The Ax
Ax, The
"A jet-black social comedy marbled with delectably close-calls, The Ax puts the merciless world of downsizing, outsourcing and other capitalist trends on the chopping block... It's laugh-out-loud funny as Bruno juggles murder, parenting, couples counselling and an unnerving number of brushes with the law" - Variety Family man Bruno has been laid off from his job with a paper company after 15 years faithful service, a victim of profit-motivated 'efficiency' cuts. Watching a promo video for another company, he's convinced he could do a much better job than its boss, if only there was a vacancy. Still unemployed after two years, as money gets tighter and his patriarchal pride takes a battering, Bruno decides to act. In his determination to regain his rightful place in the paper manufacturing industry, he realises that should an appropriate job become available he'd have a far better chance if he could eliminate the other leading candidates. Literally. Directed by Costa-Gavras, Jose Garcia displays flawless comic timing in his nuanced performance as Bruno, a man driven to desperate acts by heartless social circumstances.