The streaming charts welcome a surprise addition to their ranks, as a forgotten comedy movie that grossed just $23,910 at the box office is suddenly a hit after nine years.
Streaming services are a great place to catch a recent hit movie after giving it a pᴀss in theaters, or to revisit an old classic, or maybe an old non-classic that happens to be a personal favorite.
Then there are the completely forgotten box office flops that find their way onto streaming years later, and all of a sudden start drawing the audience they never managed to grab the first time around. A perfect case in point would be the $23,910 comedy from 2016 that is currently surging on HBO Max.
Get A Job Is A Streaming Hit 9 Years After Barely Releasing In Theaters
Get a Job was released in 2016 and quickly vanished, but the comedy movie has now risen phoenix-like from the content ashes, finding its way onto the streaming charts. The movie managed to flop nine years ago despite a timely theme and a talented cast including Anna Kendrick, Miles Teller, Bryan Cranston, Alison Brie and others.
That stacked roster of stars is getting a second chance to shine on HBO Max though, as Get a Job currently sits at #7 on the streamer’s top 10.
Our Take On Get A Job Becoming A Streaming Hit
A comedy following a group of recent college graduates diving into the murky waters of the employment market for the first time, Get a Job was basically DOA when it came out in 2016. SH๏τ in 2012, the film sat on the shelf for four years before getting a very limited theatrical release alongside a digital roll-out.
That long stay on the shelf was red flag number one for Get a Job. Red flag number 2 may have been the movie’s 83-minute duration, the sort of notably short runtime that often indicates a lack of usable material.
Critics wasted no time savaging the misbegotten comedy, which currently sits at 9% on Rotten Tomatoes. The film was called out for Sєxism by some reviewers, while others focused on its confused tone, which is described as veering clumsily from grounded satire to crᴀss vulgarity and back.
Get a Job got a rare good review from Richard Roeper, who said it has “an infectious charm, some genuinely funny set pieces and winning performances throughout.”
Nine years after being released in theaters, and 13 years after being sH๏τ, Get a Job may have found its niche as a semi-amusing streaming time-waster, the kind of movie that benefits from the viewer only paying half-attention to it.
The film does have a great cast, headlined by Top Gun: Maverick star Teller, who is a much bigger deal now than he was back in 2016. Kendrick too is still a H๏τ name, as are Brie, and the ever-reliable Cranston.
Whatever audiences and critics missed about Get a Job nine years ago appears to be hitting with HBO Max subscribers, at least for now.
