In Free Guy, Millie (Jodie Comer) is a game developer on the outs working to prove that publisher Antwan (a strutting Taika Waititi) illegally stole game code from her and her partner, Keys (Joe Keery) to create Free City, the most popular video game in the world. She infiltrates the game, hunting for the evidence to prove that her original idea was stolen — evidence that she thinks is hidden somewhere deep inside the game itself.
And you would think that the movie is about her, right? But Free Guy seems more focused on offering up Ryan Reynolds guilelessly moseying across the screen as the titular Guy, in what feels like a version of The Lego Movie that swaps “charming, stop-motion-style Lego animation” for “video games” and throws in a heavy dose of The Truman Show for good measure. The result is an enjoyable — albeit weird — but largely forgettable summer action movie.
Photo: Alan Markfield / 20th Century Studios
Guy (Reynolds) is an oblivious NPC in Free City, an incredibly popular video game that most accurately resembles GTA Online, where human players run missions, robbing banks to get cash and generally causing mayhem. Guy, on the other hand, works at the bank, stamping generic forms and hanging out with his best friend, a security guard named Buddy (Lil Rel Howery.)
But then his life changes when he runs into Millie, who awakens Guy to the possibilities of breaking his daily grind and being “the good guy” in the video game world of murderers and thieves.
Reynolds is charming as ever, with Free Guy lending him the feature-length chance to turn his affable social media persona into the walking version of a smiley face. The problem is that Guy’s blank slate doesn’t leave much room for him to be an actual character: his entire character arc is just “being helpful,” and all his wants and desires are ingrained in his programming.
Comer’s Millie — who has the benefit of actual agency and drive — ends up carrying the film both as her in-game action hero character and as a frustrated programmer who’s trying to fight for the right thing. Too bad the film is structured around Guy and his less than dynamic character arc. A version of this film might have existed where she was the narrative lead and he was the lovable side character, and it probably would have been a lot more fun.
Photo: Alan Markfield / 20th Century Studios
While Free Guy hides its heroine behind a charming Ryan Reynolds, it wears its gaming influences proudly: popular streamers like Ninja, Pokimane, Jacksepticeye, DanTDM, and LazarBeam all make appearances to comment on Guy’s in-game adventure and lend the fictional Free City game the cachet of a real-world success like Fortnite or GTA.
As a whole, Free Guy is most successful when it lampoons the psychopathic tendencies of video game players in a real-world perspective. Living in Grand Theft Auto or Cyberpunk 2077, where near-feral players tear through cities, murdering countless thousands of virtual avatars and causing wanton destruction, would be horrifying.
Living in a video game would be horrifying
Guy’s quest to be the good guy makes sense when faced with all that, but Free Guy isn’t quite willing to commit to that idea, descending back to standard action movie fare as soon as it suits the plot.
And that inconsistency appears throughout the film. Free Guy’s villain — scenery-devouring Taika Waititi, who looks to be having the most fun of anyone in the film (which is saying something in a movie starring the perpetually sunny Reynolds) — gives not one, but two speeches about corporate greed and spinning out endless sequels with familiar characters and properties to make money off an existing stable of IP instead of making something new and original.
Free Guy positions this as an ostensibly bad thing — only for the film to spin on its heels and throw in some of the most egregious cross-promotional references this side of Space Jam: A New Legacy in the final act. (It is possible to pinpoint the exact second of the post-production process that Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox was completed.)
Photo: Alan Markfield / 20th Century Studios
After months away from theaters, Free Guy is definitely an enjoyable way to spend an hour or two at the movies. But, like an overproduced video game, it almost has too much stuff, bouncing between action and romance and comedy and screeds against making too many sequels to really do any one of those things overly well.
Free Guy hits theaters on August 13th.
FAQs
It's recommended for ages 13 and up. It contains giant-sized video game-type violence, with guns and shooting, explosions, car chases and crashes, fighting, and falling. The main character has a broken nose with some blood shown.
What is the summary of Free Guy? ›
Why is Free Guy so good? ›
While the majority of video game movies suck due to not being like the game they're based on, Free Guy has the advantage of being an original story based in a video game. Ryan Reynolds performance as Guy is great as per usual, the plot is original enough to be interesting, and the comedy (for me) hits right!
What is the message of the movie Free Guy? ›
The message that this movie is trying to portray is that what is and is not real does not matter; all that matters is that life should be enjoyed, regardless of possible harsh realities. During one of Guy's breakdowns about his existence, or lack thereof, his best friend Buddy (Lil Rel Howery) works to comfort him.
How many F bombs are in Free Guy? ›
The MPAA rating has been assigned for “strong fantasy violence throughout, language and crude/suggestive references.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes a few kissing scenes and some suggestive references, many scenes of video game violence that do not include blood or gore, a few fight scenes that end with ...
Why is Free Guy 16+? ›
Free Guy has frequent violence. For example: There are numerous car crash scenes where cars are flipped over, shot at or blown up. Characters are shot at with guns and many larger weapons.
What is the moral of the Free Guy? ›
At its core, Free Guy is about how important it is to live in the moment. Worrying doesn't do anyone any good. Guy really struggles when he discovers his world isn't real, but after a conversation with a friend, he realizes it's real to him.
Is Free Guy a human? ›
As Keys eventually realizes that Guy truly is an NPC, other NPCs that Guy interacts with also begin to develop self-awareness. Keys learns that Free City 2 is due to release in 48 hours and will completely replace Free City, terminating all of the game's NPCs.
Do they swear in Free Guy? ›
Crude or Profane Language
One f-word and about 15 s-words mar the dialogue of this PG-13 film.
Was Free Guy funny? ›
Combining a clever concept, sweet, self-aware humor, and a charming cast, Free Guy is frivolous fun. Free Guy's an all-around good time, with a funny Ryan Reynolds performance leading an exciting story and some impressive special effects.
Where is Free Guy 2 coming out? Free Guy 2 is anticipated to come out in theaters by 2026 at the earliest. As for the story of Free Guy 2, it is unknown. However, the plot could continue from where the first film left off and try to deal with the ongoing debate surrounding Artificial Intelligence (AI).
What is the hidden meaning of the movie Free Guy? ›
Free Guy is the tale of Guy becoming self-aware, realizing that he can, and should, make choices in life. That's partly thanks to some artificial intelligence code buried in his virtual DNA by Millie (Jodie Comer) and Keys (Joe Keery), and partly thanks to the existentialist philosophy of the movie he's in.
Who was the body in Free Guy? ›
Although Reynolds is credited as portraying Dude in Free Guy, it's only his superimposed face and voice acting that went into creating Dude. In reality, Dude was played by Reynolds' body double Aaron W. Reed, a bodybuilder and former WWE professional wrestler.
What is the bad guy in Free Guy? ›
Antwan Hovachelik is the main antagonist of 20th Century Studios' 2021 action-comedy film Free Guy. He is the egotistical, money-hungry, and narcissistic founder and CEO of Soonami Studios, who stole the idealistic codes for the enhancement of the fictional open world video game "Free City".
Is Free Guy funny? ›
Combining a clever concept, sweet, self-aware humor, and a charming cast, Free Guy is frivolous fun. Free Guy's an all-around good time, with a funny Ryan Reynolds performance leading an exciting story and some impressive special effects.
Is the fall guy ok for kids? ›
Parents should be aware that the film contains violence and profanity. I give The Fall Guy 4 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 12 to 18, plus adults. Catch The Fall Guy in theaters on May 3, 2024.
Is Ready Player One appropriate for kids? ›
Content that may disturb children
In addition to the violent scenes mentioned above, Ready Player One has many scenes that could scare or disturb children under five years. Children might be particularly frightened by the scary visual images of monsters and zombies.
Is Deadpool appropriate? ›
Parents need to know that Deadpool is a superhero story aimed at -- and most appropriate for -- mature audiences only. It has lots of graphic violence, sex (including partial nudity), adult humor, and nonstop strong language.
