety of scenes we see that Bobby is becoming disillusioned with his job prospects and that Gene is becoming disillusioned with his old friend Jim and the way the company is being run. During a holiday dinner with extended family it is inadvertently revealed by Bobby's daughter that he lost his job, a fact which he and Maggie had been hiding. Jack discreetly offers Bobby a construction job with his company "if things get tough" but again Bobby is rude and rejects Jack's offer. Bobby continues to spend and act like things are OK but we can see his confidence eroding as months pass. Eventually, after he doesn't get a job he thought he had been offered, he shows signs of acceptance as he sells his Porsche and their home is for sale.
Next we see Phil coming to Gene to complain that Sally had just fired him. When Gene goes to try and make Sally hire him back she informs him that he, too, has been fired. Gene leaves his wife and moves in with Sally. Phil is very distressed about his job loss, knowing this his prospects as an older executive competing in a very youth-oriented market are very slim. He eventually reveals to Gene that his wife makes him leave everyday with his briefcase so the neighbors won't know. Bobby, after initially rejecting Maggie's idea to move back into his parent's extra rooms, concedes to the necessity of the situation so they move. Bobby also goes to Jack asking him for a job. Jack accepts Bobby and puts him to work with him on a remodeling job, even though Bobby is inept at almost everything. Bobby gradually gets better at the job but is still very slow. When one of the construction crewmen is arrested for drunkenness and drug use, Bobby convinces Jack to hire Danny, the engineer from the placement firm. It is eventually revealed by another crew member, a close friend of Jack's, that Jack is potentially losing money on the job and only bid on it so he could keep his crew working through the winter. This seems to give Bobby a much greater appreciation of his brother-in-law.
We see vignettes of Phil and Bobby going on interviews and getting rejected, repeatedly dashing their hopes. Finally Phil asks for a meeting with an old buddy, begging him for a sales job in his friend's firm. His friend reluctantly informs Phil he can't recommend him for the job. After this rejection Phil commits suicide. After Phil's funeral Gene takes Bobby for a walk at a closed manufacturing facility on the docks and tells him stories of the early days of the company, when he was proud of the manufacturing work he did and so were his fellow workers, before the corporate greed mindset took over. Next we see Gene confronting Jim to chastise him for continuing to take even larger salaries and bonuses as the people that actually do their work lose their jobs, homes and self-respect. Jim makes it clear his conscience is not bothered and walks away from his old friend.
Different scenes show that Bobby is reconnecting in a good way with his wife and kids as a result of their situation. When Gene offers Bobby a job with his new manufacturing company he's decided to launch, Bobby tells Jack he's not sure if he should take it due to the corporate pressures he knows he will face. Jack tells him "You should take that job. You're a shitty carpenter." It is obvious they have a better level of respect and appreciation for one another now. In the final scene we Bobby taking charge and giving assignments in a room full of his previously laid-off friends and co-workers in an office in one of the old factories where Gene, Jim and Phil all started out together.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content