Freejack
(1992)
R | 109 mins | Science fiction, Adventure | 17 January 1992
Cast:
Emilio Estevez, Mick Jagger, Rene Russo [ More ]Director:
Geoff MurphyWriters:
Steven Pressfield, Ronald Shusett, Dan GilroyProducers:
Ronald Shusett, Stuart OkenCinematographer:
Amir MokriEditor:
Dennis VirklerProduction Designer:
Joe AlvesProduction Company:
Morgan Creek ProductionsAccording to production notes in AMPAS library files, producer Ronald Shusett was intrigued by the futuristic premise of the story after reading author Robert Sheckley’s 1955 book Immortality, Inc. Director Geoff Murphy reportedly worked with singer-actor Mick Jagger to transform the “Victor Vacendak” character from an aloof personality who spoke constantly in jargon to one with a more heightened sense of humor.
A 25 Apr 1991 HR production chart announced that principal photography began 28 Jan 1991 in Atlanta, GA, and New York City. A 25 Mar 1991 HR news item stated that the picture had a ten-week shooting schedule. The release of the $30 million movie was switched from Nov 1991 to Jan 1992 due to delays in special effects provided by Dream Quest Images, according to a brief in the 13 Aug 1991 DV.
Production notes state that locations in GA included Road Atlanta, a combination driving school and racetrack for professional and amateur sports; the MARTA subway; a turn-of-the-century cotton mill that was converted into a futuristic nightclub known as The Industrial Revolution; and the Fox Theater. When the company relocated to the East Coast, Brooklyn, NY, locations included Empire Fulton Ferry State Park, the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, and the Williamsburg Bridge. In Manhattan, filming took place at Battery Park, and on various streets. Additional locations included a wharf in Astoria, Queens, NY, “and a church in Hoboken, NJ.” According to 2 Jun 1991 LAT article, traffic was stopped for five minutes on the Williamsburg Bridge as the crew threw a dummy into the East River to capture “Alex Furlong’s” ...
According to production notes in AMPAS library files, producer Ronald Shusett was intrigued by the futuristic premise of the story after reading author Robert Sheckley’s 1955 book Immortality, Inc. Director Geoff Murphy reportedly worked with singer-actor Mick Jagger to transform the “Victor Vacendak” character from an aloof personality who spoke constantly in jargon to one with a more heightened sense of humor.
A 25 Apr 1991 HR production chart announced that principal photography began 28 Jan 1991 in Atlanta, GA, and New York City. A 25 Mar 1991 HR news item stated that the picture had a ten-week shooting schedule. The release of the $30 million movie was switched from Nov 1991 to Jan 1992 due to delays in special effects provided by Dream Quest Images, according to a brief in the 13 Aug 1991 DV.
Production notes state that locations in GA included Road Atlanta, a combination driving school and racetrack for professional and amateur sports; the MARTA subway; a turn-of-the-century cotton mill that was converted into a futuristic nightclub known as The Industrial Revolution; and the Fox Theater. When the company relocated to the East Coast, Brooklyn, NY, locations included Empire Fulton Ferry State Park, the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, and the Williamsburg Bridge. In Manhattan, filming took place at Battery Park, and on various streets. Additional locations included a wharf in Astoria, Queens, NY, “and a church in Hoboken, NJ.” According to 2 Jun 1991 LAT article, traffic was stopped for five minutes on the Williamsburg Bridge as the crew threw a dummy into the East River to capture “Alex Furlong’s” daring escape from Vacendak.
Although not credited onscreen, the 28 Feb 1991 DV reported that Emilio Estevez's father, actor Martin Sheen, had a "walk-on" role in a crowd scene.
A 15 Jan 1992 DV item announced the film's premiere the following night at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, CA.
End credits state: “Poster of Albert Einstein courtesy of Pomegranate Publications, Petaluma, California.” The following acknowledgments appear in end credits: “The Producers would like to thank: “Road Atlanta – Jack Roth, Gregg Bloodworth; the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office, Georgia Film and Videotape Office – Norman Bielowicz, director; New York City Mayor’s Office For Film, Theatre and Broadcasting; New York City Police Department – Special Operations Division; New York City Bureau Of Bridges; Nikon Electronic Imaging of Nikon Inc.; Chemical Bank; Credit Lyonnais Bank Nederland; Signet Bank.”
In 1991, driver Alex Furlong competes in a Formula One Grand Prix race and has a fatal accident. Victor Vacendak, a bounty hunter from 2009, goes back in time to steal Alex’s body for use in another person’s mind transplant. Returning to 2009, a medical team revives Alex aboard a mobile medical unit, and his memory is still intact. They attempt to perform a lobotomy, but fail due to an outside guerilla attack. Vacendak observes Alex escape through a hole in the truck, and orders his soldiers to bring him back alive. Alex returns to his girl friend Julie Redlund’s apartment, only to discover new tenants have lived there for years. Referring to Alex as a “freejack,” the residents do not explain what the term means, but tell him they cannot help him. While on the run, Alex notices a neon sign that indicates the date is November 23, 2009. Elsewhere, the client waiting to inhabit Alex’s body has been told of the escape. With only thirty-six hours left to complete the transfer, the client refuses to consider an alternate body for his resurrection. Vacendak’s boss, Mark Michelette, attempts to fire him, but the bounty hunter insists he will capture Alex and complete the assignment. Alex takes refuge in a church, and is discovered by an unsympathetic nun with a rifle. At his office, Vacendak inputs Alex’s identity into a central data bank to ensure an easier capture. Meanwhile, the nun explains how wealthy citizens store their minds in a computer known as “the spiritual switchboard” until they undergo body reassignment. She is unable to locate Julie in a current directory, but finds that Alex’s racing ...
In 1991, driver Alex Furlong competes in a Formula One Grand Prix race and has a fatal accident. Victor Vacendak, a bounty hunter from 2009, goes back in time to steal Alex’s body for use in another person’s mind transplant. Returning to 2009, a medical team revives Alex aboard a mobile medical unit, and his memory is still intact. They attempt to perform a lobotomy, but fail due to an outside guerilla attack. Vacendak observes Alex escape through a hole in the truck, and orders his soldiers to bring him back alive. Alex returns to his girl friend Julie Redlund’s apartment, only to discover new tenants have lived there for years. Referring to Alex as a “freejack,” the residents do not explain what the term means, but tell him they cannot help him. While on the run, Alex notices a neon sign that indicates the date is November 23, 2009. Elsewhere, the client waiting to inhabit Alex’s body has been told of the escape. With only thirty-six hours left to complete the transfer, the client refuses to consider an alternate body for his resurrection. Vacendak’s boss, Mark Michelette, attempts to fire him, but the bounty hunter insists he will capture Alex and complete the assignment. Alex takes refuge in a church, and is discovered by an unsympathetic nun with a rifle. At his office, Vacendak inputs Alex’s identity into a central data bank to ensure an easier capture. Meanwhile, the nun explains how wealthy citizens store their minds in a computer known as “the spiritual switchboard” until they undergo body reassignment. She is unable to locate Julie in a current directory, but finds that Alex’s racing promoter, Brad Carr, lives in Sector 7, formerly known as Park Slope. As Alex leaves, the nun gives him a pistol for protection. Alex reunites with Brad, who reveals that wealthy patrons seek out bodies from the past like Alex’s because they have not been contaminated by pollutants. He also says that Julie works as an executive vice president at a powerful company known as the McCandless Corporation. She is a dealmaker for “Mac” McCandless, who sends her around the world on business. Brad dresses Alex in the local fashion, places a telephone call, and claims that Julie’s office promises to send a limousine even though Brad has informed police of Alex’s whereabouts to collect a reward. Violence ensues as police shoot Brad in the chest, and Alex escapes through an alley. Stealing a futuristic police motorcycle, Alex drives into the city to Julie’s apartment, but she does not believe he still exists and activates a burglar alarm, forcing him to run for his life. Meanwhile, Vacendak and his squad descend on Julie’s apartment. As Alex steals a food truck, Vacendak and support units pursue him onto a bridge. Alex jumps into the river below just as his truck plows into a parked maintenance vehicle and explodes. At her apartment, Julie revisits her mementos of Alex, and something Vacendak said makes her realize that she was wrong to mistrust Alex. She and a colleague, Boone, scour a homeless encampment near the river, and find Alex. He is skeptical that she has come to help until she explains that Vacendak set a trap by leaving her apartment door open. She promises to help Alex, and they embrace. Soon, electronic billboards all over the city advertise a $10 million reward for Alex’s capture. Julie visits Morgan, a freedom fighter who rescues freejacks, but he advises that Alex’s fugitive status is too dangerous to handle, and she should consult her powerful boss, McCandless. Although the McCandless Corporation manages the spiritual switchboard, privacy laws protect the members. McCandless claims that he can do nothing through legal channels, but suggests that Julie contact him in a few hours. In a quiet moment, Alex and Julie make love. Later, McCandless arranges for Alex to escape by boat. On the way to the waterfront, Alex wants to resume his relationship with Julie, but she claims she cannot go back in time after eighteen years. They say their goodbyes, and Julie’s associate, Boone, escorts Alex to the boat. However, Vacendak blows up the vessel, and chases Boone and Alex. Soon, Vacendak discovers that his boss, Michelette, has sent additional troops to capture Alex, and they also have orders to kill him and his men. Boone and Alex become separated, and Boone is shot. After numerous close calls, Alex comes face-to-face with Vacendak and demands to know the name of the client who wants his body, and learns it is Mac McCandless. Vacendak’s soldiers surround Alex, but he is given a five-minute head start to escape. Julie rescues Alex in an armored tank, and Mark Michelette invites them to the McCandless headquarters to meet Mac. After watching a film clip of Alex’s racing accident, they discover Mac’s body resting in a glass coffin. Michelette reveals that Mac succumbed to a virus three days earlier, and his mind will disintegrate in an hour. Michelette plans to take over the company, and fires Julie, giving Alex and Julie permission to leave. He orders troops to kill them, but Vacendak and his men decimate Michelette’s soldiers. An elevator forces Alex and Julie to ride to the roof until they reach the spiritual switchboard. They pass through a series of corridors and landscapes until Mac greets them and explains they are actually talking to his mind. He confesses that he never meant to harm anyone, but over the years he fell in love with Julie and longed for the day when his affection would be reciprocated. If he could slip inside Alex’s body then everything would fall into place, but now he sees the folly of his ways. As they watch, he contacts Vacendak and pretends to end his contract to capture Alex, assuring him that he will be paid in full. However, Vacendak appears with his men and Alex is forced to undergo the transfer. In the middle of the process, Michelette arrives, and Julie grabs a gun from a guard, damaging the spiritual switchboard computer. Michelette announces that he is now in charge of McCandless Corporation, but Alex claims that the transfer was completed and he is now Mac. Having doubts, Michelette insists that Alex reveal Mac’s personal identification number. When Vacendak verifies that the number sequence is correct, Michelette draws his gun, but he is killed by the bounty hunter, and his men. Alex, as Mac, calls for his antique car and drives Julie to a train station, where Vacendak is waiting. When Vacendak leans over and tells Alex that Mac did not know how to drive, Julie protests that her lover knew the correct identification number. Vacendak gives a sly grin, revealing that he went along with the ruse even though the identification number Alex gave was not even close.
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