The Associate

About The Associate

The Associate is a wonderfully comic movie released in 1996. The film follows Laurel Ayres, a talented and hardworking financial analyst who hits the glass ceiling at her Wall Street job. After being passed over for a well-deserved promotion, she decides to leave and start her own company. However, she soon discovers that the business world is just as chauvinistic as her former job, so she invents a fictitious male business partner to bypass the corporate chauvinism. Eventually, her deception starts spiraling out of control, leading to a series of comedic and unpredictable events.

Making / Production

The film is directed by Donald Petrie, notable for popular films such as "Miss Congeniality" and "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days". The screenplay was written by Nick Thiel, taking inspiration from a 1993 French movie "L'Associe."

Actors

• Whoopi Goldberg as Laurel Ayres, a brilliant financial strategist who invents a male business partner to escape male chauvinism. She delivers a stellar performance in the film, capturing the character's intelligence, wit, and resourcefulness.
• Dianne Wiest as Sally Dugan, Laurel's loyal and hilarious secretary who becomes an accomplice in her deception. Wiest brings both humor and warmth to the character.
• Tim Daly as Frank Peterson, Laurel's chauvinist former colleague who's unaware of her trick. Daly plays the character with just the right amount of smugness and incredulity.

Trivia / Interesting Facts

• Whoopi Goldberg's character was named after a street in her hometown of New York City.
• This is the second film where Whoopi Goldberg's character resorts to disguise, first being "Sister Act."
• Elliot Goldenthal who did the music also composed for major films such as, "Interview With The Vampire" and "Batman Forever."

Quotes

• Laurel Ayres: "Never underestimate a woman who can get it done."
• Sally Dugan: "It’s about remaining invisible but getting noticed at the same time."

Music, Soundtrack

• The film's score was composed by Music has been composed by Elliot Goldenthal, adding much to the film's humor and pacing.
• Popular songs in the film include "Don't Be Stupid" by Dawn Robinson and "Sisters Are Doin' it For Themselves" by Aretha Franklin and Annie Lennox.