The simplest way I can think to sum up this movie is as such: If you saw the first film (Freaky Friday), then you have essentially already seen the second film already, Freakier Friday. This is due to there being very little difference between the two films beyond the passage of time. Yes, Lindsay Lohan now finds herself in the adult role, but the film’s themes are very much the same. In the interest of fairness, I will admit that there is very little room for deviation given the film’s premise. This is a “walk a mile in another person’s shoes” type movie, and the film delivers on that, so when push comes to shove, the film delivered on what it was supposed to. However, I feel like this kind of movie was the reason that Disney created Disney+ for. As nice as it was to see Lohan return to the silver screen, this film marks Lindsay Lohan’s first theatrically released leading role in 18 years. However, it just felt like the film would have been better suited on the streaming service. I will give this legacy sequel credit for its continuity, as it found a way to bring back nearly every character from the first film, which was something that I did not expect.
And when I say nearly every character, I mean nearly every character. Obviously, Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay had to return. It wouldn’t have been much of sequel without both of their participation. It was reportedly Jamie Lee Curtis who persuaded Lindsay Lohan to return to Disney again, as the two became close friends after the 2003 film. However, what was also interesting was the return of characters such as Chad Michael Murray (Jake), Mark Harmon (Ryan), Stephen Tobolowsky (Mr. Bates), Rosalind Chao (Pei-Pei), Lucille Soong (Pei-Pei’s mom), Christina Vidal (Maddie), and Haley Hudson (Peg). Murray’s role offered some comic relief, as his character still carries a bit of a torch for Curtis’s character, but I think the return I was most surprised to see was Harmon, as this marked his first non-NCIS related work in 13 years. In addition to returning characters, the film also featured some returning music. If you will recall, Lohan’s character was in a band, and to the film’s credit, it found a way to incorporate some of those popular songs (Ultimate and Take Me Away) as well as a couple of original songs as well.
And then there are film’s new additions, such as Julia Butters (Harper Coleman), Sophia Hammons (Lily Reyes), and Manny Jacinto (Eric Reyes). Starting with Butters and Hammons who play our teenage body swappers, they both portrayed the duality of the roles very well, especially Butters, who really seems wise beyond her years. This was her first big step up since her American Housewife stint, but I envision more roles will follow, especially given her portrayal as Harper, the wayward daughter of Lohan’s character who butts heads with Hammon’s character, who also gives as good as she gets. Hammons is no stranger to Disney, having starred in Under Wraps and its subsequent sequel. Jacinto isn’t a stranger to Disney either. For the majority of the film, I was trying to figure out where I knew him from, and it was only after I saw his name that I recognized him as the breakout character from the much too short-lived Star Wars The Acolyte series (a shameless plug, I know, but I’m still disappointed in the show’s cancellation, which was premature in my opinion).
So, there were a lot of good qualities to the film, but the thing that has me believing that it would have been better as a streaming film is that it wasn’t as funny as the original film in my opinion. Putting aside the fact that I am not the target audience for this brand of comedy, it just didn’t deliver on the laughs in the fashion that I was hoping. In all honesty, the best laugh came from cameo characters such as the guidance counselor and the DMV clerk. For the most part the film followed the blueprint of the original film to a tee. As previously mentioned, I understand that there is very little latitude for deviation for a film like this, but even so, it made the film fairly predictable.
In summation, despite great continuity with the original film, the film only sparked the occasional laugh. However, I don’t expect the film to get much competition this weekend, all but ensuring the film will be the big box office winner. The film does invoke feelings of nostalgia for the original film, and to their credit, Lohan and Curtis pick up right up where they left off as if no time had passed.
