David R. Walker

Archive for August 17th, 2025

Freakier Friday

Director: Nisha Ganatra

Cast: Lindsay Lohan, Jamie Lee Curtis, Julia Butters, Mark Harmon, Sophia Hammons, Manny Jacinto, Chad Michael Murray

Running Time: 1 hour and 50 minutes

Film Rating: 7 out of 10  

Disney so needed a hit after the drama of Snow White early in 2025. Thankfully, Late Night and The High Note director Nisha Ganatra works her magic on the Freaky Friday sequel aptly entitled Freakier Friday.

Twenty two years after the first personality swapping comedy hit cinemas back in 2003, the original cast is back including Lindsay Lohan (Mean Girls, The Parent Trap, Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen) as record producer Anna Colman opposite her screen mother Oscar winner Jamie Lee Curtis (Everything, Everywhere All At Once) playing Tess Colman along with Anna’s petulant daughter Harper Coleman played by Julia Butters (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) and Sophia Hammons as Harper soon to be step sister Lily Reyes.

When successful music producer Anna meets charming restaurant Guru Eric Reyes played by Filipino star Manny Jacinta, there is a wedding planned with one big problem. Both Anna’s daughter Harper and Eric’s stuck up British daughter Lily cannot stand each other to the point of becoming Frenemies.

After a bizarre visit to a dodgy palm reader, mother and daughter and step sister and granddaughter all swop personalities offering up some hilarious results along with Curtis playing a teenage version of herself and Julia Butters expertly playing a much older version of her character.

Lindsay Lohan takes on her daughter’s personality and behaves like a 17 year old while Harper tries to take charge of her mother’s career.

Intergenerational conflict reaches new heights as the evil versions of Harper and Lily decide to break up the impending marriage of Anna and Eric even roping in Anna’s hot ex-boyfriend Jake played once again by Chad Michael Murray (House of Wax) who was also in the original film.

Despite the garish antics, Freakier Friday doubles the plot twists and ensures that the bizarre yet funny storyline stays fresh in a 21^st century Los Angeles drenched in the Instagram age. Fortunately Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan manage to rekindle their original onscreen chemistry.

While the male characters have very little to do in a predominantly female centred film, Freakier Friday does hit all the right notes providing a fresh and vibrant comedy about intergenerational female relationships which are both clingy, complex and competitive. Fortunately director Nisha Ganatra has the knack of keeping this film light and breezy ensuring that even the serious moments are touched with a light poignancy which doesn’t drag down the dazzling tone of the film.

Good to see Lindsay Lohan back in action and Freakier Friday is a fun filled frothy comedy which definitely is better than the original film. Freakier Friday gets a film rating of 7 out of 10 and is lush and lightweight. Recommended viewing for some comic relief.