Ray Kroc (Michael Keaton) negotiates with the McDonald brothers.
THE FOUNDER
Film Review by Marlene Ardoin
After seeing “The Founder”, I understand why Tom Hanks turned down this role. Only Michael Keaton would be able to nail this character.
Ray Kroc (Michael Keaton) is as despicable, as he is admirable.
Keaton is unafraid to try on flawed personalities, like Kay Kroc. This role requires big boy tighty–whities.
I might also add, it takes guts to develop a company like McDonalds, that now feeds about 1% of the world’s population.
In this film, Ray Kroc (Michael Keaton) is at a point in his life, when he is both hungry enough and desperate enough to act on his gut feelings to franchise McDonalds.
“The Founder” is inspiring by the fact that Ray Kroc’s peers were at the retirement stage, while he is still traveling state to state selling milk shake mixers and listening to Napoleon Hill’s “Keys to Success” records in his motel room in the evenings.
Somehow, he sensed that he had not yet fulfilled what he was created to do.
Soft serve was becoming the norm in the fast food industry, so Kroc’s mixers were not selling, except to one diner in San Bernardino, CA, who wanted six of his mixers.
The McDonald brothers were serving real ice cream in their milk shakes.
Richard “Dick” McDonald (Nick Offerman) and his brother, Maurice “Mac” McDonald (John Carroll Lynch), spent years perfecting quick, cheap, quality, family oriented, fast food meals at their take-out diner.
The McDonald brothers did try to franchise their diner, but they did not have the energy, the health, or the will to carry through.
Ray Kroc had seen the competition all over the United States, and he knew a winner when he saw one.
Kroc was not only franchising a method, but a quality product and a name that meant quality.
In sales, trust is a big factor. The customer has to trust you first, before they buy from you.
The McDonalds had that trust. Their name could be trusted. McDonalds meant quality, honesty, community, family and trust.
Kroc tries to work with the McDonalds in his efforts to franchise their product, but finds that he is doing all the work and taking all the risks.
And, on top of that, success and ego get the better of him.
Kroc ends up with three marriages.
The film leaves out the daughter from his first marriage and the second marriage that he has. The real story gets a little sordid, not as romantic, as the film would have us believe.
Kroc ends up buying out the McDonalds good name after a long period of torturing them first.
I have to agree, McDonalds does sound a lot better than, welcome to the Krocs.
Ray Kroc Biography:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Kroc
http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/ray-kroc-164.php
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