It may seem like yesterday, but the ultra-nerdy cult classic Free Enterprise is almost 21 years old. This fanboy's dream come true revolved around two sci-fi geeks going through a mid-life crisis (in their early thirties, no less) who struggle to balance their childhood passions with being responsible adults.
The film is loaded with an impossibly high number of pop culture references that only the geekiest could possibly know. Here's 10 of the most clever, in no particular order. If you got any of these the first time 'round, give yourself a pat on the back!
10 Is Your Palm Blinking Red?
Early in the film, Robert and Mark head out for Mexican food after the former loses his girlfriend, and the latter screws up a pitch meeting for his ill-advised script "Brady Killer." Mark's penchant for rudeness hits its peak, causing Robert to confront him about why he's so miserable. When Mark reveals that he's soon turning 30 years old, Robert mentions the Fiery Ritual of Carousel.
This is a nod to the science fiction classic Logan's Run, a story about a culture enslaved by a supercomputer that murders its citizens on their 30th birthday while offering the false hope of reincarnation. The reference would pop up later in one of Mark's nightmares.
9 How Do You Say Xizor?
While shopping at Toys R' Us for the latest merch, Mark, Robert and the gang lament the low quality of Star Wars material. Mark chimes in, thankful that Shadows Of The Empire merchandise is seemingly off the shelf. When he pronounces Xizor's name wrong (zee-zor), he is immediately corrected by a young boy with the correct pronunciation (shee-zor). Prince Xizor was the main protagonist of LucasFilm's Shadows Of The Empire project, involving novel, a Nintendo 64 videogame, a soundtrack, and of course, toys.
What follows is a verbal scolding by four grown men with bruised egos, and a last-minute sci-fi pop quiz by Robert which is intended to school the boy about the finer aspects of the genre besides Star Wars...and Men In Black.
8 Always Bet On Criterion?
After hitting up Toys R' Us, Mark, Robert, Eric and Dan go for lunch and discuss their plans for Saturday night. Eric reveals that he's staying in for the evening to watch the Criterion cut of Putney Swope on Laserdisc.
Putney Swope was a 1969 film about a black executive who takes charge of an advertising firm after the chairman dies, giving him the chance to shake up the white power establishment and turn it into a success. The film was directed by Robert Downey Sr., the father of popular Iron Man actor Robert Downy, Jr.
7 Mego Who?
Not many sci-fi or fantasy fans know who the almighty Isis is, but she's a hard-to-find collectible, as evidenced by Robert's repeated mentioning of the character. While attempting unsuccessfully to woo Claire at their first encounter in the comic shop, Robert uses his last-ditch Hail-Mary, the mighty Mego Isis action figure in his prized collection.
Isis was a DC comics superhero first introduced in the live-action Shazam!/Isis Hour on Saturday morning television in the 1970s. Though lesser-known, the character did make a resurgence in the 2000s (and recently on Legends Of Tomorrow), but in a vastly different form.
6 Won't You Please Sit Down?
When Sean visits Mark to complain about Robert's newfound committed relationship with new flame Claire, Mark engages in another subtle, yet easily overlooked pop culture reference. As Sean paces about and complains, Mark asks him to sit down several times, before finally stressing "Won't you please....sit down?"
This is a direct reference to a scene in Star Trek: The Motion Picture when Spock boards the Enterprise to assist in the mission against V'ger. After several calls to sit down, Kirk finally has enough and utters the same line.
5 Oh My!
When Claire breaks up with an irresponsible Robert, he drags Mark out to a diner at 4AM to wallow in his own sorrows. As the two discuss the finer nuances of relationships and life ambitions, Robert catches sight of his ex-girlfriend and her new beau having some post-coitus pancakes.
Mark responds in typical pop culture fashion with the words "Oh my!" with his best George Takei impersonation. It's widely considered to be Takei's signature catch-phrase.
4 Who's Your Hero?
After getting dumped by Claire, Robert heads out to the bar where he bumps into William Shatner and the two play a few rounds of pool. A drunk Robert goes full fanboy and professes his idolization of Shatner for his portrayal of Captain Kirk, a fact bemoaned by Shatner himself. He retorts that he was simply playing a character, and mentions a few real, actual heroes from history, including Abraham Lincoln.
Ever the Trekker, Robert replies, "Well right, because Lincoln saved your life on the planet Excalbia," which is a nod to the classic Star Trek episode "The Savage Curtain."
3 TRACI LORDS, WILL YOU STAND UP?
When Mark and Robert meet up with their circle of friends for a pre-Wrath Of Khan dinner, Mark gets the conversation going by asking everyone which cinematic actress from which movie they'd most like to have sex with. The group tosses out names ranging from Donna Reed, to Sharon Stone and Pam Grier.
When Sean gets a turn, he chooses Traci Lords, but when asked from which movie, he replies "her early work." This is a reference to Lords' controversial XXX adult film career before she moved into mainstream cinema.
2 Pan And Scan Ftw?
Things seemingly go bad when Robert spills booze on an usher at the theater, prompting the group to get kicked out of Wrath Of Khan. As Mark fumes over his ruined birthday movie, Eric suggests that they watch it on Laserdisc, prompting Gabrielle to say "only if you have the pan and scan version," which elicits a severe backlash from the others.
Pan and Scan is a 4:3 aspect ratio designed for older style televisions which simulates the widescreen effect by panning certain scenes from left to right in order to better frame the shot. It is considered vastly inferior to letterboxed widescreen presentations of films, despite the size of the black bars present on screen. In 1999, this was still a problem as 16:9 TVs had not yet become standard in households, causing the blacks bars to appear much more pronounced.
1 A Little Too Honest?
In the middle of Mark's surprise birthday party, William Shatner shows up to give a little sage life advice before spotting a woman he'd struck out within a previous scene. While he battles nerves and a lack of confidence, Robert tries to give him a pep talk, while Mark (in signature fashion) says "She couldn't hate you any more than your co-stars."
This is a reference to Shatner's feuds with several of his Star Trek co-stars including James Doohan, Leonard Nimoy, and George Takei. There have been some reconciliations, while other feuds have since remained bitter.
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April 25, 2020 at 05:30AM
