Free Enterprise is the story of a group of guys who are hitting 30 and trying to deal with life, work and relationships. Sounds like every other coming of age/rites of passage drama doesn't it - you're already yawning at the prospect right?
Well you shouldn't if you like the Sci-Fi genre, especially Star Trek. The characters are obsessed by the show and constantly talk about it, quote it and collect everything to do with it. When they're not sure what to do in their relationships or jobs - they wonder how Captain Kirk would handle it. When it comes to choosing between paying the electricity bill or buying a classic action figure, they opt for the doll. Women leave them and they get fired - suffice it to say they're not happy with their lives.
In the middle of all this, they meet Bill Shatner in a bookstore. To say that they're excited is an understatement and when he offers them the chance to help him with his new acting project, they readily accept. The Shatman is a Sci-Fi god - he can do no wrong, right?
Well, it doesn't turn out quite like that. Along the way, everyone learns about themselves and some myths are shattered. Shatner isn't Kirk - action figures are not more important than electricity bills and sci-fi is a great hobby as long as it doesn't get out of control.
Whether or not you'll enjoy this movie depends on your own life and experiences. I found it to be amazingly accurate in many of it's observations, but then I'm not too dissimilar to the characters. I'm 30, a Sci-Fi/Star Trek fan and see employment as an impediment to my leisure time. I don't feel that wearing a suit and being 'responsible' is something to aim for and have no desire to be corporately assimilated. I'm pretty much like the guys in the movie, although I'm nowhere near as obsessed (that's what they all say right?)
They're living a parody of my life and the life of many others like me.
As such, for me the movie was interesting and funny, even poignant sometimes, but I'm pretty certain it won't be the same for everyone.
I found some of the points made in the plot were spot on, for example:
Why is it that collecting every episode of Star Trek is 'boys with toys' but women can own fifty pairs of shoes? Isn't that just the same? If Sci-Fi is juvenile, isn't spending hours on makeup and clothes simply 'girls playing dressing up games?'
What is the point of a $50,000 engagement ring - it has no use apart from to look pretty! To say it's a sign of love is crap - wouldn't some genuine care and affection be better? It's a sign of greed, not love - a cheaper ring could be just as beautiful.
There are many more examples, and while watching it with my girlfriend there were more than a few knowing looks passed between us. Sure - I don't buy action figures and she doesn't own fifty pairs of shoes, but similar issues are often discussed. That very same day when I bought the Free Enterprise DVD, she was salivating over another pair of shoes and I almost bought the new Rollerball DVD...
To sum up, Free Enterprise is funny and interesting, but if you don't like Sci-Fi it's mediocre and probably quite boring. The acting is passable but not brilliant and as everyone else has said, Shatner steals the show easily. It's a shame he doesn't get a lot more screen time (Maybe he finally realized that if he monopolizes the camera too much his colleagues will end up hating him....)
If you like Star Trek and Sci-Fi - you have to get this movie. If you don't, i'd say give it a miss.
=============================================================> Incidentally, there's a comedy show on TV in the UK called 'Spaced' that has lots of Horror/Sci-Fi fanboy film references. If you like Free Enterprise or enjoy British comedy and you get a chance to see it, check it out.
Well you shouldn't if you like the Sci-Fi genre, especially Star Trek. The characters are obsessed by the show and constantly talk about it, quote it and collect everything to do with it. When they're not sure what to do in their relationships or jobs - they wonder how Captain Kirk would handle it. When it comes to choosing between paying the electricity bill or buying a classic action figure, they opt for the doll. Women leave them and they get fired - suffice it to say they're not happy with their lives.
In the middle of all this, they meet Bill Shatner in a bookstore. To say that they're excited is an understatement and when he offers them the chance to help him with his new acting project, they readily accept. The Shatman is a Sci-Fi god - he can do no wrong, right?
Well, it doesn't turn out quite like that. Along the way, everyone learns about themselves and some myths are shattered. Shatner isn't Kirk - action figures are not more important than electricity bills and sci-fi is a great hobby as long as it doesn't get out of control.
Whether or not you'll enjoy this movie depends on your own life and experiences. I found it to be amazingly accurate in many of it's observations, but then I'm not too dissimilar to the characters. I'm 30, a Sci-Fi/Star Trek fan and see employment as an impediment to my leisure time. I don't feel that wearing a suit and being 'responsible' is something to aim for and have no desire to be corporately assimilated. I'm pretty much like the guys in the movie, although I'm nowhere near as obsessed (that's what they all say right?)
They're living a parody of my life and the life of many others like me.
As such, for me the movie was interesting and funny, even poignant sometimes, but I'm pretty certain it won't be the same for everyone.
I found some of the points made in the plot were spot on, for example:
Why is it that collecting every episode of Star Trek is 'boys with toys' but women can own fifty pairs of shoes? Isn't that just the same? If Sci-Fi is juvenile, isn't spending hours on makeup and clothes simply 'girls playing dressing up games?'
What is the point of a $50,000 engagement ring - it has no use apart from to look pretty! To say it's a sign of love is crap - wouldn't some genuine care and affection be better? It's a sign of greed, not love - a cheaper ring could be just as beautiful.
There are many more examples, and while watching it with my girlfriend there were more than a few knowing looks passed between us. Sure - I don't buy action figures and she doesn't own fifty pairs of shoes, but similar issues are often discussed. That very same day when I bought the Free Enterprise DVD, she was salivating over another pair of shoes and I almost bought the new Rollerball DVD...
To sum up, Free Enterprise is funny and interesting, but if you don't like Sci-Fi it's mediocre and probably quite boring. The acting is passable but not brilliant and as everyone else has said, Shatner steals the show easily. It's a shame he doesn't get a lot more screen time (Maybe he finally realized that if he monopolizes the camera too much his colleagues will end up hating him....)
If you like Star Trek and Sci-Fi - you have to get this movie. If you don't, i'd say give it a miss.
=============================================================> Incidentally, there's a comedy show on TV in the UK called 'Spaced' that has lots of Horror/Sci-Fi fanboy film references. If you like Free Enterprise or enjoy British comedy and you get a chance to see it, check it out.