With a pitch-perfect tone and pacing, Freaky is a bloody and refreshing take on the body-switch gimmick. The title is a riff on the Freaky Friday movies, all based on the original 1972 children’s novel of the same name. Since then, about every ten years we get a new adaptation. You might be most familiar with the 2003 one starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan. This one, however, apart from the body-switch, has nothing to do with the original story. It’s a brutal and gory story of a shy teenager and a serial killer switching bodies and the chaos that ensues. Starring Vince Vaughn as the killer and later the timid girl, this is a thoroughly entertaining horror/comedy. I would compare it to The Babysitter as it’s got the same vibrant atmosphere and sleek visuals.
I mean, Freaky looks freaking awesome. The murders are creative and gory along with superb special effects. However, the thing that will people remember about this movie is Vince Vaughn running around like a teenage girl. To see a huge guy whom you’re used to seeing playing manly roles (Brawl in Cell Block 99, Dragged Across Concrete) become so feminine and gracefully clumsy is a treat. All props go to Vaught who pulled it off magnificently, not that we ever doubted him. Kathryn Newton was also great as the original girl and the killer later on. I think that the predictable story isn’t such a problem as it leaves more room for you to focus on the fun parts. You know what’s going to happen, the only question that remains is how exactly it’s going to happen.
Despite the gruesome murder of four teenagers last night, the homecoming game in the town of Blissfield Valley still went on as planned. However, things will not go on as planned for Millie Kessler, a shy girl who cheered on her team as the mascot. Her mother didn’t come to pick Millie up after a game and she’s now alone in the dark as everyone went home. She’s attacked by the same killer wielding an ancient knife, La Dola, said to have special powers. After he stabs her in the shoulder and runs away, Millie feels like she escaped her fate. However, the next morning she will realize that her troubles only began.
Freaky knows exactly what it is and never takes itself seriously. This is a fun romp through familiar concepts seen in so many horror movies over the decades. Director/co-writer Christopher Landon cited Scream, Urban Legend, Cherry Falls, Fright Night, The Blob, and Jennifer’s Body as sources of inspiration for the movie. I loved his previous movies Burning Palms and Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse while I found Happy Death Day to be too commercial. You might say that Freaky is an homage to all those previously mentioned movies. In the end, if you know what you’re expecting, you won’t be disappointed. So, get ready to have some fun and check out this movie. Enjoy.
Director: Christopher Landon
Writers: Michael Kennedy, Christopher Landon
Cast: Vince Vaughn, Kathryn Newton, Celeste O’Connor, Misha Osherovich, Emily Holder, Nicholas Stargel, Kelly Lamor Wilson, Mitchell Hoog
Fun Facts: Vince Vaughn’s fall during the auditorium chase was accidental and not scripted.
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IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10919380/
