Review of Freaky (2020) by Rebecca31 — 05 Jul 2021

Fans of Freaky Friday and Happy Death Day is this the movie for you. I had very low expectations but Freaky turned out to be better than I thought it would. The opening sequence looks like a rejected scene from something like Scream or Halloween but once it gets going you get this silly yet entertaining horror comedy that you’ll enjoy in the moment and probably forget about once you leave the screen.

Millie (Kathryn Newton) is a young high school student and has the unfortunate luck of swapping bodies with a deranged serial killer, the butcher (Vince Vaughn). Millie only has 24 hours to figure out how to switch back before the change becomes permanent. She now has the difficult task of trying to convince her friends of her identity and trying to find a way to get her body back before time runs out, all with the backdrop of teenage high school drama and the upcoming homecoming. Which as it turns out is the perfect environment for the butcher to use his new “murder Barbie” disguise to go on a killing spree with an endless supply of unsuspecting victims. Right, the acting is quite bad, aside from Kathryn Newton and Vince Vaughn who are clearly having great fun filming this. The rest I’m sorry, I know they’re supposed to be annoying teens but it was a lot to take. The story plays out how you’d expect, but at least you’ll probably cringe and laugh along the way. Every scene squeezes in as many horror movie tropes and clichés as it possibly can. You’re constantly reminded of other slasher movies that came before it. From the blonde running away from the knife wielding maniac and then falling at a crucial point all the way to “oh let’s split up and search for the murderer. What a great idea, nothing will possibly go wrong with that scenario.” Yes it’s cringey and predictable but it’s also fun, gory and completely ridiculous.

Look it’s not the greatest thing you’ll watch all year but right now options are limited. So if you’re in the mood for a comedy horror flick where Vince Vaughn switches bodies with a high school student then Freaky will keep you entertained for the most part. Recommended for all you Freaky Friday/Happy Death Day fans.