Over the past few weeks, for research, I’ve had the pleasure (and occasional misfortune) of watching a plethora of body swap movies in order to establish what’s so compelling and timeless about the genre, and to try and steal the good bits to apply to my own idea that I’m developing. The ‘absorbing’ part of the writing process is the best part, although forcing loved ones to sit through a dozen body swaps would be sadistic even when not at the height of a pandemic.
Regrettably, I excluded age transformation movies like 13 Going on 30 (despite Jennifer Garner’s cultural reset of a performance) and Big (although I did see Jay McGuinness and Kimberly Walsh have a bash at this recently), but at least that means I didn’t have to factor in any creepy did-they-or-didn’t-they-technically-have-sex-with-a-child elements.
But first, where does the idea of a body swap come from?
As far as I can tell, John Locke’s ‘personal identity’ chapter in his Essay Concerning Human Understanding first popularised the idea. In the prince and the cobbler passage, Locke asks the reader to imagine the soul of a prince entering the body of a cobbler, taking all of its ‘princely thoughts’ with it. In this scenario, the prince ends up existing in the man identified as the cobbler. Voilà! The body swap was born.
However, the body swap movies we all know and love most likely owe their basic architecture to F. Anstey’s 1882 novel- Vice Versa: A Lesson to Fathers. Set during the Victorian Era, the novel tells the story of businessman Paul Bultitude and his son Dick (hehe). Dick is about to be packed off to boarding school, which is run by a cane enthusiast. Paul, the definition of toxic masculinity, tells Dick that he needs to get a grip- schooldays are the best years of a boy's life; how he wishes he were the one going!
Cue a magic stone bought by an uncle which grants the possessor one wish. And away we go. Paul has to attend his son's boarding school, while Dick gets a chance to run his father's business in the big city. The source material gave birth to five film adaptations, a play, a radio adaptation and a TV series. People ate it up.
It was 1976’s Freaky Friday, written by Mary Rodgers (and based on her own novel) that defined the genre for more recent audiences, grossing $36 million on a $5 million budget despite The Washington Post writing that the film "suffers from sluggish exposition, mediocre direction and one-closeup-after-another, but it probably salvages things with juvenile audiences by finishing fast."
The plot is simple. Annabel (Barbara Harris) swaps places with her daughter Ellen (Jodie Foster) and they get a taste of each other's lives. Eventually, they both gain some perspective and stop squabbling. It also features one of the only water-skiing subplots in cinema history.
In the 30+ years that followed, it's been remade—in one form or another—dozens of times. Three actual remakes (shout out to Jamie Lee and Lindsay), and also the DNA of Freaky Friday exists in Like Father Like Son, The Hot Chick, 18 Again!, Little, Overboard, It’s a Boy Girl Thing, Trading Places- the list is endless.
There are fewer examples on TV, where the story engine becomes hard to maintain (although I’m currently trying to give it a good crack) and the body swap usually tends to be confined to one episode. Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s ‘Who Are You’ is a great example of how to use the device to thoroughly examine characters you love. When Buffy and Faith swap places, they’re able to interrogate the outside view that causes a person to redefine themselves from the perspective of ‘the other.’ It’s a standout episode in the (rocky) fourth season.
Comedy is often the first port of call for the body swap: it’s pure farce, being caught in someone else’s skin and having to live as them. Who ain’t a fan of shenanigans? If done correctly, and the creatives have embraced both the pitfalls and the benefits of the genre, the body swap can be an absolute joy.
So, what common threads make a successful one?
A (usually ludicrous) Method of Transference
You never go full Face Off, but your two lead characters, who (of course) are polar opposites, at odds and could do with learning a thing or two from each other, need to do the actual swapping clearly and succinctly.
Car accidents, arguing under the stars, mystic skulls, science experiments, demonic rituals, fortune cookies and rays from an alien spaceship have all been used. The method can be as bizarre as you want so long as it makes sense in the universe that you’re creating. In The Change-Up, two unbearable chumps played by Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds switch souls after pissing in a magical water fountain. As you can see, it doesn’t have to be convoluted, but it should be entertaining, ideally inoffensive and out of the realm of plausibility. We all like a bit of wizardry.
Side bar: Ryan Reynolds has been in six, yes six, body swap movies. I know what you’re thinking: so what? Who wouldn’t want to be inside Ryan Reynolds?
Anyway, it is the fantastical nature of these films, the idea that a body switch of hilarious (and emotional) proportions can happen, that truly works in their favour. These movies don't need to get bogged down in the why of it all. All they need to do is present a scenario where a body switch can happen, and if the performances and story are truthful and engaging, the film will work. But does it help to have a cool reason? Sure.
The characters should want the other person's life
The two people switching places should find something inherently attractive in the other’s existence, that then turns out to be a crock of shit once they switch. The classic parent/child swap ends with the child realising that it’s hard to be a grown up, but accountability is important, and the adult usually learns that they need to loosen up a bit.
Envy is a great motivator, and the bigger the gulf between the characters, the better. Not to further slag off The Change Up, but the main problem with the movie (setting aside the fact that it consistently makes disabled people the joke and Jason Bateman ends up with baby shit in his mouth in the first ninety seconds) is the fact that neither of the characters desire the other’s life. They both seem quite content with the status quo. How are they meant to be introspective and change if they’re indifferent about the other person’s privileges?
Trendy vs. Dork
This one’s a cliché, but like most clichés, it works. Both characters need to be a fish out of water in their new body. In the 2003 remake of Freaky Friday, Jamie Lee Curtis has a ball letting loose on the back of a motorbike with Chad Michael Murray whilst Lindsay Lohan criticises her bandmates’ exposed midriffs and struggles to understand why her best friend from primary school is now a massive dick. As much chaos and raised eyebrows as possible should occur. All as a result of two very different sausages being squeezed into contrasting casings.
Somebody else knows!
This isn’t a staple of all body swaps, but I’m a fan. Obviously, all the fun of the fair comes from mistaken identity, lack of knowledge and from ruining well established relationships with people they care about. However, I like it when someone else is let in on the secret.
Usually, it’s the kid’s best friend, as in Like Father Like Son and Shazam! Age swapping movies commonly utilise this device (17 Again and the aforementioned Big both do this) but I think having someone who recognises the person despite the new body lends a much-needed emotional gravitas. If no one clocks on, I think it makes the body swap seem trivial and inconsequential. Give someone else a stake in the story even if they choose to keep the revelation to themselves.
An awesome montage
I’m a sucker for a montage. In this case, I’d like a montage that involves spending loads of money on the other person’s credit card, eating ice cream, new clothes, a killer soundtrack and I’d like a puppy thrown in too. Because why not? This is all about FUN and showing how FABULOUS it could be to let loose without any consequences. It’s the other person’s life you’re ruining, right?
A big event hinging on a unique talent
Whatever kind of swap it is, there always has to be some sort of event that requires the talent of a character who is in the wrong body. This could be a sports game, or a rock concert, or a wedding, or an important presentation- amongst other things. Whatever it is, it should require everyone being in the correct body in order for it to go off without a hitch, and then, of course, they’re not and all hell breaks loose. But DON’T WORRY- this event will teach our characters empathy and understanding for the other individual.
Crucially, the moment of change when the characters finally get what they both need should be linked to this event, otherwise what the hell are we still watching for?
An emotional (and earned) swap back
Grab your tissues. Everyone knows that eventually the characters will swap back, unless you’re ripping up the entire rulebook. But some returns to normal are more satisfying than others. Your leads will have learned to appreciate and respect what each other has, awwww. But to really stick the landing, there needs to have been a bigger question at play the whole way through. The characters need to change their original beliefs alongside some genuine jeopardy.
In trying to recapture their best years, is your character going to lose the best things that ever happened to them?
What does it take for a mother and daughter to truly understand one another when generations are so polarised in this modern age?
If the grass truly isn't always greener, what can you do when you struggle to love and accept who you are?
You get my point. It’s not enough to have the shits and giggles. I want to be punched in the gut, too.
But are body swaps problematic? It’s very easy for this type of story to cross lines into ableism, racism, transphobia, sexism and homophobia. The comedy inherently arises from the fact these two characters are different, and I believe the best versions of these stories are ones that spring from inherent differences in character, not identity. At their heart, the narratives should be about creating empathy. One of the arenas in which the silver screen shines in, is dropping us effortlessly in other people's shoes and letting us peek behind another pair of eyes. If only temporarily.
Speak soon,
Love Ben x
ONE OTHER THING!
Each time I do one of these, I'll highlight something that might be of interest. This time, I’ve started reading ENTANGLED LIFE by Merlin Sheldrake, which is ‘a mind-altering journey into a spectacular and neglected world, and shows that fungi provide a key to understanding both the planet on which we live, and life itself.’
More on the book here.