Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Freakier Friday review notes that all the fabulous fun and frolic can’t make up for lack of attention to detail that results in mind-numbing audience confusion.

Splashy colors and setups, slapstick comedy, actors we know and love plus a gorgeous and talented supporting cast, and the glories of L.A. at its glamorous best—you’ll find them all in Freakier Friday, the sequel to the 2003 hit starring older and wiser characters played by originals Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis.

But you also may be exhausted and confused by an overabundance of gaudy, giddy and garish big production scenes and montages loosely strung together, seemingly crammed in for raucous impact, rather than to advance the plot. A rock concert? Check. Fashion photo shoots? More than one. An all out food fight? Oh yeah! Glitzy celebrations? You betcha! Joy riding in a classic convertible? Why not? And so much more.

Freakier Friday review — They did what?

The concept is more complicated than the previous Freaky Friday, with three generations and four people involved in the magical body swaps. Anna (Lohan) is all grown up and she’s now the single mom, working as a rock star manager. Her mother Tess (Curtis) is a podcasting author, senior and therapist, married to Ryan (an aged Mark Harmon) who was her love interest in the film that came before.

Those two swap bodies with Harper (Anna’s surf riding teenage daughter, played by Julia Butters) and Lily (played by Sophia Hammons), the snotty British daughter of Anna’s sexy fiancee . Yes, it’s terribly confusing trying to keep the characters straight once the switch is made.

Overacting and age related cliches seem to be major objectives for director Nisha Ganatra, whose work also includes other sparkly, put-upon entertainment industry worker-themed films such as The High Note and Late Night.

But I just can’t let her get away with confusing audiences by ignoring important, logical details and sacrificing a coherent storyline, in the hopes that the glaring and glittery big production numbers will make up for them. The play seems to be that it’s just a fun, fluffy kids’ movie, and attention to detail is superfluous.

Don’t get me wrong—the film, if taken at face value, is gleefully entertaining. Perhaps I’m just not ready for this fragmented TikTok world, in which continuity is a thing of the past, and the average length of a shot in modern movies is around 2.5 to 3 seconds. There’s much to like about Freakier Friday. Just not enough for me.

Rated PG

1 Hour 51 Minutes

If this Freakier Friday review makes you want to grab your mom and skip on over the the cineplex, find times and tickets in advance at Fandango.com.

Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Freakier Friday review notes that all the fabulous fun and frolic can’t make up for lack of attention to detail that results in mind-numbing audience confusion.