Mr. Freedom

A satirical look at US social and political policy during the 1960's and 70's in the context of a superhero genre. Mr. Freedom works for Freedom INC. and protects freedom around the world by blowing things up, looting, and killing. Freedom Inc. seems to be on the top floor of an office building that has other blue chip American corporations and is run by Dr. Freedom (aka - Donald Pleasence). This is not a far stretch for Donald who had problems handling Michael Meyers and was the leader of a criminal organization trying to take over the world, with only the Puma Man (pronounced Pueooma) to stop him. The movie is rather obscure and hard to follow, however, it does contain numerous hilarious scenes. The Freedom suit is by far the funniest aspect of the movie. John Abbey does a great job of portraying a John Wayne/Teddy Roosevelt stereotypical pushy American character who acts first and does not worry about the consequences. My favorite scenes are as such : Mr. Freedom's visit to the U.S Embassy in Paris (aka - Walmart) and the party crash by Red China Man of the meeting between Mr. Freedom & Moujik Man (I think its suppose to be the Soviets). Most people will get bored very quickly with this movie and could be considered an artsy movie. Even though I do not think it is a great or even a good movie it has some redeeming qualities and makes some relevant points (even for today).

William Klein's biting satire of the ugly American as superhero Mr. Freedom. It's definitely got a 60s sensibility but the subject matter is as contemporary as today's news. It becomes a little unfocused in the second half but it's a wild ride nonetheless. A real bonus is the appearance of Serge Gainsbourg as Mr. Drugstore. Warning though- if you politically lean to the right, this one might not be for you.

By day, our hero is a redneck policeman, but when needed, he puts on a strange outfit and becomes the policeman of the world. At the beginning of the film, Mr. Freedom is dispatched by Dr. Freedom (a dead-on Donald Pleasence) to France, which is in danger of going Red. Mr. Freedom will not let this happen. . . regardless of how many innocent bystanders he kills in the process.

Obviously made as a reaction to America's involvement in Vietnam, Mr. Freedom is slightly dated, but perhaps not as much as its detractors may like to pretend. Also, the film is surprisingly colorful. With its bright set design, this low-budget film pleases the eye far most legitimate superhero film movies.

There are slow stretches. Some ideas miss. Yet, one forgives the misses for what the film gets perfectly right (an American embassy in a supermarket, Mr. Freedom trying to get a French child to laugh at him, a trip to the dentist, and the ending). This film reminds one a little of Alphaville. Both films are low-fi science fiction with unique, inimitable visuals. This is a good film for the adventurous viewer who thinks he has seen everything.

Simply put, Mr. Freedom is unlike any film being made today.

This satire on the American persona starts off as a biting attack on the jingoistic way we Americans force ourselves on others onto and treat other people at home, and mostly abroad. Mr Freedom, a boneheaded superhero is sent to rid France of communist infiltration. As he attempts to swing France back into American influence he battles his Soviet counterpart and the evil Red China Man.

After the first half hour, during which most of the points are made, this film circles around itself in total confusion before collapsing into total incomprehensibility. It looks like someone took huge chunks out of this film. I've seen some people listing the this film as having a full running time of 115 minutes. If thats the case see that version and not the 95 minute English one since it probably makes more sense.

Frankly this is a major disappointment since the film would seem to have become timely again with what is going on in the Iraq. Instead its a major misfire that is rightly not well known in America.

7 out of 10 for curiosity and for some truly wonderful moments, mostly in the first half. See it if you like misfires or want to see how the world has come full cycle, just prepare to be confused regarding the plot.

'Mr Freedom' is a film as relevant as ever in our current political climate. With some far right factions expanding throughout the country, the issues of nationalism and fascism are getting evermore disturbingly pertinent to American society. Luckily, films like 'Mr. Freedom' show that artists have been willing to subvert and parody these harmful societal and political forces in entertaining and humorous ways. 'Mr. Freedom' is a film that can be enjoyed as more than just some dry, drab political statement: it is a very alive, entertaining, and visually appealing movie. The humour ranges from the pitch black to the amusingly absurd, and the scenery is filled with eye candy. Naturally, the film's color palate is painted with many reds, whites, and blues, always to an over-the-top extent, creating an atmosphere to the set and costume design that is funny, satirical, and borderline surreal.

The film's escalation into further absurdity is one of its finest attributes. Watching everything crumble into a great ball of bizarre comedy helps even further cement this film's status as a feast for the eyes and mind. Towards the end, many of the action sequences are so bafflingly insane that they become ridiculously fun. When I can't tell what exactly is even going on, I get all the more intrigued.

While it is not a perfect film, or any sort of "masterpiece" at all (there are a lot of weird audio decisions William Klein made, much of the dialogue is obviously dubbed and it is very distracting) , 'Mr. Freedom' is certainly a worthwhile experience for almost anyone looking for a good satire. It's as entertaining and absurd as a film of this kind ought to be.