Freelance (2023)

Plot synopsis of Freelance (2023)

The movie begins with the introduction of our protagonist, Mason Pettits. He narrates that while growing up, he struggled to find any sense of purpose or meaning in life. While in college, he enrolled in law school, but it soon became monotonous, and he dropped out. After that, he joined the U.S. Army, and it was the first time he found his purpose and felt truly alive. During this period, he also married a woman named Jenny, and they had a daughter.

One day, Mason and his team are ordered to go to a country called Palonia to take down the dictator, President Juan Venegas. Unfortunately, their mission takes a tragic turn when their helicopter is struck by a missile. Because of this, most of his teammates die, and although Mason survives, he suffers permanent back damage. After this incident, Mason is let go from the Army and has to return to regular life. With no other choice, he completes law school and starts working as a lawyer once again. He loses his sense of purpose, and it starts affecting his personal life and marriage.

In the next scene, Mason is frustrated in his office when his former Army General, Sebastian, arrives. They're happy to see each other after a long time, and Sebastian claims that he has something important to discuss. He then takes Mason to his office, where he reveals that he has started his own private security agency called CDI and wants Mason to join him. He explains that a female American reporter is going to Palonia to interview President Venegas, and Mason needs to accompany her for protection.

Hearing this, Mason immediately refuses the offer because Venegas is responsible for the deaths of his teammates and the end of his military career. He doesn’t understand why Sebastian would work for such a man. Sebastian offers him $20,000 and claims he knows how miserable Mason is in his lawyer job. Mason says he’s not as strong as he once was and that his back is permanently injured. Still, Sebastian continues to insist, and in the end, Mason reluctantly agrees to take the job. Afterward, Mason researches the female reporter, whose name is Claire Wellington. She used to be a famous journalist, but a professional error in the past led her out of the spotlight. Since then, she has had a tough time finding serious work, and now she finally has the chance to interview a high-profile politician.

That evening, Mason and Jenny get into an argument when they find out that their daughter followed her father’s advice and hit someone at school. Jenny is distraught and feels she can no longer be with Mason because he’s unhappy with them. She claims she’ll move in with her parents, but Mason stops her and says he’ll leave instead. He then tells her that he’s going to work as a security guard, which angers her even more. However, she eventually lets him go, thinking it might help him move on from his issues and fix their failing marriage.

The next day, Mason picks up Claire, and they fly to Palonia together. On the way, Mason watches some troll videos of Claire, and she notices. She asks if he’s making fun of her, but he assures her that he’s not. She then says that regardless of what happened in the past, she intends to fix her reputation now. She reveals that Venegas hasn’t given any media interviews in the last 10 years, but he has personally invited her for an interview, making this a big opportunity for her career.

Soon after, they arrive in Palonia, where they are greeted by President Venegas. He tells Claire that she’s even more beautiful in person and kisses her hand. They then get into a car and head for the capital. Claire introduces Mason to Venegas, who says he has already done his research and knows that Mason is a former Army officer. After this, Claire and Venegas continue chatting and having drinks, completely ignoring Mason.

A while later, they are suddenly attacked by mercenaries. Mason takes control of the car and sends Venegas and Claire to the back seat. He retaliates by shooting at the attackers and ends up crashing their car. After taking out everyone, Mason limps out of the car, and Venegas and Claire are shocked by his combat skills. Venegas continues to praise him, but Mason is irritated and says that he and Claire are leaving immediately. Claire insists she needs to conduct the interview first because this is a huge opportunity, but Mason says her life is more important than her career.

Following this, the three of them enter the forest, and Mason contacts Sebastian to report the attack. When Sebastian learns that Mason killed all the attackers alone, he is shocked. Mason explains that they’re stranded in the forest and need help, so Sebastian assures him that he will send a helicopter with his men to pick them up. Soon after, Venegas asks for the phone and calls his nephew, George. George is terrified to learn his uncle is still alive because he was the one who sent the mercenaries. Venegas then tells Claire and Mason that he knows George is behind the attack, but George is just a pawn following someone else’s orders.

Later, Venegas suggests they head for the capital. However, Mason says a helicopter is on its way and they will be leaving soon. He then takes Claire with him, leaving Venegas behind. On the way, Claire again asks Mason to let her conduct the interview, but he refuses. Shortly after, they see a helicopter approaching and feel relieved, thinking they can finally go home. But to their shock, armed mercenaries come out of the chopper and start shooting. Mason and Claire run into the forest with the mercenaries chasing them. Mason manages to take down most of the attackers and even shoots down the helicopter. However, one of the mercenaries catches up to him and brutally beats him. He almost ends up killing Mason, but surprisingly, Venegas shows up and shoots the assailant.

After a while, George and his men show up, and he is upset to see the helicopter destroyed. Just then, the leader of the mercenaries, Kohor, arrives and scolds George for failing to kill his uncle. George explains that his mercenaries also failed, but Kohor becomes furious and threatens to kill him if he messes up again.

Meanwhile, Venegas takes Mason and Claire to his hometown, where the locals admire him. After some time, Claire sits down with Venegas for an interview while Mason records their conversation. Claire mentions the attack earlier and asks why these mercenaries are after him. Venegas explains that Palonia has an abundance of the rare mineral lanthanide, which is essential for manufacturing phones, laptops, and other modern technology. Large Western companies want to mine it in Palonia, but doing so would destroy the soil and harm the environment.

If foreign corporations extract and sell the minerals, Palonia will suffer massive financial losses, so Venegas is blocking all foreign companies from establishing themselves there. This has turned him into an enemy of powerful international forces, causing mercenaries and militants—funded by outsiders—to constantly target him. That night, Claire, Mason, and Venegas enjoy a party with the locals. Later, Claire approaches Mason and tries to seduce him, but he politely refuses, telling her that he loves his wife and won’t betray her.

The next day, as they prepare to leave, Mason calls Sebastian and asks why he was chosen for this mission. He wants to know why the mercenaries from the helicopter were after them. Sebastian finally confesses: he sent Mason to kill Venegas as revenge for the death of their teammates. He reveals that powerful people ordered him to eliminate Venegas. The helicopter mercenaries weren’t sent for Mason or Claire—they were only sent to kill Venegas. After this revelation, Mason calls home. His daughter answers and says she misses him and that her mother is very upset. Mason then talks to Jenny, who is relieved to hear his voice. She apologizes for their argument and asks him to return safely.

Mason returns to Venegas and Claire and suggests they leave immediately. However, before they can escape, Kohor arrives with his men and begins terrorizing the village. Mason puts Venegas on a horse and rides away with him. Claire also climbs onto a horse, but she falls and is captured by Kohor. Mason is worried, but Venegas assures him that Claire won’t be harmed as long as he is alive. Later, Mason and Venegas reach a nearby town and spend the night there. Venegas reveals that he wasn’t the one who shot down the helicopter that killed Mason’s teammates during the American invasion. At the time, he had lost hope and was planning to flee through underground tunnels. Palonia’s army couldn’t shoot down American choppers, so Venegas believes the crash was caused by friendly fire.

Mason then admits that he was sent to kill Venegas. Venegas calmly replies that he already knew. The following day, Kohor and his troops arrive in the town. Mason develops a plan to save Claire by offering Venegas in exchange. Venegas walks out and seemingly prepares to surrender. However, the situation changes when thousands of locals fill the streets to protect him. Since Kohor’s private army is only contracted to kill Venegas, they cannot open fire on innocent civilians without creating a global scandal. In the chaos, Venegas, Mason, and Claire escape into an underground tunnel and make their way into the presidential palace. In the president’s office, they find George sitting alone, terrified. Claire begins livestreaming, and Venegas tells George not to be afraid—that they will protect the nation together. George realizes his mistake, breaks down in tears, and apologizes to his uncle.

Moments later, one of the generals enters and immediately shoots Venegas. George becomes enraged and shoots the general, who fires back. Within seconds, both George and the general die in the gunfire. However, Venegas survives because he was wearing a bulletproof suit. He is devastated by his nephew’s death, but soon soldiers surround him, pointing their guns at him. Venegas calmly tells them that he is their president, not their enemy. He reminds them that this is their nation and they are not terrorists, but soldiers sworn to protect it.

Suddenly, Kohor arrives with his mercenaries, but the soldiers turn against the private army and attack them to defend their president. Meanwhile, Sebastian arrives in Palonia with his troops to help Mason. A massive shootout erupts, and Claire continues livestreaming the entire scene. Kohor eventually confronts Mason and savagely beats him, revealing that he was the one who shot down Mason’s helicopter and killed his teammates. Enraged, Mason fights back. After a brutal struggle, Kohor overpowers him and is about to finish him, when Claire suddenly strikes Kohor in the head, badly injuring him.

Since the remaining mercenaries are still firing, Mason grabs a heavy machine gun and wipes them out while Claire records everything. Claire’s courageous footage makes global headlines. In a press conference, President Venegas steps down from his dictatorship and announces a democratic election for the following year. In the final scene, Mason returns to the U.S. and reunites with his family. He apologizes to Jenny and promises to fix their marriage. Later, Mason checks his bank account and discovers that Venegas has sent him $5 million as a reward. Mason finally rediscovers his purpose in life—being present for his family.

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Video recap of Freelance (2023)