directed by Shawn Levy
I guess we all need something to help us let off steam after a long week, don’t we? That’s why today I’m recommending you a very Friday-ish production, which actually surprised me with its quality and idea. I spotted “Free Guy” on one streaming platform but thought it’s just a random action film and for a long time I didn’t feel the need to watch another copy-paste production. One day, my brain said “enough with difficult films, let me relax” and I ended up watching Ryan Reynolds being a game character. This story is about “Free City”, which is referred to as “MMORPG”. And since I’m not a player myself (unless you count deleting swimming pool ladders in The Sims), let me share what I googled a few minutes before: Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Video Game. Basically, you create your own character and play with other people online. However, in that game you can also see some characters that are not controlled by any person, and here comes our Guy (Ryan Reynolds). What’s funny, we get to experience the game from his perspective, which is repetitive and boring. In the end, he’s just a bank employee who has to do the same each time a certain player appears there. Then, one day, thanks to a female player who’s singing Guy’s favourite song, Guy somehow detaches from the game and starts controlling his own self. This film is actually very coherent with what’s going on in technology world nowadays. You know, AI and all that… So yeah, Guy starts “programming” his character himself and can do whatever he wants despite not being controlled by any player. By the way, imagine such MMORPG (yes, I had to check the name, no way I’m remembering all those letters) game in the future where you cannot distinguish human-controlled characters from those controlled by AI. Creepy, but I’d totally watch a sci-fi thriller about that – just please, mention me in the credits. Anyway, the game obviously changes and the owners have to decide what to do with a self-controlling character of Guy. I have to say that I had a lot of fun watching this film and I believe the idea was very creative. It’s one of those family productions that may entertain everyone and parents don’t have to pretend they’re having fun watching ponies brushing each other’s hair and stuff. Oh and if you laughed at me admitting to be The Sims player – hold your horses, sir or madam. The production designer of this comedy has mentioned that “The Sims” was actually one of his inspirations for creating “Free City” world. You never know what may inspire you to making a film, and I guess that’s what I love about cinema. So sul-sul to everyone selling windows to pay bills of the Goth family and enjoy this weekend with Ryan Reynolds as a banker in (once again, had to check that) a MMORPG.
My rating: 7/10
S.
I have nothing to watch 