Management (film)

Plot

Mike Flux (Steve Zahn) works at his parents motel as the night manager. One day he sees Sue (Jennifer Aniston), who is staying at the motel for the weekend. He develops a crush on her and surprises her at her door with a bottle of wine. She doesnt quite know what to make of his approach, shares some wine to be polite, then asks him to leave. He returns the next day, trying the same trick with champagne, and this time she allows him to touch her butt momentarily. As she heads back home the next day she decides to go back and have sex with Mike in the laundry room.

Mike realizes his feelings for Sue and flies to her home in Baltimore. Shes shocked to see him there, but out of courtesy allows him to stay with her until morning when he can go back home. After spending some time together they get to know each other better as friends, and soon after Mike returns home, Sue stays at the motel again. They decide to go out and have fun. Mikes mother (Margo Martindale) is very sick, and the two stop by her home to see her. She approves of Sue, and tells Mike that he needs to find happiness in his life. Soon after Sue leaves, Mikes mother passes away. Mike decides to make a change in his life and go after Sue once again.

Mike learns that Sue has gotten back together with her old boyfriend, Jango (Woody Harrelson), a former punk rocker turned successful businessman in Aberdeen, WA. Mike settles into the new town by taking a job at a Chinese restaurant. The son of the owners, Al (James Hiroyuki Liao), befriends him and allows Mike to stay in the restaurants basement. Mike skydives into Sue and Jangos pool to surprise her, but Jango responds by attacking him with an airsoft gun. Feeling bad about what he did, Jango invites Mike and Al over for dinner. Jango knows Mike has feelings towards Sue and threatens him. Regardless of the threat, Mike, with help from Al, sings a song for Sue outside her window later that night. Sue meets up with Mike the next day, informing him, that she and Jango are getting married. Sue is pregnant, and she wants to be with someone thats in control of his life. In anger after everything he worked for to be with her, Mike tells Sue to leave.

After spending four months in a Buddhist monastery, Mike returns to the motel, now being run solely by his father (Fred Ward). After talking about moving on with their lives, Mikes father hands him the deed to the motel. Mike decides to turn the motel into a homeless shelter, something Sue had mentioned always wanting to do. Mike calls her at home to tell her, but Jango answers the phone. He reveals that Sue has left him and is living with her mother. Mike makes his way to Sues home to ask her for help with the shelter. Shes happy to see him and tells him that she had messed up their relationship. Mike tells her he loves her and only wants to take care of her and her baby. The story ends as they embrace.

Cast

Filming

While set in Kingman, Arizona, Maryland, and Washington, filming took place entirely in Oregon in 2007. Sonny’s Motel in Madras, served as the Kingman Motor Inn, while Portland stepped in for Baltimore. Instead of Aberdeen, Washington, both Oregon City and West Linn were used to represent the hometown of Kurt Cobain. Even the footage showing Zahns character driving cross-country from Arizona to Maryland was all shot in Oregon.

Reception

Management received mixed reviews from critics, garnering only 46% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes based on 96 critics, which summarized critics conclusion that "[c]lever and often beguiling performances by Steve Zahn and Jennifer Aniston cant revive this sweetly misguided stalker romance." The film earned a 50/100 "metascore" on Metacritic.

Home media

The DVD was released on September 29, 2009. It has grossed $3,820,537 in US DVD sales.