Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

Freaky Friday Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 24, 2018

Freaky Friday is the film adaptation of the book of the same name written by Mary Rodgers, who also penned the screenplay for this film adaptation. The film is an agreeable one, obviously one of the trendsetters for the similarly themed films that would follow in the 1980s (notably Like Father, Like Son and Vice Versa). The film stars Barbara Harris and a young Jodie Foster, both of whom would receive Golden Globe nominations for their dual roles as both mother and daughter.

Annabel Andrews (Jodie Foster) is a fairly typical 13-year-old. She has a younger brother, Ben, who is a neat-freak. But she is not. She likes her room messy, her food unhealthy, and she certainly doesn’t want, or need, any advice from her mother. Her mother Ellen (Barbara Harris) wants what’s best for her daughter, and in her eyes, that’s the opposite of everything Annabel does. She and her mother, at odds with one another yet again, wish at the same time to switch places, so each can better understand the other: who they really are, what they want, and why they do what they do. Wish granted. Without explanation or warning, the two find themselves in one another’s bodies. Ellen, as Annabel, will have to deal with friends, school, and sports. Annabel, as Ellen, will have to do laundry, keep up the house, and play nice for her father, Ellen’s husband, Bill (John Astin).

Freaky Friday doesn’t exactly reach the pinnacle of moviemaking or storytelling. It’s far too reliant on inner-voice narrative exposition and the characters aren’t very well developed. However, its various scenes are quite funny as both individuals adapt to not only their new life, but their new routines and tasks. Ellen, as Annabel, struggles to take a test on an electric typewriter. Annabel, as Ellen, overstuffs the washing machine and pours too much soap into it. It’s in the little bits of comic mischief and misadventure through which the movie shines. The drama? Not so much. Both characters barely extend beyond a crude type, but both actresses shine in the roles, challenging roles that task them with physically portraying one character while mentally playing another, and both are tasked with, ultimately, playing one another. It can’t be easy, but both Harris and Foster pull it off very well. The movie does show its age, and the 2003 remake is a bit more spirited, but for core body-swapping laughs this is pretty much the granddaddy (grandmommy?) of the genre.

Freaky Friday Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Freaky Friday's Blu-ray, exclusive to the Disney online movie club, looks fairly good, as has been the norm for the studio's yellow-boxed releases. The image impresses right off the bat. Even over the animated open, grain is evident, clarity is excellent, and colors soar. Those qualities hold to the transition to live action following the opening titles. The image is enjoyably filmic. Grain is a little sharp, but the picture is polished and nicely detailed. The 1080p resolution boosts clarity of essential qualities like clothes, hair, skin, and environmental details: brick, pavement, and grass outside the home, carpet and furnishings inside, as well as odds and ends that are critical to the movie's various scenes, like typewriter details or fine animal hairs. Colors are excellent. Look at the 20-minute mark when Annabel-as-Ellen and Bill leave the house. The green grass is amazingly vibrant and well saturated. Red makeup accents impress, while general clothing color, skin tones, and black levels all hold up very well. There are precious few encode artifacts and print wear is kept a bare minimum. This is a very nice release from Disney.

Freaky Friday Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Freaky Friday's Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack does enough to get the listener through the movie, but this is a listen absent any bells or whistles. The track attempts to image towards the center, and largely succeeds. It's a fairly shallow track, however, and there's very little range. Dialogue is tinny and the inner voice narration particularly so (though it predisposes to that type of effect), but vocal exchanges, too, lack the clarity and distinction of the best tracks. Music is cramped and absent flair, but core detailing is adequate. A few support effects help to sonically shape several scenes but lack any sort of soaring distinction.

Freaky Friday Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Disney Store exclusive release of Freaky Friday contains no bonus content. No DVD or digital copies are included, either.

Freaky Friday Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

What Freaky Friday lacks in fundamentals it makes up for with charm and good lead performances. It's probably the classic of the body-swapping genre and still offers several good laughs, even if the movie is hopelessly dated more than four decades after its release. This featureless Blu-ray, exclusive to the online Disney Movie Club, delivers healthy video and adequate audio. Recommended.