Freelance | 2023 | R | – 4.6.5

Why is “Freelance” rated R? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “violence and language.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes a hug and a kiss, an attempted seduction scene, some non-sexual male and female nudity, many scenes of gunfights and hand-to-hand fights ending in death and bloody wounds, discussion of government overthrows and corporate influence, many arguments and at least 10 F-words and other strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.

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A journalist (Alison Brie) desperate to re-start her career after an embarrassing misstep, accepts an interview opportunity with a dictator that insists that he is misunderstood. Her security detail (John Cena) accepts the assignment hoping to reconnect with his previous life as a Special Forces soldier and they have to work together when a coup takes place during their visit. Also with Alice Eve, Christian Slater, Marton Csokas and Juan Pablo Raba. Directed by Pierre Morel. Several lines of dialogue are spoken in Spanish and French with English subtitles. [Running Time: 1:48]

Freelance SEX/NUDITY 4

 – A woman tries to seduce a married man: she lifts her shirt to reveal her underwear and tattoos on one hip and on her side (we see part of her bare breasts and her bare hip), she sits on a table and pulls the man toward her (he declines and the scene ends). A husband and his wife hug and kiss tenderly. A man kisses a woman’s hand when they meet and she seems awkward when he tells her that she is attractive.
► A man and a woman dance closely together, swaying hips.
► A man talks about the potential of having an affair with a neighbor. A young girl tells her father that a boy at school keeps trying to kiss her (please see the Violence/Gore category for more details). A man complains about how long another man looked at his genitals when they were both nude after showering; he explains that there is a 5-second staring rule.
► A man takes a shower (we see his bare chest, back and abdomen) and when he steps out of the shower, a woman steps out of a shower next to him and quickly covers her breasts and crotch with her hands (we see her bare abdomen and partial breasts), and another man steps out of another shower (we see his bare chest, abdomen and buttocks) and he remarks about the size of the first man’s genitals. A woman wears a top that reveals her bare shoulder, and her nipples are visible through the fabric. A woman wears a low-cut blouse that reveals cleavage in a few scenes. After wading through a river, a woman’s blouse is soaked with water and clings to her breasts and abdomen. A woman wears an off-the-shoulder dress that reveals her bare shoulders, cleavage and abdomen.
► A woman delivers a baby and we see her pushing while in labor in a hospital bed.

Freelance VIOLENCE/GORE 6

 – A man and a woman move through a jungle as a helicopter arrives, offloads two armed men that chase the man and the woman, and the helicopter shoots at them, firing explosives as they run away; the man fires a large gun at the helicopter as it speeds toward him, we see blood on the windshield and understand that the pilot was shot as the helicopter crashes with a propeller lodging into the fallen tree where the man had been hiding. A man takes aim at a woman in a jungle and another man attacks him, they fight, hold each other in chokeholds and one man is strangled to death (we hear a crunch and the other man has a bloody head wound). A man is struck hard in the face with a gun butt and he stumbles away, as the man who hit him is shot through the back (we see the bloody wound as the man falls dead). A man shoots another man in the head while talking to a third man (we see the bloody wound and the third man gags but does not vomit). Two men point guns at each other, many other armed men enter the room and another group of armed men then also enter; the two groups open fire on each other (we see blood splatter as people are struck and fall) and two men and a woman escape through a tunnel. Many people charge toward a group of people armed and threatening to kill a woman; they throw bottles of flammable liquid that explode and cause fires, and surround the gunmen distracting them so the woman and two men can get away. A man is shot with a powerful handgun and is thrown back against a door dead. A man is shot in the chest and he falls to the floor with blood seeping into his shirt; he breathes erratically and dies. A man is shot in the chest and he pulls the bullet out saying that he is wearing a bulletproof suit. A man shoots two men in the legs and we see blood pour from the wounds as they yell. A hand grenade explodes near a man and he jumps down a flight of stairs, runs back up and fights with another man; they both fall back down the stairs and punch and kick each other repeatedly, and one man draws a knife and holds it over the other man’s throat before he is struck in the throat and falls back gasping while many people around them shoot at each other.
► A vehicle in a motorcade explodes and flips over in flames as armed men charge toward the other vehicles and open fire (several people are struck and blood splatters and sprays); another vehicle explodes when an RPG is fired at it, a man in another vehicle speeds toward vehicles with armed men in them and crashes head on into one, throwing one of the people in the windshield (we see shattered glass and blood), and slamming into another man on foot; the man then shoots several other armed men and he and a woman run away from the mayhem and into a jungle. Many armed men in vehicles speed toward a village; one man is struck in the face and threatened to be shot for information about another man’s whereabouts and a man and a woman ride away on horseback as they are shot at and chased until the woman falls off her horse, she is captured and forced to the ground where she is held at gunpoint.
► A man rappels out of a helicopter and is dragged through the jungle below when the helicopter is struck by a surface-to-air missile, spins around and crashes (we hear that people on board were killed and the man was injured). Several people jump out of a plane in the dark on a military mission. A man holds a gun on another man and threatens to kill him; a woman stands in the way and the man puts the gun down.
► A boy punches and kicks someone (we do not see the injured party). A young girl tells her father that a boy at school keeps trying to kiss her and her father tells her to punch him in the throat; she asks if she can punch him in the groin [anatomical term deleted], he says that’s fine and we later understand that she did hit the boy and got in trouble for it at school. Armed men guard a man at an airport and one man searches another man for weapons and finds knives and a gun; the man says “use the whole fist” at one point. A man shoots skeet.
► A few scenes show commanders yelling at recruits and calling them names as they order them around; a couple of scenes show the men moving through obstacle courses while being berated. A husband and his wife argue in a few scenes and she tells him to move out. A woman yells at a man when he insists that they have to leave before she finishes an interview. A man says that his wife hates him. A man pleads with a lawyer to help him with a telephone bill. A man describes being a lawyer as crushing his soul. A man describes a security job as making sure a woman doesn’t get groped. A wife tells her husband that she doesn’t like being “the life you settled for.” A woman is rude and insulting to a man in several scenes. A man laughs maniacally in a few scenes. A preteen girl uses an obscene hand gesture as a dictator passes by in a car and an armed man pushes her hand down. A man says, “You really have hit bottom.” A young girl tells her father, “Your breath smells daddy!”
► A woman vomits at a bar (we see goo). A woman delivers a baby and we see the newborn with a bit of goo. A man moans in back pain in a few scenes. A dog urinates on a wall and we hear the trickle.

Freelance LANGUAGE 5

 – About 10 F-words and its derivatives, 2 obscene hand gestures (one by a toddler and one by a pre-teen girl), 6 scatological terms, 7 anatomical terms, 6 mild obscenities, name-calling (idiot, thief, butcher, apathetic, cynical, naïve, the hulk, foreign spy, mercenaries, miserable, little house, my dear, Spielberg, mobsters, creepy, charade, dude, foolish, shady people, weasel, over-achieving), exclamations (shut-up, great, pretty cool, win-win, embrace the suck, what is your deal, I’m freaking out, what a pity), 1 religious profanity (GD), 3 religious exclamations (e.g. [F-word deleted] sweet baby Jesus, oh my God, thank God for that, God bless you). | profanity glossary |

Freelance SUBSTANCE USE

 – Men and women drink liquor at a bar and appear inebriated (one woman vomits and we see goo), a man and a woman drink glasses of whiskey in a car, and a man drinks from a bottle of liquor in his office.

Freelance DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Military service, relationships, finding happiness, love, family, failure, normal life, media blackouts, heroism, coup d’état, due diligence, revenge, mercenaries, the Second Amendment, revolts, precious metals, assassinations, green beret, CIA, SIS, CEOs, shareholders, government overthrows, stability, forgiveness, status quo, perceptions, betrayal, journalism, peace, corporate influence, sacrifice, lawyers, free speech, defense contractors.

Freelance MESSAGE

 – Finding a purpose can be a challenge.