I won't lie, this movie actually surprised me because underneath all the explosions, jokes and video-game madness there is a surprisingly wholesome story hiding there...
The movie follows Guy, played by Ryan Reynolds, who works as a bank teller in a place called Free City... So he wakes up every morning, gets the same coffee, goes to work and hangs out with his best friend Buddy... Nothing really changes...
Actually, that's because Guy isn't even a real person...
He's an NPC... basically one of those background characters in a video game that players usually ignore, rob, shoot or accidentally run over while they're busy doing whatever crazy mission they're on and I guess the idea made a lot of sense...
Imgine waking up every day thinking you have a normal life, only to discover that you're actually living inside somebody else's video game.... if I were me, it would mess with my head...
Guy eventually notices a player called Molotov Girl, played by Jodie Comer, and something about her makes him want more from life... He starts breaking out of his usual routine, gets his hands on a pair of special sunglasses and suddenly sees the world completely differently...
People he thought were normal are actually players...
The random people walking around are NPCs...
The city is basically one giant game and Guy realizes that maybe he doesn't have to keep being the same boring bank teller forever.... That's where I think the movie gets interesting because while Free Guy is obviously a video-game comedy, I don't think it's really about video games...
It's about routine... waking up, doing the same thing every day and convincing yourself that this is all life is supposed to be and I actually connected with that...
Guy doesn't suddenly become special because someone tells him he's special... He becomes special because he starts making his own choices that's probably my favorite part of his character...
Ryan Reynolds is obviously doing Ryan Reynolds things here, but there's a softer side to Guy that I really enjoyed. He's not trying to be the coolest guy in the room... Actually He's genuinely innocent and curious, and watching him discover the world is actually quite sweet...
Jodie Comer is also really good...
She plays both Molotov Girl inside the game and Millie in the real world, and I liked the difference between the two versions of her character. She brings a lot more to the movie than just being the love interest...
Then there's Buddy, and honestly, Buddy might be one of my favorite characters... Their friendship feels genuine...
Buddy doesn't understand everything that's happening, but he sticks with Guy anyway and that friendship gives the movie some of its heart...
I can't deny that the movie is entertaining and surprisingly, it's also quite emotional towards the end..
The idea that these characters might disappear because someone simply decides to shut down a game sounds ridiculous when you say it out loud but somehow, the movie makes you care...
That's the biggest compliment I can give Free Guy.
I actually cared about these digital characters.
I cared about Guy.
I cared about Buddy.
I was genuinely hoping their little world would survive.
Rating: 80/100
Originally posted through scrobble.life/movies.
