BY RICARDO LUJAN JR
Feature image courtesy of IMBD.com
After being delayed multiple times due to the pandemic, Free Guy has finally been freed to show in theaters. As with most Ryan Reynolds-led films, Free Guy is a comedy that primarily takes place within a video game. So just how good is this action-comedy summer blockbuster?
The film opens by introducing Reynolds’ Guy, who wakes up and starts his daily routine. Guy does mundane things such as getting dressed, going to a coffee shop, and walking to work with his friend, however, crazy things are happening during Guy’s routine that he treats like normal occurrences such as explosions, robberies, and the newscast warning of drive-bys and stabbings in the weather forecast. Guy eventually sees a mysterious female while walking back from work and he wants to find out who she is.
The story of this film is great. It keeps a consistent plotline and does a great job of intermixing the main plot with the secondary plot. The comedy in the movie can be hit or miss and is a little overdone at some points.
The ending of the film is also a little redundant as it retreads over a plot point that was discovered earlier in the movie for seemly no reason which leads to a character having a moment they have already gone through.
The acting in this film is really good. Reynolds plays his role perfectly as it fits his talents as an actor. Jodie Comer, the female lead of the film, does a spectacular job acting alongside Reynolds as the two actors have really good chemistry in all their scenes.
Taika Waititi steals the show with his performance in the film. Any time he is on screen, his presence takes over. The only problem with Waititi’s role is that he should have been in the movie more.
Free Guy is full of references to video games both old and new. Some of the references are very obvious like how the city that Guy lives in is based on the crazy style of GTA Online. Items from Fortnite make an appearance in this movie as well.
There are references to older games such as the MegaBuster from the classic Megaman, who makes an appearance on screen as well. There is a reference to something that is very prevalent in the entertainment culture today in the movie that made the theater erupt in applause and laughter during the climax of the film. It was quite spectacular to see.
Action in this film is fun. You never know what to expect due to the nature of the film. The set pieces are really well done especially when the film takes liberties within the world they have established.
The score of the film gets the job done. There was nothing to separate it from what the norm is when it comes to movie scores.
Overall, Free Guy is a fun watch. The movie does have really great parts to it, but nothing groundbreaking or new that we haven’t seen in some form from Hollywood blockbusters. Free Guy won’t disappoint if you are looking for a fun film to watch and we would recommend it to anybody to give it a watch at least once.
Free Guy is currently showing at the Hays Movie Theatre.