Drop Dead Fred
| Drop Dead fred | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Ate De Jong |
| Produced by | Paul Webster |
| Screenplay by |
Carlos Davis Anthony Fingleton |
| Story by | Elizabeth Livingston |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Randy Edelman |
| Cinematography | Peter Deming |
| Edited by | Marshall Harvey |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by |
New Line Cinema (North America) PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (International) |
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Release date
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Running time
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101 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $6.788 million (est.) |
| Box office | $14.8 million (domestic) |
Drop Dead Fred is a 1991 British/American dark fantasy black comedy film directed by Ate De Jong, produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Working Title Films and released and distributed by New Line Cinema. The film was promoted as a lighthearted children's film but there are notable adult themes and gags and some elements of black comedy, emotional abuse, mental illness, bizarre visual and make-up effects and profanity.
Rik Mayall stars as the title character: a happy, anarchic, and mischievous imaginary friend of a young girl named Elizabeth (Phoebe Cates) and nemesis of her overbearing mother, Polly (Marsha Mason). He causes chaos around the home and neighborhood, but nobody can see him except her. When she grows up and has an emotional crisis, he returns to "cheer her up" in his own unique way, causing more chaos than ever before. The supporting cast includes Carrie Fisher, Ron Eldard, Tim Matheson, and Bridget Fonda.
Elizabeth Cronin is an unassertive and repressed woman, domineered by her controlling mother, Polly. While taking her lunch break from work, she visits her husband, Charles, from whom she is separated, hoping to sort out their problems. He reasserts his desire for a divorce and says that he is in love with another woman named Annabella. While she is at the public phone, a man walking down the street breaks into her car to steal her purse. Then her car is stolen as well. Forced to run back to work (at the courthouse), she arrives late and loses her job. While leaving the courthouse she runs into an old friend, Mickey, who brings up childhood memories they shared, which includes memories of Elizabeth's childhood imaginary friend, Drop Dead Fred. Mickey explains how only Elizabeth could see Drop Dead Fred, and everybody else thought she was crazy.
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Wikipedia