Corporate Affairs

Dan Cohen’s highly-anticipated followup to 2000’s superb Diamond Men, Corporate Affairs is an almost maddeningly uneven effort that nevertheless manages to hold the viewer’s interest throughout its brisk running time. Breckin Meyer stars as Ted, a happily-married computer programmer whose life takes an unexpected turn after he’s promoted to middle management – as the hapless everyman finds himself drawn into an illicit world of tawdry sex clubs and internet-based prostitution rings. There’s little doubt that Corporate Affairs fares best in its opening stretch, with the presence of several undeniably effective elements – including Meyer’s surprisingly strong performance and the authenticity with which Cohen has infused the film’s corporate landscape – proving instrumental in drawing the viewer into the admittedly laid-back storyline. Cohen’s predilection for going off on off-the-wall tangents ultimately does undermine the film’s positive attributes, however, and it becomes increasingly difficult to overlook the inclusion of several entirely needless characters and sequences (eg a loopy prostitute with an alien fixation, Ted’s downright baffling third-act encounter with his boss’ wife, etc). This lack of focus notwithstanding, Corporate Affairs is otherwise an affable piece of work that benefits from Cohen’s expectedly fluid dialogue and gift for eliciting top-notch performances from his actors – leading one to hope that the movie marks a minor misstep for an exceedingly promising filmmaker.

**1/2 out of ****