Freaky

After its world premiere at the Beyond Fest festival on October 8th and being greeted as much by an excellent review (83% on Rotten Tomatoes) as by a very favorable reception from the public, Freaky has established itself as one of the major release events of the last few months. After having had the opportunity to finally discover it, we can confirm that it is a phenomenon film that has everything to become cult not only by its script at different levels of reading, the presence of a director and screenwriter who knows how to handle with an undeniable talent as a storyteller the living force of what makes not only an excellent genre film but also a comedy and finally the presence of the sublime Kathryn Newton and the excellent Vince Vaughn.

Freaky is based on the story of a teenage girl, Millie Kessler (Kathryn Newton), who, after being attacked by a dangerous serial killer, involuntarily changes bodies with him. It must be acknowledged that in only three films (Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (2015), Happy Birthdead (2017) and Happy Birthdead 2 You (2019)) Christopher Landon has been able to build a real brand name by offering films with perfect tempo and a rather small budget. He has succeeded in building inspired films featuring young actresses, whether Jessica Rothe in her two previous films or Kathryn Newton here. Michael Kennedy and Christopher Landon's screenplay skillfully mixes genres with his masked killer Friday the 13th and the fantasy comedy Freaky Friday (2003) in which a mother and daughter interchange their bodies.

You have to recognize a real know-how to create successful characters and above all to set up a plot capable of holding our attention until the last minute. From the very first minutes of the film by setting the scene on Wednesday the 11th (with an obvious nod to Friday the 13th) by highlighting an evening of young people telling each other about the misdeeds of a bloodthirsty killer, the butcher of Blissfield whose exploits in 1977 have made headlines. These so-called young people will find themselves facing this equally dangerous psychopathic killer who is determined to kill everyone in his path to satisfy his impulses. Interpreted by Vince Vaughn (Norman Bates in Psycho (1998)), this serial killer is not only credible but also particularly disturbing. While he also has to play a young teenage girl, he shows again that he is just as perfect in a comic role and all the immensity of his talent.

In the same way the change of personality of Millie Kessler, a 17-year-old girl in a very, very high school, Blissfield High, allows the film to approach in an original way the American high school world and its overrated side in which everything rests not on the intellect but on the physical aspect of the characters. When Blissfield's butcher swapped his body with it, Millie Kessler not only stands out as a superb student but also takes great pleasure in decimating as many people as possible, be they students or teachers. Freaky proves to be particularly original in the manner of his numerous killings and proves to be of a formidable efficiency.

Produced by Jason Blum through his production company Blumhouse, Freaky is not just another marketing product and continues to show an undeniable know-how in giving directors and screenwriters real artistic freedom to direct the film they really want to make. The only constraint is a reduced budget, which at no time detracts from the unbridled creativity of this film and the fact that the crimes committed by the Blissfield Butcher are violent and filmed without concessions, which is in stark contrast to the sanitized side of films produced by major Hollywood studios. By creating a true disturbing universe and playing on appearances, Freaky proves to be not only an excellent genre film that is totally mastered, but above all shows to what extent the young actress Kathryn Newton (Lady Bird (2017), Ben is Back (2019), Pokémon: Detective Pikachu (2019)) continues to be perfect whether in a dramatic, fantastic or even horrific film.

While it will be necessary to wait until January 20, 2021 for the French spectators to discover it at the cinema, Freaky is finally available since December 4, 2020 in VOD and we can only advise you to discover it because you will not only love this movie but will especially want to see it again for the many details that would have escaped you and the many winks to many classic horror movies of recent years.

Freaky
Directed by Christopher Landon
Produced by Jason Blum
Written by Michael Kennedy, Christopher Landon
Starring Vince Vaughn, Kathryn Newton, Katie Finneran, Celeste O'Connor, Misha Osherovich, Alan Ruck
Music by Bear McCreary
Cinematography: Laurie Rose
Edited by Ben Baudhuin
Production companies : Blumhouse Productions, Divide/Conquer
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date: October 8, 2020 (Beyond Fest), November 13, 2020 (United States), January 20, 2021 (France)
Running time: 102 minutes

Viewed on December 3, 2020

Mulder's Mark: