ADMR – Freelance is mildly surprising but ultimately forgetable – 3/5

Live Freelance or Die Hard

The Average Dude remembers feeling surprise and joy after going to see ‘The Rundown’ (Sept, 2003). There was not a lot of buzz on it, it was a filler-movie to tide folks over until the spooky movies came out. The Rock had just begun his rocket-ride to super-duper stardom and so wasn’t a studio lock yet. Spending my allotted weekly cinema time was a bit of a gamble* that paid off. Freelance doesn’t hit that mark, or even come all that close to it. Still, just like the Rundown or Die Hard 4, Freelance evoked the same spirit…a movie that delivered more than was expected.

Freelance is the story of Mason Pettits (John Cena), an ex-Special Forces soldier who was forced into civilian life after an operation in a South American went, uh, south. Now a small-time lawyer, a husband and father, Mason feels his best life is behind him and pines for a life that had meaning. The strain of his malaise takes a heavy toll on his family.

Enter Sebastian Earle (nice to see you again, Christian Slater), a former Special Forces mate who now runs a top-dollar private security operation that employs ex-military, ex-cop and current roided-out meat puppets (unapologetically). He offers his old pal Mason an easy payday: escort a lady journalist – Claire Wellington – to the same South American country where the course of his life was changed so she can interview the very dictator – Juan Venegas – that Mason once tried to permanently ‘depose’. It doesn’t take much convincing for Mason to take the gig.

Sounds like a simple in-and-out, right? But of course, things go awry and Mason finds himself running through the jungle trying to keep Claire alive while also trying to NOT kill Venegas. Okay, a fun premise with a small twist. The first small surprise in a movie that has several small surprises.

Not exactly the road less travelled, but…

Freelance is not in danger of breaking any new ground, but also does not take the predictable happy path to the finish line (well, not totaly predictable, anyway). There are a few little twists and turns in this movie that at least keep us wondering about who the bad guys are and what hidden motives there might be. And that is something that’s not nothing. Before we get to the heartwarming and/or Oscarbait movie season, finding a little light popcorn-chomper like Freelance is itself a nice little surprise that will ultimately be forgotten.

The story is the real hero in Freelance, but a perfectly subtle performance by Juan Pablo Raba as the dictator of Paldonia should be noted. John Cena does exactly what you’d expect from him. Likewise Alison Brie’s performance. And Alice Eve and Marton Csokas were all but wasted (but nice to see anyway).

All in all, Freelance was better than I expected and a nice surprise that didn’t give itself totally away in the first reel, and for that I’m going to give it a 3 out of 5. This movie feels like it would have been a bigger hit if it had been released in August, where the surprise factor would have had a little more impact. Some free cinematic wisdom, there ya go.

Oh and btw, I hear that there is some traction on The Rundown 2. Errrr…uh okay. Sure. Peg it for a February release. There is no ‘off’ on my cinematic wisdom switch.

*Full disclosure, even though he’s the biggest name in Hollywood today, the Rock movies are still a bit of a gamble. Receipts: Black Adam and Jungle Cruise come easily to mind.

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