William Klein moved into more blatantly political territory with this hilarious, vicious Vietnam-era lampoon of imperialist American foreign policy. Mr. Freedom (John Abbey), a bellowing good-ol’-boy superhero decked out in copious football padding, jets to France to cut off a Commie invasion from Switzerland. A destructive, arrogant patriot in tight pants, Freedom joins forces with Marie Madeleine (a satirically sexy Delphine Seyrig) to combat lefty freethinkers, as well as the insidious evildoers Moujik Man and inflatable Red China Man, culminating in a star-spangled showdown of kitschy excess. Delightfully crass, Mr. Freedom is a trenchant, rib-tickling takedown of gaudy modern Americana.
Cast
| Marie-Madeleine | Delphine Seyrig |
| Mr. Freedom | John Abbey |
| Dr. Freedom | Donald Pleasance |
| Dick Sensass | Jean-Claude Drouot |
| Mr. Drugstore | Serge Gainsbourg |
| Freddie Fric | Rufus |
| Moujik Man | Philippe Noiret |
| Christ Man | Sami Frey |
| Marie Rouge | Catherine Rouvel |
| Henry Pillsbury | Joe Détergent |
| Virgin Mary | Monique Chaumette |
| Chambermaid | Rita Maïden |
| Captain Formidable | Yves Montand |
Credits
| Director | William Klein |
| Producer | Guy Belfond |
| Screenplay | William Klein |
| Cinematography | Pierre Lhomme |
| Editing | Anne-Marie Cotret |
| Music | Serge Gainsbourg |
| Production Design | William Klein |
| Costumes | Janine Klein and William Klein |
by Michael Koresky
Jan 15, 2009
I have never seen New York look so beautifully grand as it did during my trip to Paris this New Year’s. Maybe I should explain.It was my great fortune to be visiting the City of Light while the intensely illuminative exhibition Dans la nuit, des images was still on display. For this . . .
Jan 8, 2009
The Australian Centre for the Moving Image begins a retrospective of the film work of groundbreaking photographer and multimedia artist William Klein on January 22, and to accompany its fourteen-film program, critic and Criterion contributor Adrian Martin has written an essay on Klein’s filmography . . .
by Michael Koresky
May 19, 2008
Top fashion models literally bleeding from sharp-edged aluminum dresses. A comic-strip American superhero oozing stigmata. A naked couple poked, prodded, and electroded for the delectation of the TV-viewing public. These are some of the images from the fiction films of American expatriate in . . .