I always do a movie marathon on my birthday. This year I decided on the theme of working gal/guy movies, movies about people that are having a hard time at work/their career but ultimately succeed or at least get the last laugh. This list is split into 2 categories: ones I've seen so I know they have happy endings and ones I haven't seen that seem like good work/career bad day movies, but I don't know if they have happy endings. I also tried to take into account a plethora of careers, because not everyone (including myself) has an office job (I even highlighted the job names so you can look up specific movies to watch).
Have seen
A Night at the Museum (2006)-A newly recruited night security guard at the Museum of Natural History discovers that an ancient curse causes the animals and exhibits on display to come to life and wreak havoc.
Air Force One (1997)-Hijackers seize the plane carrying the President of the United States and his family, but he (an ex-soldier) works from hiding to defeat them.
Be Kind Rewind (2008)-A man whose brain becomes magnetized unintentionally destroys every tape in his friend's video store. The two men set out to remake the lost films.
Blades of Glory (2007)-In 2002, two rival Olympic ice skaters were stripped of their gold medals and permanently banned from men's single competition. Presently, however, they've found a loophole that will allow them to qualify as a pair’s team.
Boiler Room (2000)-A college dropout gets a job as a broker for a suburban investment firm, which puts him on the fast track to success, but the job might not be as legitimate as it sounds.
Demolition Man (1993)-A cop is brought out of suspended animation in prison to pursue an old ultra-violent enemy who is loose in a nonviolent future society.
Emperor's New Groove (2000) - Emperor Kuzco is turned into a llama by his ex-administrator Yzma, and must now regain his throne with the help of Pacha, the gentle llama herder.
Employee of the Month (2006)-When he hears that the new female employee digs ambitious men who are the store employee of the month, a slacker gets his act together but finds himself in competition with his rival, an ambitious co-worker.
Good Will Hunting (1997)-Will Hunting, a janitor at MIT, has a gift for mathematics but needs help from a psychologist to find direction in his life.
Groundhog Day (1993)-A weatherman finds himself living the same day over and over again.
Liar Liar (1997)-A fast track lawyer can't lie for 24 hours due to his son's birthday wish after the lawyer turns his son down for the last time.
Mission Impossible (1996)-An American agent, under false suspicion of disloyalty, must discover and expose the real spy without the help of his organization.
Monster's, Inc. (2001) - Monsters generate their city's power by scaring children, but they are terribly afraid themselves of being contaminated by children, so when one enters Monstropolis, top scarer Sulley finds his world disrupted. (power plant/electrician)
Office Space (1999)-Comedic tale of company workers who hate their jobs and decide to rebel against their greedy boss. (waitress)
P.S. I Love You (2007)-A young widow discovers that her late husband has left her 10 messages intended to help ease her pain and start a new life. (you don't know what to do with your life)
Ratatouille (2007)-When a young rat named Remy makes an unusual alliance with a restaurant's new garbage boy, the culinary and personal adventures begin despite Remy's family's skepticism and the rat-hating world of humans. (chef)
Remember the Titans (2000)-The true story of a newly appointed African-American coach and his high school team on their first season as a racially integrated unit.
Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) - The Gremlins are back, and this time, they've taken total control over the building of a media mogul.
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)-A struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional endeavor. (stockbroker/salesperson)
The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009)-Armed men hijack a New York City subway train, holding the passengers hostage in return for a ransom, and turning an ordinary day's work for dispatcher Walter Garber into a face-off with the mastermind behind the crime.
The Simpsons Movie (2007)-After Homer accidentally pollutes the town's water supply, Springfield is encased in a gigantic dome by the EPA and the Simpsons family is declared fugitives. (nuclear plant)
Yes Man (2008)-A guy challenges himself to say "yes" to everything for an entire year. (banker)
Zoolander (2001)-At the end of his career, a clueless fashion model is brainwashed to kill the Prime Minister of Malaysia.
The Lake House (2006) - A lonely doctor who once occupied an unusual lakeside home begins exchanging love letters with its former resident, a frustrated architect. They must try to unravel the mystery behind their extraordinary romance before it's too late.
The Wedding Singer (1998)-Robbie, the singer and Julia, the waitress are both engaged to be married but to the wrong people. Fortune intervenes to help them discover each other.
Tommy Boy (1995)-An incompetent, immature, and dimwitted heir to an auto parts factory must save the business to keep it out of the hands of big business. (salesperson)
Toothfairy (2010)-A bad deed on the part of a tough minor-league hockey player results in an unusual sentence: He must serve one week as a real-life tooth fairy. (athlete)
Waiting (2005)-Young employees at Shenaniganz restaurant collectively stave off boredom and adulthood with their antics. (if you've ever worked at a restaurant)
Still Waiting... (2009) (V)-On the last night of the fiscal quarter, Dennis, Shenanigan's manager, will be promoted to district manager if they have a $9000 day. (if you've ever worked at a restaurant)
Wayne's World (1992)-Two slacker friends try to promote their public-access cable show. (TV production/broadcasting)
Little Black Book (2004)-Stacy Holt, an associate producer for a daytime talk show, snoops through her boyfriend's palm pilot and reveals his former girlfriends, which causes her to question why they're still listed in his little black book.
Little Women (1994)-The March sisters live and grow in post-Civil War America. (writer)
The Young Victoria (2009)-A dramatization of the turbulent first years of Queen Victoria's rule, and her enduring romance with Prince Albert.
First Wives Club (1996)-Three divorced women seek revenge on the husbands who left them for younger women. (housewife/cashier/actress/advertising exec)
Beauty Shop (2005)-Gina is a hairstylist who opens up a beauty shop full of employees and customers more interested in speaking their minds than getting a cut. (business owner)
Under the Tuscan Sun (2003)-While on vacation, a just-divorced writer buys a villa in Tuscany on a whim, hoping it will be the start of a change for the better in her life.
Weather Girl (2009)-A Seattle weather girl freaks out on-air over her cheating boyfriend, the morning show anchor, and moves in with her little brother.
Audrey Hepburn Story (TV 2000) - Biographic made-for-TV movie of the life of one of Hollywood's most famous actresses: Audrey Hepburn.
Temple Grandin (TV) (2010) -A biopic of Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who has become one of the top scientists in the humane livestock handling industry.
Speed (1994)-A young cop must save the passengers of a bus that has a bomb set to explode if the bus goes below 50 MPH.
Simply Irresistible (1999)-A department store executive (Flanery) tries to resist falling in love with a young woman (Gellar), who he believes has possessed magical powers after inheriting a restaurant. (business owner/chef)
Clockwatchers (1997)-Iris can best be described as a wallflower. She begins her first day as a temp for the nondescript Global Credit Association by waiting in a chair for two hours. This sets the scene for her (mis)adventures with the other "corporate orphans", Margaret, Paula and Jane. Led by Margaret, they find subtle ways to lessen the ennui of corporate oppression. (Temp/secretary/assistant)
In Theaters
Hereafter (2010)-A drama centered on three people -- a blue-collar American, a French journalist and a London school boy -- who are touched by death in different ways.
Haven't Seen
16 Blocks (2006)-An aging cop is assigned the ordinary task of escorting a fast-talking witness from police custody to a courthouse. There are, however, forces at work trying to stop prevent them from making it.
Fun With Dick and Jane (2005)-An update of the 1977 comedy, Dick and Jane are living the good life. That is until Dick (Jim Carrey) loses his job shortly after getting a promotion that convinced his wife Jane (Téa Leoni) to quit her job. The money is gone, and the house ends up in foreclosure. Dick decides to turn to a hilarious life of crime to pay the bills with his lovely wife by his side. (corporate middle manager)
Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009) - When a shopping mall is overtaken by a gang of organized crooks, it's up to a mild-mannered security guard to save the day.
The Slammin Salmon (2009)-The owner of a Miami restaurant indebted to the mob institutes a contest to see what waiter can earn the most money in one night. (restaurant owner)
Working Girl (1988)-When a secretary's idea is stolen by her boss, she seizes an opportunity to steal it back by pretending she has her boss's job.
In theaters
Morning Glory (2010) - An upstart television producer accepts the challenge of reviving a struggling morning show program with warring co-hosts. (producer)
Black Swan (2010) - A thriller that zeros in on the relationship between a veteran ballet dancer and a rival.
Burlesque (2010)-A small-town girl ventures to Los Angeles and finds her place in a neo-burlesque club run by a former dancer.
