Although it may not be directly about Harvey Weinstein, writer/director Kitty Green’s feature debut, The Assistant, certainly tackles both the the mental and sexual abuse men like him in the film industry have allegedly caused, as well as the silence that has allowed it last for decades.
The Assistant follows Jane (Julie Garner), an aspiring film producer working as the assistant to a high-powered film executive. While Jane’s only been at the job for two months, she’s already begun to notice certain tendencies in her workplace. From how her boss likes certain things filed, to the kind of salad he wants for lunch — there’s plenty of seemingly menial tasks that play a big part in her daily routine. However, she’s also noticed the office’s abusive atmosphere which is constantly threatening to compromise her position. She’s also introduced to the office’s manipulative mentality that forces her, like her co-workers, into complacency thus allowing the atmosphere of abuse to continue.
With the film capturing Jane’s full day as an assistant, Green really goes all in on delving into all the details of Jane’s day – for better or worse. The beginning of the film is definitely a drag as watching Jane print documents and take phone calls isn’t the most riveting or exciting thing to watch. It doesn’t help that there’s no score behind anything Jane does, so the sounds of office work makes the beginning of the film come off as a little dry. It’s even tough to figure out where things are going because the beginning of the film has no general structure or direction. I couldn’t help but hear people around me openly question when things would actually get going. However, after the first act of office work, Green’s intentions start to become clearer and The Assistant immerses in the audience in the story of how Jane starts to discover and deal with the abusive environment she’s in.
Thinking that The Assistant is going to be this explosive and overly-dramatic look into a Weinstein-like workplace is a big mistake as this is not Green’s approach. Rather, she takes a casual approach to things to make the experience more realistic which showcases how the abusiveness of Jane’s boss has just become a part of the workplace. The film is never direct about what Jane’s boss, whose face we never see, is actually doing but the meaning behind his actions are clear. Through everyday things Jane does like cleaning her boss’ office couch (she finds earrings belonging to women he’s had “closed door” talks), and meeting his handpicked new, young, inexperience assistant (Kristine Froseth) who he’s putting up in a hotel — we see his reach and his abuse.
Even without him being there, Green excellently shows the power he exudes over Jane, and really everyone else in the office. Emails and phone calls threaten Jane’s position and put her in a bad spot. There’re even times where Jane’s stress over her boss’ wife calling to see where her husband is, and then receiving a nasty email that seems like she’s about get fired are very relatable. You really grow to care for her as you see how stressful her situation is. What’s even more effective, though, is how Green showcases how this level of abuse and corruption has become commonplace within this workplace and how anyone that attempts to speak out is silenced.
Any time that Jane receives a nasty email and attempts to send an apology, two male assistants (Jon Orsini, Noah Robbins) immediately come over and tell her what to say. They say it in a way that feels rehearsed, that makes the situation seem so commonplace, but that ends up playing a significant role in how Green shows the depths of Jane’s boss’ power.
The most effective example of this comes in what could be considered the film’s climax when Jane attempts to speak out against her boss to Wilcock (Matthew Macfayden), an internal affairs/human resource rep. The way that he turns her words against her and says that if she continues to talk about her boss’ behavior she’s going to get herself blacklisted and never work as a film producer is legitimately frightening. He, and Jane’s boss, attempt to compliment her in order to buy her silence. This is all made more horrifying with a final line from Wilcock that keys into his own knowledge of her boss’ actions, which insinuates her powerlessness in all of this. There’s even a moment towards the end of the film that shows Jane can’t even confide in other female co-workers as she’s told to basically keep her head down. It’s these kind of seemingly casual workplace encounters, paired with a subtext of abusive power, that make The Assistant so effective. This is largely in part to Garner’s great performance and Green’s direction.
While she doesn’t have a whole to say, Garner sells all of Jane’s growing emotions through body language and it makes for a very connective performance. At times, you can almost see her on the verge of tears because of the stress she’s under and knowing that she could stop things but would have so much to lose in the process. It’s a top-tier performance from a generally under-recognized actress and through Green’s direction the two are absolutely a force to be reckoned with.
Although The Assistant takes its time, maybe too much, in getting things going, it’s undoubtedly a strong debut for Green that comes at the perfect time. In a time of Weinsten vs #METOO movement, I can’t think of a better film to represent why this fight is so important.
