Movie Review - Free Guy

There used to be a time when video game films were just not very good and for the longest time, studios tended to avoid making said films because they just didn't quite understand what made the video games so good in the first place. But in more recent years, those films have had a polish, and we're getting more of them. Not as much as superhero films mind you, but we're getting a fair amount and even a few like this film that aren't based on any particular video game, but got inspired by them to make a film. And for the most part, these films are getting a much better reception than they used to, though there are still a few stinkers out there. Not really sure what to make of this film, given it's the first film Ryan Reynolds has been heavily involved in since his days as the true Deadpool and that for all it is, it looks like a Fortnite inspired film with a mix of Payday 2, Grand Theft Auto, Watch_Dogs and whatever his holiness Gabe Newell had been making. So let's take a look:

The world is buzzing about a game called Free City which was made by Soonami Games which is run by Antwan (played by Taika Waititi). The game has a troubling history as it happens to be using code stolen from an unreleased game called Free Life. It's developers Keys (played by Stranger Things' Joe Keery) and Millie (played by Jodie Comer) have conflicting views on the matter with Keys choosing to work at Soonami Games whereas Millie uses her in game avatar Molotov Girl to find evidence of the code being rightfully theirs. Meanwhile, an NPC called Guy (played by Reynolds) works at a bank, but one day finds and uses sunglasses which makes him suddenly self-aware and able to do things he thought he couldn't do within the game. But some things just don't work out, and he becomes involved in the plot to find the coding and fast, with the game's sequel not too far away from release.

Thinking back to watching it, this is actually a film with a scenario that was last done in Wreck-It Ralph. Both films are paying homage to video games with Ralph being about retro and Guy being about modern. Both characters are or eventually become self-aware that they are in a video game, and both are longing for the days when they can be a hero rather than a villain or NPC. I quite enjoyed both films, but prefer Ralph over Guy. This is because this film is quite cheesy and much of what happens is a bit predictable. But it does what was expected, the cameos and video game references are well-developed (if you pardon the pun) and it even had a few surprising moments too. It's an alright film for what it is, but if you want a much better film paying homage to video games, give Wreck-It Ralph a go. That is unless you don't like retro games in which case this film will serve you well. Now go and have a not good day, but a great day. 7/10