Freaky Friday (2003)

While Disney is no stranger to adaptations, the novel Freaky Friday by Mary Rodgers is one that the company has made into a franchise with multiple unique adaptations for each generation since 1976. Perhaps the most well-known of these is the third adaptation of Freaky Friday from 2003, starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, which was also the one that was advertised to me as a kid. Though I had always had the curiosity about it in the back of my head, I didn’t watch it in earnest until the announcement of a 2025 sequel to it, dubbed Freakier Friday. After streaming the movie through Disney+, I not only enjoyed it more than I expected, I also thought it mostly aged surprisingly well.

Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Anna Coleman (Lindsay Lohan) are a mother and daughter who don’t get along very well. Tess is a psychiatrist with a very busy life, while Anna has to deal with bullying from a former friend as well as a teacher who is out to get her. On top of this, Tess is preparing to marry another man, whom Anna has not fully accepted yet, three years after her previous husband passed away. Things come to a head when Anna’s band Pink Slip is offered a chance to perform at the House of Blues on Friday, the same night as her mother’s wedding rehearsal dinner, leading to an argument between them at a Chinese restaurant the night before, in which they believe neither can last a day in the other’s place. After they are given a mystical fortune cookie, they wake up on Friday morning in each other’s bodies, concluding that they must figure out how to switch back before the wedding the next day.

 

Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis, left) and Anna (Lindsay Lohan, right) swap bodies after
they each receive a magical fortune cookie.

Speaking as someone who has not read the original novel, the movie stands very well on its own merits. Tess and Anna’s actions before and after the swap feel believable, and in some ways relatable. Humor is also woven seamlessly into the plot with clever writing and occasional slapstick, all without overshadowing the more serious plot points and the more emotional scenes in the last act that feel very much earned. I did, however, have a criticism with a running plot thread in which Anna gets into fights instigated by her younger brother Harry (Ryan Malgarini). While the actor plays the part well, the issue I took was with how the character never really suffers any consequences for his actions, not even for crossing a line and reading his sister’s diary out loud. I will also admit that the idea of involving Asian mysticism as the catalyst for the body swap didn’t really age quite well, but potential viewers can still take solace in the fact that the Chinese characters in the film, Pei-Pei (Rosalind Chao) and her mother (Lucille Soong), aren’t depicted negatively.

While the movie is well-cast in general, what really makes all this work is the performances of its stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, which are still impressive even today. Their commitment to their respective roles leads not only to a believable mother/daughter relationship, but their ability to perfectly play each other, even including body language and inflections, helps to sell the film’s premise and shows off their range as actresses. This, combined with the aforementioned writing quality, also helps their character arcs feel consistent even as they are split between the two actresses. Overall, a perfect casting choice.

 

Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis make the film work.

 

While the movie has a timeless quality to it, the early 2000s setting is still evident, the biggest clue being Tess’ myriad of cell phones of various models. While this does quickly establish how busy she is, it’s something that could only have been depicted in the time in which the film was made, as nowadays she would likely have everything localized into a single smartphone. The soundtrack is also a reflection of the time while also embracing the rock music side of the plot, featuring acts such as Simple Plan and Andrew W.K., the latter of whom I would not have expected to hear in a Disney film. The Lash song “Take Me Away” that Pink Slip covers is a standout for how well it’s performed in the movie, as is the original song “Ultimate” that plays during the end credits.

More than 20 years later, the 2003 version of Freaky Friday proves to be a classic and holds up as a solid movie in its own right. While each generation has their own telling of the story to look back on, this version is still one to watch at least once, especially if you’re planning to see Freakier Friday when it comes out.