- Date of Release: 08 August 2025
- Genre: Comedy, Fantasy
- Language: English
- Watch On: Theatres Only
Freakier Friday
Introduction
Body-swap may not be an entirely new concept on celluloid but if done correctly, it would invariably result in a fun time at the cinemas. Like was the case with the English film Freaky Friday (2003), who borrowed the concept of a body-swap and infused it in a mother-daughter story. There was a clear theme of a generational gap that had pitted Anna (Lindsay Lohan) and her then single mom Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis) against each other. At the end of the day, it was about stepping into each other’s shoes, almost literally and figuratively, to understand each other while trying to be empathetic to the other person. In fact while watching the first part, it made me realise on what a great story it would be with the father-son dynamic – a relationship so strained for most men, that it would invariably give the other person a perspective. I mean, imagine Animal (2023) being played out against this body-swap concept, exciting enough for you? Nevertheless, one of the best setups for a body-swap concept would be when there are fewer people involved – two is the ideal situation, three is pushing the limit (but in Padakkalam (2025), the concept was handled beautifully), but four is a crowd – one of the key reasons why Freakier Friday, the direct sequel to Freaky Friday doesn’t always land!
Story & Screenplay
Freakier Friday is made with one purpose – to ride on the nostalgia of the first film, given how most of the starcast returns for the second round, in order to lure the viewers in. There is nothing wrong with that, except that nostalgia alone cannot hold the attention of the viewers throughout. You saw the same mistake in the horror slasher I Know What You Did Last Summer (2025), a film so poor that even the exciting slasher genre did not entirely work with the nostalgia angle. Here, the nostalgia angle is in the form of Anna and Tess returning to the fray – Anna is now a single mother of Harper (Julia Butters), while Tess helps her co-parent successfully. Yes, the bickering banter between Anna and Tess is still alive, given the generational gap, but the focus now also is on Harper developing a cold shoulder towards a new girl in her class, Lily (Sophia Hammons), simply because the latter is better than her.
The dynamic between Lily and Harper is the new talking point of this sequel, that minutely steers away from the familiar dynamic of Anna and Tess. In a scene, you see Lily and Harper getting into a food fight – an action that immediately translates into their parents being called. And surprisingly so, it is Anna who falls for Eric (Manny Jacinto), Lily’s father – a relationship so serious that it results in the duo planning their marriage. But that also means that Lily and Harper are set to be sisters – with a core conflict being on where the family would eventually settle, and if the duo would get along with each other or not. Hence by the time the film actually gets to the body-swap concept, it is already a crowded house to begin with.
The concept of a four-way body swap is a strict no-no in my opinion, simply because it leaves the audience to catch up and comprehend on who’s available in who’s body, as opposed to indulging in the humour of the film. This is definitely what transpires – when as Tess and Lily swap bodies, and Anna and Harper swap bodies. The dynamics is convoluted more than anything else – particularly given how Tess and Anna are paired up with each other, and Lily and Harper are paired up with each other. It is one of those confusions that are intended for laughs, particularly with the twisted dynamics of a Priyadarshan film with the sole difference being that the jokes actually land in the latter.
Here, the situations created continue to be crowded – a marriage is on the cards after 3 days, Harper in Anna’s body cannot take a vow with Eric (her soon-to-be father), Tess and Anna in the bodies of Lily and Harper get a chance to be young again and to eat what they wish to, even while randomly having to stumble on Anna’s once-upon-a-time ex Jake (Chad Michael) who in turn has the hots for Tess. Just keep up with me, please! But the idea of convoluting a story to the point that you are left wondering on whose who, and the convoluted dynamic between the characters was never a good idea. With Jake’s entry, it gave me an idea on how creatively bankrupt the writing was, given how it had to use the nostalgia card to propel the story ahead. It was unnecessary in my opinion!
In the heart of hearts, there is a story of empathy and perspective waiting to crawl out – outside the freakier chaos, just in order to replicate the laughs and the magic of the original. For instance, the dynamic between Harper and Anna was the crux of this film that held onto a lot of emotions, when the film chose to flaunt it. It also felt like a direct extension of Anna and Tess’ equation from the first film. In a scene when Eric decides to call off the wedding, you see a noticeable heartbreak on the part of Harper who is in Anna’s body, given how her mother would be single once again. In another scene, you see Anna who is in Harper’s body, getting to don the guitar all over again – a bittersweet moment on how she had left her career once for her daughter, only to currently manage artists. And then when both of them get to play on stage, the emotions and a hint of the magic begin to peek through. Sadly, the other equations in the drama don’t always land – Anna and Tess already have a history of resolution, and the equation of Lily and Harper felt manipulative and way too simplistic. And these eventually just contributed to the crowd, as opposed to having a warm bond through the body swap concept. Lesson learnt then – do not try and overstuff your screenplay, keep it simple and allow the equations to evolve!
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues are intended to be funny and humourous, but the humour doesn’t always land due to an overtly convoluted screenplay. The music is good, and the songs definitely add to a sense of respite from the overstuffed screenplay. The BGM is light and frothy while trying to do its bit to make the drama work. The cinematography comprises of bright frames, that definitely is fairly successful in replicating the vibe of the 2000s (incidently, when the first film was out). And this is not to say that the drama felt stuck in the early 2000s due to its cinematography – it infact did due to its insipid writing😂. The editing has multiple lags in the screenplay, something that allows the drama to go round and round in circles, particularly in the second act. The repetitive nature of the drama does slacken the pace of the drama, thereby resulting in multiple lags. Director Nisha Ganatra doesn’t always land with the ambitious concept that is implemented here. The feeling that I got was that she was too enamoured by the concept, and that, she chose to overstuff the screenplay for a ‘freakier’ experience. Unfortunately, this compromised with the humour and magic of the drama that never quite found its footing throughout the narrative. The direction suffers from overtrying here while missing the mark by some distance.
Performances
The performances are fairly fun to witness by the members of the cast. Some actors like Chad Michael as Jake, Lucille Soong as Grandma Chiang and Mark Harmon as Ryan are infused just for the sake of nostalgia while not quite having enough meat to their characters. Maitreyi Ramakrishna as Ella has a good screen presence while managing to hold her own despite a limited screen time. Manny Jacinto as Eric has a pleasant personality onscreen, and he brings some much needed calmness to the drama. Julia Butters as Harper is decent although I didn’t always connect with the emotional core of her character in a rather skewed narrative. Sophia Hammons as Lily is fairly good here with her comic timing, and she manages to impress in parts. Lindsay Lohan as Anna is a bundle of joy to witness, getting the pulse of her character just right while soaring wonderfully in the climax. Jamie Lee Curtis as Tess is clearly having a ball, and she infuses a lot of unhinged energy to her character that counters the redundancy of the writing in some places.
Conclusion
Trying hard to score on nostalgia, Freakier Friday is a freakier followup that misses the mark while being low on humour and magic, the second time around. The reason is simple – a convoluted screenplay that is a far-cry from the simplistic and funny screenplay of the first film, something that makes for just about an average watch. Available in a theatre near you.