There have been several iterations of Mary Rodgers’ 1972 children novel Freaky Friday.  This movie serves as a sequel to the popular 2003 cinema release starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan.  Both stars have returned for Freakier Friday along with a host of supporting players including Mark Harmon, Chad Michael Murray and Stephen Tobolowsky.  It works as a standalone film but it’s clearly pitching itself at the family-friendly fan base which has grown over the past two decades.

Under the guidance of Canadian director Nisha Ganatra, the stakes have been raised for this follow-up.  Instead of two people switching bodies… we now have four.  Anna (Lohan) is now a middle-aged single mum who works as a music agent in Los Angeles while her own mother, Tess (Curtis), is still humorously meddling in her life.  After a whirlwind romance, Anna is set to marry Eric (Jacinto), a fellow single parent, but their lives are made complicated as their respective teenage daughters, Harper (Butters) and Lily (Hammons), do not get along.  They’re as different as chalk and cheese.

A dodgy psychic then lays the groundwork for the film’s promised mayhem.  They wake up one morning to find Anna has swapped bodies with her daughter while, more bizarrely, Grandma Tess has swapped with her soon-to-be granddaughter-in-law.  Eric has somehow escaped unscathed.  The quartet have been given a riddle about breaking the “curse” but with the wedding ceremony only days away, the clock is ticking…

Freakier Friday is simple, harmless entertainment.  It requires a stronger attention span to remember who is in each body but, in the same vein as the original, it’s about creating wacky scenarios the women must bluff their way through.  At home, Anna conjures excuses as to why she suddenly can’t kiss her fiancé and at work, she “wings it” while managing a stressed, high-profile client.  The cast have fun with their exaggerated behaviours and that vibe should impart itself on audiences.  The outtakes shown during the closing credits are further evidence of the film’s goofy vibe.

The themes are laid on thickly and several of the character personalities are rushed (it’s amazing how easily things are resolved) but there’s still a likeable spirit to Freakier Friday, elevated by the cast, which makes it worthwhile.