Office Space Music

The Importance of Music

Music is very significant in the world we live in today, by using a variety of emotions it can bring out different feelings in us as we listen. Music can be very effective in films when various elements need to be touched on without the characters directly spelling them out like describing a specific theme or foreshadowing a future event. One movie that uses music to its advantage is “Office Space” a film the follows three office workers as they attempt to get revenge on their boss.

Most of the music found in “Office Space” mostly consist of pop and rap songs giving it a sense of rebellion which goes well with the theme of the film. After Peter is hypnotized, his life begins to change as he acts more relaxed and begins to adopt a rebellious attitude seeming to do whatever he pleases. One example of this is when the song "Damn It Feels Good to Be a Gangster" by Geto Boys as the song plays we see a sequence of events as Peter begins to start his rebellious life. You see him parking in his boss’s parking spot, tearing now signs, going fishing and filleting the fish in his office and removing the wall from his cubicle.

Rebellion isn’t the only theme that pop and rap music can be used for, the movie also uses it for a comedic effect.

This is done by playing a serious song over a seemingly silly scene. It is used in the film by playing “Still” by Geto Boys as Peter and his friends throw a printer in a field and began to destroy a company printer. The machine is first thrown on the ground, and then it proceeds to be kicked with gunshot effects going off with each hit. Peter then brings a baseball bat out which is further used to smash the printer until Micheal starts to use his fist which Peter and Samir have to pull him off. The scene itself is full of ridiculous, and the music helps show this especially with the gangster-like lyrics being sung in the

background.

Playing music isn’t the only way the film shows its emotion it also can do this while playing no music at all. When the characters are shown to be bored with their mundane jobs, there’s a lack of music being played. This absence of music helps the audience experience how Peter is feeling at his job. For example when we first see Peter sitting down to work in his cubicle forced to listen to another coworker repeat the same lines in an annoying voice. He is then visited by both of his bosses who remind him to put a cover sheet on his report, even after Peter understands his mistake the bosses still seem to hammer the idea home as if he wasn't listening. The lack of music helps show how unenergetic and dull everything is unlike the scenes with music that have a lively feeling to them.

The use of music is beneficial in films as it can help emphasize the scene by giving it more emotion and feeling. When this is done correctly, you can have scenes that able to make your audience feel connected to the movie they are watching. Listening to specific songs can help the viewer understand how the characters are feeling or they can make an already silly scene seem funnier. Even the absence of music can give the viewer the idea of a mundane and boring environment. Overall without music films would be lacking a sense of communication with the audience and most likely would not be as well received.