Synopsis
Annie and Darren have been married for seven years, and they love each other as much as the day they were wed; they're affectionate, have fun together, and enjoy games such as crossword puzzle races. They would seem to have a perfect relationship, except for one thing -- they haven't had sex in ages, and seem to have lost all interest in making love with one another, no matter how they try to put each other in the mood. Hoping to put some adventure back into their lives, Annie and Darren come up with an unusual idea -- they each get one night in which they're free to find someone and have sex with them, scot-free. But is this going to help their relationship, or is it just going to turn a small problem into a big problem?
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Cast
- Dax ShepardDarren
- Katie AseltonAnnie
- Bellamy YoungJessica
- Ken KennedyKen
- Ross PartridgeBartender
- Frankie ShawCoffee Girl
- Joshua Leonard
- Leonora Pitts
Recommendations
- 75
San Francisco Chronicle
Aselton gets a lot said in 78 minutes. I think the main thing she says is something never overtly spoken, that life is essentially a lonely experience - even when we're surrounded by activity, and even if we never shut up. - 70
The New York Times
A smart seriocomic playlet with some emotionally harsh moments, although it refrains from plumbing its subject in agonizing depth. - 70
Los Angeles Times
This engaging, nicely observed look at a 30ish L.A. couple who allow each other a one-night stand to help reheat their 7-year-old marital bed moves quickly and simply. - 60
Variety
From a performance p.o.v., Aselton and Shepard hold the screen well and are most watchable, and Aselton does a fluid directing job within the limited challenge she set for herself production-wise. - 40
Village Voice
None of the dialogue, presumably arrived at through improvisation, is either funny or memorable. - 40
Time Out
The Freebie grimly reaffirms the status quo, concluding it's better to have no sex at all than to forsake the Ikea-furnished domestic dream. - 40
Boxoffice Magazine
With a premise better suited to comedy than drama, The Freebie is more somber and less stimulating than expected. - 38
New York Post
Katie Aselton has achieved the seemingly impossible. She's turned a movie about sex into a boring, talky snooze.
