At this point, few audience members watching Freakier Friday will be unfamiliar with the body-swap genre of films. Not only does Freakier Friday reflect the growing trend of sequels or reboots from millennial adolescence, but it also follows Freaky Friday (2003), of which it is a sequel. That 2003 version was not the first adaptation of Mary Rodgers’ book of the same name; the original was the 1976 film starring Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris. Freakier Friday brings back much of the cast from the 2003 film, most in smaller roles, except for Jamie Lee Curtis (as Tess Coleman) and Lindsay Lohan (as Anna Coleman), who return to star in this body-swap coming-of-age comedy. New cast members joining them in the swap are Julia Butters (as Harper Coleman) and Sophia Hammons (as Lily Reyes). Like the earlier version, the story centers on a looming wedding — this time between Anna and Eric Reyes (played by Manny Jacinto). Since they both have daughters, Harper and Lily, who don’t want the wedding to happen and would rather be in different countries, it creates the perfect setup for the body-swap drama.
These films thrive or fail based on their boldness in exploring perceptions of aging and youth. This theme fuels the humor but also presents the emotional core. They demand a lot of physical comedy and spirited acting from everyone involved, and the four leads at the center deliver convincingly. It’s been wonderful to see Lohan’s return to the screen in recent years, but this performance captured that same magic that made her so compelling in her early days in the industry. Chad Michael Murray returns as Jake, and I love this detail that he still has a bit of a crush on Tess from when Anna was inhabiting her body. Once again, a teen is occupying Tess’ body, and he finds her actions appealing. This is very refreshing because this is a man who, yes, is attracted to that youthful spirit and openness, but he loves seeing it reflected in the body of an older woman.
This film features the return of Pink Slip, which is one of the best fake bands in film history (alongside The Wonders and Josie and The Pussycats). With its return, the film gets a chance to fix a pet peeve of mine from Freaky Friday (2003). In the climax of Freaky Friday, Tess, as Anna, performs some of the worst fake guitar playing on stage, while the real Anna (in Tess’s body) plays offstage before they switch back to their own bodies. The strumming looked so fake, and while it seemed like an intentional choice, it never rang true to me, because I thought someone would surely notice and call them out. Anyway, the way they chose to handle the guitar playing while still body-switched this time around worked well for the story they’d built and didn’t create this weird reality dissonance. However, anyone who liked the original bit will be happy to know they call it back briefly.
While the Coleman and Reyes pocket of Los Angeles is full of people thriving, even Anna’s client, Ella (played by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan), who is in crisis because her ex released a song about her, is still kicking off a World Tour, Madame Jen (played by Vanessa Bayer), the psychic who kicks off their bodyswap, is living that gig economy life. While initially upset, the Colemans and Reyes eventually appreciated her services when they got their resolutions and growth that this genre is built upon, so I hope they sent her a tip or bought more Reiki from her.
Freakier Friday is currently in theaters.
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