Free Enterprise (film)
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| Free Enterprise | |
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| Directed by | Robert Meyer Burnett |
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| Produced by | Mark A. Altman Dan Bates Allan Kaufman |
| Written by | Mark A. Altman Robert Meyer Burnett |
| Starring | Eric McCormack Rafer Weigel Audie England William Shatner Phil LaMarr |
| Music by | Scott Spock |
| Distributed by | Anchor Bay Entertainment |
| Release date(s) | October 7, 1998 (Spain) June 4, 1999 (USA) |
| Running time | 113 min. 121 min. (extended version) |
| Language | English |
Free Enterprise is a 1999 comedy/romance movie starring Eric McCormack and Rafer Weigel, and featuring William Shatner, directed by Robert Meyer Burnett and written by Mark A. Altman and Burnett. The film deals with the mid-life crises of its two main protagonists, Mark and Robert, fictionalized versions of the film's director and producer/writer. The two friends struggle with adult career and relationship problems, all the while defiantly clinging to the geeky science fiction pop culture of their youth and seeking advice from their greatest hero, William Shatner.
Shatner plays a campy caricature of himself as he works on a one-man musical version of Julius Caesar in hopes of finally being taken seriously as a dramatist and musical performer. Hip-hop artist "The Rated R", joined by Shatner, provides the concluding musical number "Julius Caesar", a pastiche of famous lines from the play set to a rap rhythm. The film's score was produced by Scott Spock.
The film is laced with references to past and contemporary science-fiction films and television shows, such as Star Wars and Logan's Run. Most prominent is the original Star Trek, which is treated by the protagonists as a source of inspiration and moral guidance. Free Enterprise explores the dating scene for late gen-x Hollywood singles from a decidedly sardonic perspective.
The film won four awards including the 2000 Saturn Award for Best Home Video Release. A new 2-disc DVD special edition Free Enterprise: Extended "Five Year Mission" Edition was released on March 7, 2006.
A sequel called "Free Enterprise II: My Big Fat Geek Wedding" was in preproduction, but McCormack's long-term commitment to the hit TV series Will and Grace did not allow him enough free time to star in the film, the project eventually died in Development Hell.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Free Enterprise at the Internet Movie Database
- Free Enterprise at Allmovie
- In depth review of the Extended Edition -- by Philipe Rubio, Bits of News.
- interview with Mark Altman
- a collection of articles about the movie
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