Free Guy (3D)(4DX)

If films were designed to take advantage of 3D & 4DX, Free Guy is one of the finest examples to get things right. In addition to this, the film has several entertaining themes that elevate it further as the films treks along. Providing a surprisingly fun and rich experience that’s layered with hilarious jokes, fun surprises, and an overall cinematic experience well worth your hard earned money. So what makes the film so good? Let’s discuss this further in our review.

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The Story

Now when it comes to the story, Free Guy is centered around an NPC aptly named “Guy” that suddenly develops feelings for a player he comes across. In his world, players are described as wearing “Sunglasses” and are viewed as mythical Gods everyone must obey (except the in-game cops). When Guy decides to break from his usual pattern, he finds himself pursuing a female player named Millie and takes a pair of sunglasses from a random player in the game. But as soon as he puts the sunglasses on, he quickly realizes there’s a whole other world out there. And his friends have no idea it even exists.

So what’s the game about? The game is Free City, and it’s a GTA-esque game with an MMO design. So you have a lot of players running around the typical mingling areas before roaming the world, committing acts of mayhem and destruction along the way. Through each act of violence, players earning points and leveling up. But when Guy realizes he needs to level up to gain access to certain things, he can’t just run around and beat up his friends. So what does he do? Guy decides he will that instead of adding to the mayhem, he do good deeds by taking out any player committing evil acts around him.

Along Guy’s rise to a higher level, we’re treated with a multitude of cultural easter eggs. From Mega Man’s blaster, to Half Life’s gravity gun, and the more obvious Portal gun, gamers are in for a film designed for them. You even have some fun touches in things that online players know all too well. Such as teabagging, players dancing around in goofy ways, and the expected toxicity of online gaming. Guy’s approach to level up not only comes across as refreshing, but as something we need beyond the silver screen to make online gaming more fun for everyone.

But no conflict can achieve greatness without a proper villain. In the film, we have three villains: evil players, Antwan (played by Taika Waitit), and Dude. Who is quite possibly the gaming villain we need in every game. He literally feels like a hilarious character that belongs in Saints Row 4. He’s strong, he’s poorly programmed, and his dialogue is incomplete. Simply seeing Dude onscreen will bring a smile to your face. Not to mention the hilarious and loyal friend to Guy, Buddy. Who demonstrates he’s the best friend anyone could ever have.

While Dude is just another NPC, Antwan is the despotic owner behind Free City. Which is built on a game he stole from Millie and Keys. While Keys works for Antwan, Millie is on the hunt for any evidence behind their games stolen assets. As Antwan bought their game, but never paid them their dues. As Antwan’s stowed the evidence somewhere within Free City, and it’s up to them to find the proof. This is where Guy comes in, since his actions are nearly undetectable by the game developers who’ve yet to figure out he’s a rogue NPC.

The search for their stolen code leads Millie and Guy into danger and hilarity. As Guys good deeds gives rise to his fame. With players absolutely loving his character, and his seemingly dull nature in a world filled with attention grabbing character skins. Soon enough, Millie and Guy find the first major clue to what they want but Antwan isn’t far behind. Watching the real world and the game world intertwine in the film is a fun symbiosis where a false world has real world impacts, and it’s entertaining that most audiences naturally observe this without questioning the nature of this. Shawn Levy (director) really does a great job at the helm, offering perhaps his best work yet. Which says a lot following his work on Stranger Things and Night at the Museum!

Free Guy 3D & 4DX Enhancements

Now when it comes to how 3D & 4DX add to Free Guy’s recipe, I’d best describe it like this: you’re honestly get the closest experience to being in a film. And I say that with complete and utter sincerity, as it does so much extremely well with these formats. Every moment there’s gun shooting action, a fist fight, high leaping antics, or even a driving/flying sequence onscreen, the audience benefits from the brilliant 4DX experience designed for them.

If there was one scene that best enhanced the experience Free Guy through 3D & 4DX it’s the last car chase scene. In this scene, Guy and Millie are being squished by buildings that are moving closer and closer together. As their car dodges obstacles, the walls eventually close in and sparks are soon flying off of the sides of the vehicle. Throughout this scene, the theater fills with fog to mimic the smoke, while you are sprayed with air as each obstacle passes by on screen. Followed by the bright flashes of light which occur each time sparks go flying. It’s a sight to behold to say the least!

What’s Free Guy really about?

Between the great connections to online gaming, how gamers live through their online personas, along with the culture behind gaming at large, the film does a great job at capturing so much while entertaining you in the process. Free Guy even manages to capture the difficult nature of romance in a complicated circumstance, the depths a true friendship will go, and what we as individuals have to go through to truly find ourselves.

But the best part about Free Guy is that what is seemingly a straightforward story about an NPC discovering his world is false, really offers so much more than this. Free Guy is also about how we constantly create and live in false worlds in an attempt to transform ourselves into something greater. Which is all done in the hope that we’ll eventually become the masters of our own fate. Yet, our well intended actions lead us down a repetitive path were become God-like beings in a digital world. Exercising our power over defenseless NPCs instead. In the end, these very actions that we’ve taken to facilitate our happiness instead lead us astray. Leaving a sense of emptiness where we should be made whole.

Thankfully for Millie and Keys (the real stars of our story), their efforts eventually teach them that they were meant for each other all along. And that they never needed a game to show them the this truth if they simply opened their eyes and saw what the the love they could easily find in each other.

Free Guy is playing in 4DX and 3D where available. In my review of the film, I visited Mira Mesa Regal Edwards Cinema. You can book 4DX showings through Regal directly. As well as any other theaters in your area offering 4DX.

Unsure about Free Guy? Watch a short clip here.