The Associate (1996)

Director:

Donald Petrie

Writers (WGA):

Jenaro Prieto (novel)
Jean-Claude Carrière (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

25 October 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

It's a man's world...until October 25.

Plot:

A comedy about making it on Wall Street. Prejudices are hard to break and Laurel Ayres quickly learns...

Plot Keywords:

Business | Businesswoman | Gender Disguise | Christmas | Remake Of French Film

Cast

Whoopi Goldberg	...	Laurel Ayres
Dianne Wiest	...	Sally Dugan
Eli Wallach	...	Donald Fallon
Tim Daly	...	Frank Peterson
Bebe Neuwirth	...	Camille Scott
Austin Pendleton	...	Aesop Franklin
Lainie Kazan	...	Cindy Mason
George Martin	...	Walter Manchester
Kenny Kerr	...	Charlie
Lee Wilkof	...	Bissel
Helen Hanft	...	Mrs. Cupchick
George Morfogen	...	Plaza Manager
Zeljko Ivanek	...	SEC Agent Thompkins
Miles Chapin	...	Harry
Jean De Baer	...	Loan Officer

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sensuality and an exotic dance club scene.

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | South Korea:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | UK:PG | Germany:6 (w) | Iceland:L | Mexico:B | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #34840) | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Frederic Golchan Productions

Goofs:

Continuity: When accepting the award for business man of the year the award changes from sitting on the platform and in Frank's lap. Also when Laurel is leaving she takes the award with her, but when it cuts back to Frank clapping the award is still in his lap.

Quotes:

Loan Officer: Do you have any assets?
Laurel Ayres: Well, yeah. I have drive and courage and ambition. And if you'll look at the prospectus, you'll notice that I have a very, very sound business mind too.
Loan Officer: I was thinking more like stocks, bonds, property.
Laurel Ayres: Ah. Now, we're starting to sound a little like a "men's bank", now, aren't we?
Loan Officer: Oh, I see. Because we're the "women's bank", we should go against standard banking practices and give you this very large, unsecured loan because you're the right gender.
Laurel Ayres: Well... you know, it might send a message.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Bad Boys of Saturday Night Live (1998) (TV)

Soundtrack:

The Look of Love

Good film with Whoopi

I always enjoy Whoopi Goldberg in films, and the 1996 film "The Associate" is no exception. Based on a French film, it's the story of a Laurel Ayres (Goldberg) who is having trouble "making it" in a man's world, though she's smarter than all of them. After being manipulated and beaten out of a promotion by at her old job by slick Frank (Tim Daly), Laurel starts her own company and quickly goes nowhere. She gets some help from an assistant at the old firm, Sally (Wiest) and ultimately decides to make up a male associate, Robert Cutty. It works like a charm, and business is flying in the door. However, everyone is most anxious to meet Cutty, and there comes a point when she has to produce him.

This is an amusing film that could have been hilarious. It does have some great moments, though, and likable characters in Goldberg and Wiest. Other fine performances include those of Daly, Lainie Kazan as a cutting columnist and Eli Wallach as a client.

The other problem I have with the film is that it is sorely dated. It's hard to believe that, while sexism still exists, Laurel would have so much trouble from the old boys' network in 1996. Sure enough, as I suspected, the film on which it is based was done in 1979. Remington Steele, a TV series based on the same premise, was produced in the '80s. Surely in 1996, a woman of Laurel's obvious talent would have been more appreciated where she worked and could have launched a successful business without a fake male associate. Anne Mulcahy of Xerox and Ho Ching of Temasek Holdings are only two examples of such powerful executives from the 1990s.