Fred: The Movie (stylized as FЯED: THE MOVIE) is a 2010 independent comedy film written by David A. Goodman, directed by Clay Weiner and produced by Brian Robbins.[2][3] The film is based on the adventures of Fred Figglehorn, a character created and played by Lucas Cruikshank for Cruikshank's YouTube channel.[4][5][6][7] The film casts Siobhan Fallon Hogan andJohn Cena as Fred's parents[8] and pop singer and actress Pixie Lott as Fred's crush.[9][10][11] First optioned as a theatrical release in the United States,[12] the film instead premiered on children's TV channel Nickelodeon[3][13] on September 18, 2010.[14] In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the film was released theatrically on December 17, 2010. This film was the debut ofPixie Lott as an actress.
==[edit] Fred Figglehorn, an unpopular, hyperactive and puerile 16 year old who wears childish dungaree and striped t-shirts believes himself to be cool and a good singer. He is in unrequited love with a girl named Judy and is devastated to see her performing a romantic duet with his rival Kevin during a music class. Following this, Fred aspires to one day sing his own duet with Judy. After an attempt to dig his way to her house in order to avoid harassment by Kevin, Fred discovers that she has moved. Thus, Fred embarks on a journey to find Judy's new house and sing with her there.Plot==
During the quest, Fred encounters myriad characters including an anthropomorphic deer; a bedraggled childhood friend who had gotten lost in the forest years earlier (known as Little Evan Weiss); a neighborhood girl named Bertha; and a boy named Derf with a personality diametrical to his own. Eventually arriving at Judy's home, Fred discovers that she is hosting a party to which he was not invited. Fred is bullied by her guests for his poor social standing at school and his eccentric personality. Kevin then shoves a pizza onto Fred's shirt, causing him to vomit on Judy's party dress. Miserable, Fred leaves the house and is infuriated to find that Kevin has posted a video of him vomiting on Judy online. In an attempt to get revenge, Fred decides to throw a party of his own to which no one will be invited. In order to deceive others into believing that he has held a spectacular house party, Fred invites Bertha over, where they costume mannequins in different outfits and clown around while videoing the proceedings. Fred alters the video of the fake party and posts it on the internet, whereupon his peers are misled into believing that Fred and Bertha actually held an extraordinary party. Following this, Judy visits Fred's house and asks if the two may sing together and Fred accepts the request.
[edit]Differences from the Internet series[]
- Fred and Judy seem to have somewhat of a friendship in the movie, despite Fred's stalker-like behavior, in contrast to Judy's apparent hatred of him in the series.
- No mention is made in the movie of Kevin dating Judy or the two liking each other.
- Kevin, who lives nearby, stalks Fred in the movie, but not in the series.
- Fred is 15-years-old in the movie and 16 in the Nickelodeon television series Fred: The Show, but in the Fred Figglehorn web series, he is only 6.
- Fred's voice is lower pitched than in the FRED YouTube series.
[edit]Cast[]
- Lucas Cruikshank as Fred Figglehorn/Derf - Fred is a socially awkward and extremely hyper teenager living with his mother, who constantly longs for his neighbor Judy. Derf (Fred backwards) is a mysterious stranger resembling Fred, yet possessing traits completely opposite to Fred's.
- Jennette McCurdy as Bertha - Fred's best friend who wears bizarre clothing, but cares little for what others think.
- Pixie Lott as Judy Munsley - Fred's crush. In contrast to the web series, Judy is a beautiful and caring girl with an English accent, and seems to care for Fred.
- Jake Weary as Kevin Sweed - Fred's arch-rival who lives just across the street from Fred. Unlike Fred he is a genuinely good singer and is as attracted to Judy as she is to him (both facts are denied by Fred despite the evidence).
- Siobhan Fallon Hogan as Hilda Figglehorn - Fred's forgetful mother, who spends most of the film napping in her bedroom.
- John Cena as Fred's dad - Fred's imaginary muscular father appears almost out of nowhere to offer Fred advice and support throughout the film.
- Stephanie Courtney as Kevin's mom - Kevin's disturbingly perky mother who wishes for Fred and Kevin to become friends.
- Kevin Olson as older Evan
- Mak Kriksciun as younger Evan Weiss
- Gary Anthony Williams as Laundromat manager
- Chris Wylde as Dam Security Guard
- Jordan Black as Gary
[edit]Production[]
Huffington Post author Greg Mitchell made note of the film's production when noting the proliferation of web comedy and dramatic series as a perceived threat to network television.[15] The project performed casting[16] and enteredprincipal photography in November 2009,[4][17][18] and completed filming on December 20.[19] After filming wrapped, a yard sale was held in Silver Lake, California to sell props, set dressing and costumes from the shoot.[20]
Brian Robbins originally optioned "Fred" as a feature film, but decided to bypass the studio system and provided major funding for the project himself. After filming was completed, excerpts were shown to Nickelodeon head Cyma Zarghami who began negotiations to acquire the film. Zarghami stated that airing on Nickelodeon would give the film a large audience base and allow him to target a sequel for a theatrical release.[12] The film debuted on Nickelodeon on September 18;[14] however, it was released in British and Irish cinemas on December 17.
This movie is produced by Varsity Pictures and The Collective.
[edit]Reception[]
The film was negatively reviewed by critics. It has a 0% rating at Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 2.5/10, and no positive votes after 13 reviews.[21][22][23][24] In a review of the film on BBC Radio 5 Live, Mark Kermode paired it with A Serbian Film as his least favorite viewing experiences of the year.[25] The premiere of Fred: The Movie drew an audience of 7.6 million total viewers.[26]
Despite the negative response, It was the second highest viewed TV cable movie of 2010 across all networks. In the UK, it opened in the #8 spot, taking in £257,133 in the first week, despite being shown in over 243 cinemas.[27] The film grossed a total of £838,617 in the UK, so the film is considered to be a box office bomb.
[edit]Sequel[]
A sequel titled Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred premiered on October 22, 2011.[28][29][30] A teaser trailer was broadcasted during a commercial break of iCarly. Daniella Monet replaced Jennette McCurdy in the role of Bertha and Modern Family star Ariel Winter also joined the cast. They also took out the character of Judy from the first movie.