Movie Review: Freaky Friday

MPAA Rating: PG-13

Stars (Out of 10): 4

One Word Summary: Kiddy

Full Review:

           Freaky Friday is about a mother and daughter who both envy each other; Annabel doesn't think her mother understands what its like to be a teenager and Ellen doesn't think her daughter tries hard enough in school. When a magical mishap occurs at a Chinese restaurant, Annabel and Ellen switch bodies. Their fortune cookie tells them that the only thing that will undo the spell is if they find a way to love each other selflessly. There's a deadline though; Annabel has a huge school test to take, and Ellen is one day away from her wedding!

                  Quite bluntly, Freaky Friday isn't the most enjoyable adult movie…. The kids in the theatre seemed to be enjoying themselves, but I for one was not. What was the problem? The script just wasn't funny. When you can count the number of times a smile appeared on your face (I'm not even asking for a laugh, just a smile), there's something wrong. The movie has some funny situations, but the comedy is for kids. A great family movie (a la Shrek) finds a way to layer the comedy to reach the whole audience; Freaky Friday must have missed that lesson in film school.

                  Now I do understand that this is a kids movie; but in my experience, kids young enough to have interest in movies like Freaky Friday don't usually go to the theatre alone. This might be a great kid's film, but it's not a great family film.

                  But, to be fair, Freaky Friday isn't terrible. Jamie Lee Curtis is great! I'm not an actor, but I'd assume that a role like this would be difficult because for most of the movie she's playing a teenager. Talk about out of character, her last three features have been horror movies and now she's playing a kid in a Disney movie. Curtis pulls off the hipster shtick wonderfully. Lindsay Lohan who plays her daughter also scores playing the opposite role, an adult.

                   Freaky Friday is an uninspired and unnecessary movie remake. The marketing of the movie and the plot don't fit together. The movie is about a teenage girl and her mother, but it targets young children. Teenagers would find themselves 'above' this movie (and probably wouldn't find it very amusing) and younger kids would rather watch a movie about kids their age than about teenagers; especially with the clichéd romance thrown on top. Disney has built themselves a no-win situation, especially because the movie isn't really enjoyable for adults.