Our J.P. reviews “Free Guy,” starring Ryan Reynolds and Jodie Comer.
FREE GUY
20th Century Studios
- Directed by Shawn Levy
- Screenplay by Matt Lieberman, Zak Penn
- Story by Matt Lieberman
- Produced by Ryan Reynolds, Shawn Levy, Sarah Schechter, Greg Berlanti, Adam Kolbrenner
- Starring Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Lil Rel Howery, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Joe Keery, Taika Waititi
Studio Synopsis:
A bank teller who discovers he is actually a background player in an open-world video game, decides to become the hero of his own story…one he rewrites himself. Now in a world where there are no limits, he is determined to be the guy who saves his world his way… before it is too late.
J.P.’s Take:
It’s life through rose colored lens for a guy named – Guy, who wakes up daily performing his mundane routine. He wonders if life has any meaning, while hoping for a spark of excitement to brush away those boring days.
Consider “Free Guy” to be the polar opposite of “Ready Player One,” where it’s not those in the real world exploring the virtual one. Guy (Ryan Reynolds) has what I call a Pinocchio syndrome, believing he is real and the world around him is the perceived construct. Yet, the alarming part is when his world starts to affect those outside the virtual realm.
Watching “Free Guy” is like watching a gaming competition gone haywire. The screen is littered with game-like environments and off-the-wall characters, where high speed car chases take place on a daily basis. Helicopters shooting 50 caliber rounds at tanks and robberies by scary looking criminals are standard procedure. You’ve entered the world of “Free City” and much like the real game of “Fortnite,” you’re in for one wild and wacky adventure.
The entertaining factor happens mostly in the virtual world, where Guy has an awakening of sorts. When he meets a bad ass character named Molotov Girl, this sets off a series of misadventures to find out who she really is. Millie (Jodie Comer), a brilliant AI/game programmer at Soonami Studios who happens to go by that handle Molotov Girl, stirs in him the will to be truly “free.” The plot itself brings about the same type of atmosphere as “The Matrix” — only you’re not viewing a dark dreary underworld filled with mechanized monsters. This is a bright hyper kinetic world in which you witness evolving landscapes and glitchy personalities. Yet, the story takes on social ills such as collectivism and the need to break away from the pack. Guy is a unique individual willing to thwart the status quo at all costs, and he does so with glee and success…which earns him popularity points. With that, he also grows a conscious.
It is the actual human characters that bring us back down to earth, however. Within their side story, Millie and fellow brainiac programmer Walter “Keys” Mckeys (Joe Keery) contend with the crooked Soonami CEO Antwan (Taika Waititi), of whom they suspect is steeling their work. It becomes a battle to not only save their jobs but to save their work, which happens to be Guy himself. What’s oddly interesting is “Free Guy” becomes a blending of genres: it’s part romance, part sci-fi, and part action with a smack of comedy. Part of the way in “FG” starts to fall asleep, especially in portions where the “Groundhogs Day” effect starts to kick in. Some of the same plot points are presented again as Guy embarks on his many new missions.
Ryan Reynolds is the right “Guy” for the right part, and he takes on two roles here. Guy, of course, being the main and the other being “Dude,” a lunk headed muscle bound brut. Reynolds has the personality of pre-teen hopped up on pixie sticks. He is perfect for drawing out the quirkiness, yet boyish quality of his parts.
Kudos to the cast as a whole: Waititi, Comer, Keery, Utkarsh Ambudkar as Mouser, and Channing Tatum as a game avatar. Thanks to the actors’ enthusiastic performances, “Free Guy” had energy. Giving this film has an authentic gamer flavor; you may find familiar faces, many of which whom are actual gamers, youtubers and vloggers. Along with Matty Cardarople as Gamer, you’ll catch cameos by Tina Fey, the late Alex Trebek, Hugh Jackman, John Krasinski, Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans as themselves.
This is a movie made for the Twitch or Steam generation, where gaming has been taken to new heights in realism. It’s surprisingly entertaining, if held together by gum and wild eyed character involvement. It’s not until you’ve watched ¾ of the way in that you start to get the gist of the matter. To be honest, I had no expectations going into this movie and still I came out of it pleasantly surprised. It’s not an outright brain scrambler, yet the visuals were fun and the plot kept my interest.