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Reviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
THE FREEBIE Darren and Annie (Dax Shepard and Katie Aselton, who also directed the film) are a married couple who, when the fire goes out of their sex life, decide to give each other one night off from monogamy—to go out and screw around with whomever they want. There was probably a Seinfeld plot similar to this, though I can’t verify that. What I can verify is that according to these filmmakers, there’s nothing funny about cheating on your spouse, however sanctioned. This is a feel-bad movie. To discuss a film like The Freebie at any worthwhile level might be to perform more actual work than the filmmakers appear to have done. Frustratingly, only a small amount of technique supports a problematic script built upon a problematic scenario. The film looks and feels like mumblecore, yet the give-and-take between writing and improvisation is more exploited than explored, and the hand-held video, uninspired lighting, and as-is production design feel less like a conscious choice than an easy way to get a feature film in the can. I had trouble understanding over how many days this story was taking place, and though it might sound like a minor point, this illuminated many of the problem areas for me. There are several montage sequences throughout employing that infuriating editing strategy where the characters speak lines from one scene while their actions take place in another—Annie and Darren sit on the porch in rueful silence while a prior conversation plays on the soundtrack. Another frustrating bit of editing out of sequence finds us constantly returning back into bed with the couple on the first night of their fateful decision. These are tired stylistic shortcuts that, rather than deepening the story with a heightened attention to form, end up instead reminding us the film actually has a director—a fact we might have otherwise forgotten. I’m inclined to think that some residual mumblecore-ish urge has kept a deliberate attention to technique out of the process, yet it only results in an unplanned (or at least underplanned) film, doctored up in the editing room. Sticking two improv-trained actors, however talented, into a unique scenario and filming the results just isn’t enough, especially in this case. The Freebie yields fewer insights than would the corresponding Seinfeld setup. I presume we’re to believe this contrivance, which is ludicrous, especially when we realize this couple decided everything in a night, took a day to prepare, pulled off their respective hookups (or didn’t, I won’t spoil it), and resolved their problems all in less than a week. At least sitcoms are funny. Perhaps if
this kind of film had been released years before Andrew Bujalski, Joe
Swanberg, and the Duplass brothers came along, I’d feel differently, but
sadly, it was not. Is it weird to be making a “shoulders of giants”
statement when these guys are the giants? Anyway, a freebie night is a
tempting fantasy, but if you’re in the market for a good one-night
stand, look elsewhere.
Michael Lee
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