User reviews

First off, this movie does make a number of thinly veiled references to Harvey Weinstein.

However, do not expect to see much of Harvey in this movie.

Do not expect a sort of 'Harvey Dearest' exploitation piece with wall-to-wall scenes of a movie executive who is obviously supposed to be Harvey Weinstein abusing and raping employees left and right.

Additionally, do not expect something along the lines of 'All the President's Men' or 'Erin Brockovich' in which a plucky young heroine brings down a powerful but very corrupt individual.

What you can expect is to see a very accurate depiction of a typical day of a typical employee amidst the silent chaos of someone like Harvey Weinstein's reign of terror.

Finally, you can expect a very competent answer to the question of exactly how individuals such as Weinstein and Bill Cosby got away with what they did for as long as they did.

I mean - didn't anyone know?

Well, The Assistant answers this question - with relentless presentation over exposition: they didn't get away with it because no one knew; they got away with it because EVERYONE knew. And anyone who has been witness to this sort of thing knows that's exactly how it happens. The behavior simply becomes part of every day life in the organization, and from thereon no one will say anything because the entire organization becomes an extension of the boss's behavior.

It's not a fun movie - but it is an honest one.

I really enjoyed this film, it feels real and doesn't give in to sensationalism. If you're looking for thrills and spills then this isn't it.

I can see why some viewers don't like this movie, there is no action, essentially no background music until the very end, and the focus is squarely on this young assistant who has been in the job for 5 weeks after graduating from a good college. Her ambition is to work her way into being a Producer.

Julia Garner, a New Yorker herself, is age-appropriate, was probably about 24 during filming, she is simply Jane. She calls home periodically, her parents tell her to get enough sleep, she is very diligent and professional, she gets to the office before daybreak and is often the last to leave. She gets sandwiches, makes copies, arranges flights and hotels, her work keeps the offices running. There is no frivolity.

Her awakening to the reality of things is when she goes in to make an anonymous concern, that sexual shenanigans might be going on even with the big boss, an unqualified girl from Idaho is hired and put up at a hotel, and basically finds out her job is to mind her own business if she wanted to keep her job.

It is easy to think this was inspired by Harvey Weinstein and his office, and maybe it was, but enough has come to light over the past few years to realize this is closer to the norm than it is to the exception. The story is less about the big boss taking advantage of pretty young girls, it is more about the culture and the widespread acceptance within the office that this is the norm. But one worker told her "Don't worry, you're not his type."

The story covers one long day but it gets its point across. Garner is superb in her role as Jane but we get no clue what might eventually happen for her. My wife and I watched this at home on DVD from our public library. When it ended she asked "It's over?"

It's impressive how this movie is so low key and just shows what is likely a very ordinary day for the protagonist, yet still remains interesting and unnerving to watch. Entertaining might not be the best word to describe it, but neither is boring. It maintains a sense of quiet discomfort throughout, and the apathy of a toxic workplace and predatory behaviour of the higher-ups is explored extremely well with this stripped down, non-heightened approach.

I was glad I knew it was subdued and grounded before going in, as if I'd expected more, I may have spent all 80-something minutes of its runtime waiting for the "plot" to start happening.

Despite it being quiet and low key, it's also definitely not subtle. It's pretty clear what (or arguably even who) the movie is about, and I guess the very dry, quiet presentation with the strong and far from subdued intentions of the film did make for an odd but usually interesting contrast.

Also worth mentioning is that Julia Garner was great in the lead role, but the rest of the cast are mostly just decent.

Very accurate and realistic representation of a work day in a life of the newly assigned assistant to the boss, who's a creep and uses his status to fulfill his desires.

Do not expect anything graphic - everything is done very subtle and all the bad stuff happens behind the scenes.

Do not expect any action either - it is all just as low key and as mundane as it sounds like.

I recommend it, if knowing all that you're still up for it.

Let's just say, that whoever did this, has experience when it comes to the life of an assistant. There is nothing fancy here and the ticks and tocks are subtle and not in your face. The life of an Assistant is not glamouros (in realityt that is and in the way it is depicted here) - this could easily be a documentary then.

So your patience is being tested in a way, one would say. The movie is interesting to some then and annoying to boring to others. Be aware to which group you belong and act accordingly (watch or don't that is)

This was my life for 5 years in my 20s. Dreadful and boring; being treated like complete crap by anyone in positions of authority save a few people, being ignored, asked to smile more, dress more or less sexy, catcalled, and asked to do things that were morally wrong for myself. So I relate to this movie. Some may find it boring but if you've worked in a toxic environment whether your male or female you'll see similarities that aren't always picked up on. Brilliantly done.

...only without the comfort of exaggeration or fantasy. Green employs exquisite camera composition to make the drab office environments a thing of sterile beauty, while Garner controls every uncomfortable on-screen moment with brilliantly still misery. Dehumanizing phone calls, oppressive mundanity, hopeless sexism. It's a painstakingly meticulous view into the soul-crushing work of the assistant to the powerful, especially when the roles are this cliched: man over woman.

About the most boring movie of all time. No love, no laughter, no suspense. Simply a movie about the most miserable unimaginative people ever. Main star did a great job with what she had to work with......which was basically nothing. Even one that invested even a dollar in this movie can expect a loss.

"It's not my place to question your decisions. I'm grateful for the continued opportunity." Jane (Julia Gardner) to her boss (Tony Torn)

Jane is a recent college grad who has taken a new job in the city with a media-related firm that has her as an assistant who fears more will be asked of her than the usual go-fer tasks. The above quote just about summarizes her abasement after Boss discovers Jane has complained to HR about his seemingly-predatory practices with young aspirants.

Writer-director Kitty Green has perceptively caught in The Assistant what we all suspected from the Harvey-Weinstein debacle-the sexism and sexual harassment that seem almost a part of a low-level young woman's job description. Plain Jane is constantly on camera, frequently in closeups and peering around the office finding stains on the couch she must clean and compromising conversations she must overhear. These shots do nothing to make her appealing other than to mark her as a good girl caught in compromising situations.

With little affect, Jane is the willing subordinate who might compromise herself should Boss advance on her but who probably is free of the harassment because she is "not his type." So says the HR officer, who listens to her concerns about her boss's predations with new or potential hires.

This scene should be seen by anyone who wants a feel for the imbalances in Weinstein-like worlds, where HR just might tell what you complained about to the Boss and co-workers, and where the fear that she might be fired if she complains keeps her from formally complaining. Jane must be complicit by not complaining or she will lose her precious job. Green makes a compelling case for the gloomy perspective through scenes that demean the protagonist and the office crew.

The Assistant has a Seinfeld theme of being about nothing but really everything. The rumbles are underneath the surface and almost undetectable, so the surface seems cool and accommodating. Yet, looking at Jane's bland face and seeing her capitulate to power and advancement makes on want to certify every minute Harvey stays behind bars.

Does that seem unfair? Cause technically a blockbuster is click bait, right!? Not really. It's obvious what this movie was trying to do and they delivered it in the most mundane way possible. Just like click bait, they lore you in with a topic you would enjoy but stretch out that topic till get gets boring. I'm sorry I wanted to like this movie and I'm most likely not woke enough to like this movie but it's made for a niche market to get and I feel like I'm not part of that niche.

From a film making point of view this is fantastic. There's an eerie undertone throughout somehow making mundane daily activities look sinister. And there's an extensive use of center-framed God's-eye view shots that were stunning. But the pacing of this movie drags terribly because nothing on screen is engaging content-wise. I almost fell asleep in the middle and when I made it to the end, I was shocked that it was only 85 minutes. It was completely mismarketed as a thriller, the trailer even contained a quote using the word thriller but it is definitely not. The only thrilling thing I felt during this movie was when the credits rolled so I could leave the theater. But the ending left me confused about what I was supposed to take away. I feel like this movie is trying to say something about the toxic working environment that this women endures, but it totally falls short and comes across as empty.

The first 15minutes of the movie absolutely nothing happens. It's deader than the dead sea. But I stuck with the movie, thinking that it would eventually pick up or something interesting would happen or there would be like freeking aliens hidden somewhere or SOMETHING.... but none of that happened... it didn't pick up, nothing interesting happened, and there were no aliens...

I don't hardly EVER say this, but... this movie wasted 90minutes of my life... I literally regret watching this movie, that's how needlessly time-wasting this movie is.

And in the end, I honestly don't even know what the movie was about... LITERALLY nothing happened to bring this movie to a close... the girl still works at the company... her boss still does what he does... everything stays the same and nothing changed. I just don't get what the point of this movie was...

The only reason why I'm not giving this movie a 1/10 is because the girl did some good acting, and it's not her fault that the movie sucks.

This is a good film that only seems boring if you're not prepared to put in the effort to think about what is going on, mainly just beneath the surface.

Julia Garner is perfect as the assistant who is gradually having her morality worn away.

Perhaps this doesn't say anything particularly novel about the way that some people in the film industry have exploited their power. But it says it in a subtle and gentle way that encourages the engagement of the audience.

I used to work for a well known person as personal Assistant...12 years of fun and headaches. I would say, it was one of the most exiting jobs I ever had.

Jane aspired to become a producer, yes, one has to start on the bottom but maybe, in this particular industry, one gets treated like her, in a less appreciated way.

Personally, I would have quit a long time ago because a job should be also fun and not only pay the bills.

I only watched the movie to the end, although I was bored out of my mind, because I love Julia Garner, an excellent actress ever since I saw her in Ozark and Inventing Anna!

I normally don't write a movie review but seeing how many people gave this film a negative view, I thought I'd share my reaction.

As a young woman who's worked in the entertainment industry as an assistant, I could see my 20's in a nutshell. This story is the most honest, heart-wrenching and subtle movie I've seen in a long time. Everything the main protagonist Jane goes through, everything she was told, everything she endured, I personally went through at least once in my life.

If you thought this movie was boring, you completely missed the message. Just keep an open mind and give this beautifully made movie a chance.

It's slow. Nothing happens. And I mean really nothing happens. We simply get to see the life of an assistant at an office for a full day,

BUT it is acted terrifically and subtle by the lovely Julia Garner, we got to know from her role in the Netflix series Ozark, as the fiery girl, but who now plays the opposite role of a very timid assistant brilliantly.

There is more good: since nothing happens in this story, what is most enjoyable is the wonderful photography. Every single boring assistant task you can think of (copying, answering the phone etc) is photographed in such a way as if you were watching a vista on top of a hill. Beautiful.

Any bad? Not suited for the impatient. Not suited for those who expect big drama. Entirely suited though for those art house movie fans, who love to watch a subtle, character portrait. Slow, yet beautifully subtle and touching.

I kept waiting for something to happen.....and it never did. No pulse. No drama. It was awful.