Duties of a Secretary (Rifftrax Shorts)

Rifftrax Year:  2016
Riffers:  Bridget Nelson, Mary Jo Pehl

You see in the good old days women knew their place.  They had to cater to the man's every whim and that's why if they had to get out of the house and get a job secretary was perfect for them.  This instructional film was made so women wouldn't muck up as badly as they normally do.  A new secretary is hired at a real estate office and is given a crash course on what to do and what not to do.  That night she goes home and has a nightmare of what would happen if she did everything wrong, underlining the importance of her job.  She then wakes up and proceeds to do her job the correct way.

I actually thought Duties of a Secretary was more interesting than you average instructional film.  It didn't merely spell out what needed to be done, but rather enforce that not following the rules could have consequences.  The majority of the short gives us a straight look at worst case scenarios one after another and has an interesting theme of paranoia.  One mistake leads to another, leaving our lead girl more unsure of herself after each mistake is made.  There's an interesting theme of self-doubt here and sometimes we genuinely feel for her, though deep down we know she probably should be fired.

But it was all a dream.  We're then given an example of each of these scenarios done properly and it's so much simpler.  The theme suddenly switches to confidence, and I'd dare say the entire thing is fairly well done.

Bridget and Mary Jo tackle this short like it's a horror film.  They get into it, wince at it, get on the edge of their seats, and just seem to be on the edge of their seats.  Why Bridget even remarks the short is more torturous for her than Saw!  The way they play up their reactions to the tensions of the piece is constantly amusing and quite hilarious.

I also enjoy the way the duo discuss getting into the biz of being secretaries as well, putting on a little skit in which they might be watching this film just in case they're fired from Rifftrax.  Bridget thinks she'd make a great one because she knows the alphabet and can be nice to guys with mustaches.  If they are constantly as funny as they are in this short I'd hire the duo in a heartbeat!

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