FREAKIER FRIDAY

'Freakier Friday' sees Anna Coleman (Lindsay Lohan, 2004's 'Mean Girls', 'Irish Wish') as a single mum, raising her teenage daughter, Harper (Julia Butters, 'The Fabelmans', 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood'), with the help of her mum, Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis, 'Halloween' franchise, 'Everything Everywhere All at Once'). After an incident at school with her daughter and Eric's (Manny Jacinto, 'Top Gun: Maverick', TV's 'The Good Place') daughter, Lily (Sophia Hammons, Disney Channel's 'Under Wraps'), the two begin to fall in love and end up engaged to each other. Even with their parents' love growing, Harper and Lily just can't seem to get along, and with the wedding day growing closer and closer, their hate only grows stronger. At the rehearsal dinner, they find themselves back at the Chinese restaurant where Anna and Tess first swapped bodies all those years ago, and they along with Harper and Lily meet with Madame Jen (Vanessa Bayer, 'DC League of Super-Pets', 'Trainwreck'), who tells them their paths will cross. Now it's a multi-generational swap! Anna swaps with her daughter while Tess is her step-granddaughter - but they will have to learn to walk in each other's shoes once again, or they will be trapped forever.

'Freakier Friday' doesn't reinvent the wheel, but is a very fun time for fans of the original film. I was ready to give the sequel points just for being a theatrical release and not dumped onto Disney+ like 'Hocus Pocus 2' and 'Disenchanted', but it actually has some really funny moments and a good, heartful story. While it does look like it's made for streaming, seeing these characters again on the big screen is enough to delight all millennials.

'Freakier Friday' soars when it's Jamie Lee Curits and Lindsay Lohan just having funny with the body-swapping. They are joy to see together and really elevate this film. It tries to have a bit more weight on the emotional core of the film than the original pulled off without it being forced, and while it is funny, it's not nearly as memorable as the 2003 film. The purpose of this film is nostalgia and it knows that, and doesn't try to push the boundaries. The film balances fan service and cameos; all of the original actors who return feel very well integrated, and it makes this feel like a very natural progression for this story.

The oddest for me was Ryan (Mark Harmon, TV's 'NCIS'), Tess' husband from the first film. I don't know if Harmon was super unavailable during this shoot, but the film doesn't have anything for him to do other than stand in the background. For the first half, I truly thought he was green-screened in as he never interacts with anyone but Tess. I understand the plot doesn't revolve around him, but the way they used him as glorified extra was really odd.

'Freakier Friday' isn't the greatest sequel of all time, but considering how a lot of these legacy sequels turn out, it's a genuinely enjoyable time. It knows that its audience just wants to see Lohan and Curtis together again, and that's completely fine. If you love the original, you'll enjoy this and truly, sometimes that's all you need.