Freakier Friday (2025)

Freakier Friday (2025) is directed by Nisha Ganatra and written by Elyse Hollander and Jordan Weiss. The writing is the weakest aspect of the film, leaning into a fantasy of having it all: a dream career, a perfect love interest, motherhood, and a magically open and understanding teenager. Both writers are relatively new and this might just be a learning curve. Ganatra isn't new to film, but had more success in television.

Jamie Lee Curtis, known for Halloween (1978) and Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022), overacts in her role, leaning too heavily into physical comedy. Lindsay Lohan, best known for Mean Girls (2004), also struggles to find the right balance between charm and believability.

Julia Butters, who stood out in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019), and Sophia Hammons, from Under Wraps (2021), do much better, giving grounded and heartfelt performances that carry the emotional weight of the film.

The movie is just okay, with a final act that saves it from being bad. Result: C

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Rental Family (2025)

Rental Family is about an American living in Japan as an actor who falls into an odd acting gig as a surrogate family member or something similar for other people to cope or find meaning in relationships. Written and directed by Hikari, who brought us the critically acclaimed movie 37 Seconds which was sent straight to streaming back in 2020, so don't feel bad if you've never heard of it. This time around she's getting a proper release. Her direction is very artistic and the character writing is great. There are even moments of laughter in this drama. Brendan Frasier plays the main character a "token white guy" as the movie puts it. He is on a role with these select films. I'm excited for a Mummy reunion and his return with The Whale was great. This wasn't as well acted as The Whale, but it was still good. I'm not too sure this will get nominated for any Oscar or do well at the box office, but it was still good. Result: B

Him (2025)

Him (2025) is directed by Justin Tipping , best known for Kicks , with Jordan Peele serving as a heavy-handed producer. Despite the talent involved, the film leans into “and then” style writing that feels meandering and leaves the audience more tired than engaged. Marlon Wayans , known for White Chicks and Scary Movie , goes over the top in a way that doesn’t fit the film’s intent, creating more distraction than humor or depth. Tyriq Withers , previously in I Know What You Did Last Summer , turns in an even weaker performance here, offering little in the way of presence or believability. Julia Fox , who gained recognition for Uncut Gems , is strange and out of place, adding little to the narrative. Jim Jefferies , a comedian known for Legit , is barely given anything to work with, and his limited screen time wastes his talent. I found myself bored and not surprised. There is also a bit of sacrilegious writing that might turn off some audiences. Result: C+

Twisters (2024)

Twisters is a beat-for-beat retelling of the movie Twister but with some obvious updates. Oscar nominee, Lee Isaac Chung took the reigns to direct this reboot/remake. He directed Minari which I highly recommend. He also wrote that movie too, where he had Mark L. Smith write the screenplay, and Joseph Kosinski write the story. Smith's writing is all over the place with The Revenant being great, while Overlord is not. Twisters takes what it can from the original source but the dialogue and delivery could be better with certain characters. The elephant in the room is Anthony Ramos , who has yet to have a good acting performance. He was the worst actor in Hamilton and tried way too hard in Dumb Money . He can't deliver the lines or the character arch that was written for him. It's very hard to root for his character growth when he can't deliver it. Daisy Edgar-Jones plays the main character. She, like the first movie, has to deliver some really he...

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