FREELANCE (2023) - Movie Review

Director: Pierre Morel
Starring: John Cena, Alison Brie, Juan Pablo Raba, Christian Slater, Alice Eve, Marton Csokas
Genre: Action, Comedy
Writer: Jacob Lentz
Runtime: 108 min
Rated: Rated R for violence and language
Buy This Movie: Blu-ray (Amazon), DVD (Amazon), Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV

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Synopsis:

An ex-special forces operative takes a job to provide security for a journalist as she interviews a dictator, but when a military coup breaks out in the middle of the interview, they are forced to escape into the jungle.

Review:

John Cena never had much luck as an action star, but he eventualy found his niche in comedy. In "Freelance", the bulky actor gets to mix both worlds as former special forces operator Mason Pettits, who is tasked with protecting washed-up journalist Claire Wellington (Alison Brie) as she travels to the fictional South American country of Paldonia to interview its tyrannical leader (Juan Pablo Raba). Soon enough, all three find themseleves running for their lives in the midst of a military coup.

The best thing about this movie is that it has more action than comedy. I was expecting it to be sillier, but director Pierre Morel ("Taken", "District B13", "Peppermint") plays it straight most of the time. A good chunk of the comedy is handled by Raba, who is actually solid as a surprisingly likeable tyrant whose story isn't quite what you'd expect. Whether or not there is such a thing as a sympathetic dictator, is up for debate, but for the purposes of this particular movie, it kind of works. At least it's a different take on a type of character we've seen so many times before, and Raba is really great.

Cena and Brie are also a lot of fun to watch, and their characters' chemistry mostly works, but I was relieved that the movie doesn't force the two into a romantic relationship. Brie's character unfortunately never amounts to anyhing more than a damsel in distress, but a very sweet one at that. Supporting roles also include Marton Csokas, always dependable in villain roles, and the criminally underused Alice Eve and Christian Slater.

The script written by "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" scribe Jacob Lentz is very flat. The dialogue doesn't pop, the political angle is terribly simplistic and the characters mere caricatures. Thankully, Morel is a helmer who knows how to direct action, if not much else, and although cheap-looking at times, there are more than a few decent adrenaline-fueled sequences. And some horrible green screens, as well, particularly during a horse chase.

The movie was ravaged by critics upon release, garnering a 0% Rotten Tomatoes score at the time (it's 14% now). While it's certainly not an amazing action comedy, I would say it's not really that bad, either. You won't remember a damn thing about it once it's done, but "Freelance" is an uncomplicated good time spent with likeable actors and some decent action.

SCORE: 6/10