The superimposed text reads “Wednesday the 11th,” but its purpose is not to establish time, place, or even herald a film-within-a-film parody. For all the good it does, the latest Blumhouse Production might just as well greet us with: Warning: Secondhand Horror Comedy Ahead. Not that the idea of spinning a horror-reversal on the Disney family comedy Freaky Friday is a bad one, but must everything play out in such a familiar manner? Vince Vaughn doesn’t get the recognition he deserves; there aren’t too many comedians currently at work who possess the actor’s sly slobbery and innate ability to use it to occasion laughter. Watching him unleash his inner teenage girl justifies the download; just be prepared to endure the malevolent reprisal of his junior counterpart (Kathryn Newton) as she mows down the cardboard enemies that were determined before the transformation. Directed and co-written by Paranormal Activity 2-4 scribe Christopher Landon. (2020) — Scott Marks
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