Directed by: Mike Judge
Starring: David Herman, Gary Cole, Jennifer Aniston, Ron Livingston, Stephen Root
Factual error: All of the computers show a Mac OS when they're booted up. However, when Peter is shutting his computer down to try to escape his boss, the computer shuts down to a C: prompt. For those not technically minded, a C: prompt is only seen on IBM-compatible PCs, never on Macs. (00:19:20)
Factual error: When Peter is fishing, the fish being caught is a largemouth bass. When he holds the fish up in the office, it is a striped bass.
VideoContinuity mistake: When he is playing Tetris, he is playing a different game every time. (00:43:35)
Peter Gibbons: So I was sitting in my cubicle today, and I realized, ever since I started working, every single day of my life has been worse than the day before it. So that means that every single day that you see me, that's on the worst day of my life.
Dr. Swanson: What about today? Is today the worst day of your life?
Peter Gibbons: Yeah.
Dr. Swanson: Wow, that's messed up.
Question: While recognizing that this film is entirely fictitious, how likely is it that an IT firm in 1999 would have allowed a former employee access to the premises after being laid off, never mind continue to send him a paycheck as with Milton Waddams? I myself was fired the following year and got the walk of shame treatment ("you have 5 minutes to clear your desk - the taxi's waiting outside") which at the time already seemed pretty standard.
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Answer: They never told Milton he was fired, they just cruelly cut off his paycheck, figuring he'd eventually get fed up and leave (he'd actually been laid off years ago, but a payroll glitch kept him getting a paycheck). The management is hoping if they're cruel enough, he'll stop showing up.
Brian Katcher
This is actually the reverse of what happened. The glitch caused him to continue to receive a paycheck, even though he'd been laid off. The "Bobs" corrected the glitch, so he would no longer receive a paycheck. In an effort to avoid confrontation, they chose not to say anything to him, hoping he'd realise it and leave on his own.