Free Enterprise

Released 1998
Stars Rafer Weigel, Eric McCormack, Audie England, William Shatner
Directed by Robert Meyer Burnett

While watching Galaxy Quest a few months ago, I considered what a hoot it would have been if William Shatner had played the Tim Allen role. Of course, Shatner, who is as well known for his inflated ego as for his unique, pause-filled dramatic style, would never deign to do a feature film in which he so obviously and willingly lampooned his image, would he? Perhaps surprisingly, the answer is a resounding yes, he would. What I was unaware of in December 1999, when Galaxy Quest debuted, was that a small, unheralded indie film called Free Enterprise had been given a very limited theatrical run six months earlier. In it, Shatner portrays himself as a loner, an egoist, and a loser.

This version of William Shatner is probably very little like the real man. But it plays nicely off the image that the public has developed of the actor whose name will forever be linked with that of his most famous TV character, James T. Kirk. Free Enterprise's Shatner seems like a real man who has lost touch with reality. Free Enterprise isn't really about Shatner, which is a shame in some ways, because he's the most interesting character to cross the screen. Instead, the focus is on would-be filmmakers Robert (Rafer Weigel) and Mark (Eric McCormack), two Star Trek, comic book, and science fiction fans who haven't outgrown what most people would consider to be a teenage addiction. It's not surprising that these two are the best of pals - both of them believe that the answers to all of life's questions can be found in one of the original Star Trek series' episodes. And, as children, they both had Captain Kirk/William Shatner as an imaginary friend.

According to Mark A. Altman & Robert Meyer Burnett, who, between the two of them, wrote, directed, and produced the movie, much of what is in Free Enterprise is based on real life. Of course, there's also a heavy dose of fantasy - such as the existence of Claire and the run-ins with Shatner, but Altman and Burnett both admit to being huge Star Trek fans, and the level of trivia that saturates the movie proves their credentials in that area. And it's not confined only to Star Trek - '60s and '70s pop culture as a whole gets a workout. Altman and Burnett are the kinds of guys Shatner was deriding in his classic Saturday Night Live "Get a Life" skit.

When compared to other entries from the recent crop of new filmmakers crafting movies about their lives, Free Enterprise stands out as one of the most entertaining and least pretentious efforts. And, because of the deluge of often-obscure references, the movie is a must-see for anyone who loves, or has ever loved, Star Trek. The rest of the movie-going world will see this as a genial, amusing comedy with surprisingly broad-based appeal. Free Enterprise never received a significant theatrical distribution. Now, on video, it has a chance to find its audience.

Summary by James Berardinelli