Drop Dead Fred (1991)

User Rating:

4.8/10   

Director:

Ate de Jong

Writers:

Elizabeth Livingston (story)
Carlos Davis (written by) ...

Release Date:

19 April 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy

Tagline:

Imagine having this guy for a friend

Plot:

A young woman finds her already unstable life rocked by the presence of a rambunctious imaginary friend from childhood.

Plot Keywords:

Imaginary Friend | Mother | Family Relationships | Slapstick Comedy | Hair

Cast

Phoebe Cates	...	Elizabeth 'Lizzie' Cronin
Rik Mayall	...	Drop Dead Fred
Marsha Mason	...	Polly Cronin
Tim Matheson	...	Charles
Carrie Fisher	...	Janie
Keith Charles	...	Murray
Ashley Peldon	...	Young Elizabeth
Daniel Gerroll	...	Nigel Cronin
Ron Eldard	...	Mickey Bunce
Eleanor Mondale	...	Attractive Customer
Bob Reid	...	Judge Dubben
Peter Thoemke	...	Arsonist
Sjoukje De Jong Douma	...	Grandma Bunce
Paul Holmes	...	Man in Speedboat
Steve Cochran	...	Waiter #1

Also Known As:

My Special Friend (Philippines: English title)

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | UK:12 (DVD rating) | South Korea:12 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | Singapore:PG (video rating) | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Gaviidae Commons, Nicollet Mall - 555 Nicollet Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

Company:

New Line Cinema

Trivia:

The steamboat that Janie lived on is an actual residence.

Goofs:

Continuity: On the night that Fred returns, he walks in dog mess then walks on the carpet and wipes his feet on the white chair. In the morning when Elizabeth finds her mother cleaning the carpet, the chair is perfectly clean and white.

Quotes:

Fred: Morning. So who's for snot flicking?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Monster Man (2003)

Don't let her turn you into one of them!

Drop Dead Fred is a difficult film to review. I saw it for the first time when I was 13 years old or something, and I absolutely loved it because I was right in the middle of the age group at which the film is directed. I watched it again recently, and while the film's slapstick comedy did not hold quite the same massive appeal (although I was still hugely entertained) as it did when I was younger, I regretted to discover that I had grown out of a lot of the goofy antics that went on in the movie.

However, I was reading through some of the reviews written on the IMDb by other users, and was amazed at how offended a couple of people were by this film, revealing in their reviews a total detachment from their own inner selves and a complete misunderstanding for the little people that we call kids. No, for example, I would NOT recommend a seven year old girl to psychiatric help for making a mess. This is arguably one of the most ludicrous ideas that I have ever read on the Internet Movie Database in my entire life, and believe me, I have read some jaw-droppingly moronic comments on this beloved site.

If you read through the user comments for this movie, you can so clearly see the difference in the people who liked it and the ones who hate it that it almost makes you laugh out loud that these people can't see that they are exactly the kinds of people that the movie rebels against. Drop Dead Fred begs Elizabeth not to let her mother turn her into one of them because he doesn't want her to turn into the kind of person who is so uptight and frigid and barren that she would be incapable of enjoying exactly the kind of entertainment and fun that Drop Dead Fred is.

This is a movie that was made for people who are still in touch with their inner child, people who realize that a little girl with a mother who has absolutely no understanding of the mind of a child has every right to escape into the world of an imaginary friend if it will help her escape the grayness and responsibility imposed on her by her mother, who demands absolute perfection and hasn't the first clue about how to raise a child. Very similar things can be said about various IMDb users, such as ones who refer to Fred as a product of a deranged mind or say anything about psychos or brutality or insanity.

Drop Dead Fred is not a film about an insane little girl. Indeed, I like to think that the world is populated mostly with people who understand that the minds of young children operate slightly differently than their parents'and our own, and that they can be forgiven for getting into a little mischief. I am generally against grouping together people who did not like a certain film, but in this case it seems overly obvious that the people who wrote negative reviews of this fun comedy are simply the people who resent being pointed out as the kinds of people that they are.

Drop Dead Fred is a movie that was made for fun, to be enjoyed, laughed at, and respected for reminding us that we need to lighten up occasionally and, while not necessarily flinging spaghetti in a nice restaurant, act like children every once in a while to prevent ourselves from being driven insane by the fast-paced society that we live in. And if you can't do that, if you hated Drop Dead Fred because you simply can't understand that concept, if, indeed, you think that Elizabeth is in dire need of psychiatric care, you may want to step back and look closely at your life and your views.

YOU may be the one in need of therapy.