Ever wanted to wake up in someone else’s body? Hollywood has long had a strange obsession with the body swap genre: the fantasy concept of a person waking up in another person’s body. If you have a pal whose body you’d like to swap – or, more realistically, just go to the movies with – as a MEERKAT MOVIES member you and your friend can enjoy 2 for 1 cinema tickets every Tuesday or Wednesday for a whole year, when you buy insurance or switch energy through comparethemarket.com
Turnabout (1940)
The swappers: Bickering wealthy couple Tim and Sally Willows (John Hubbard and Carole Landis).
The method: A golden Indian idol grants theirs casually-offered wishes.
The lessons learned: Not to take riches for granted, plus some slightly outdated lessons on gender roles.
Hilarious misunderstanding: When the couple swap back, Tim finds himself pregnant, not Sally. Whoops!
Freaky Friday (1976)
The swappers: Ellen Andrews (Barbara Harris) and her daughter Annabel (Jodie Foster).
The method: They both wish the exact same wish, simultaneously. Funny, that.
The lessons learned: A newfound respect for one another.
Hilarious misunderstanding: Ellen returns to her own body while waterskiing, leaving her flailing in the water!
Big (1988)
The swappers: 12-year-old Josh Baskin (David Moscow) overnight changes into a 30-year-old version of himself, now played by Tom Hanks.
The method: Josh makes a wish to an arcade fortune teller machine.
The lessons learned: The trials and tribulations of adulthood; how to play a giant piano.
Hilarious misunderstanding: Josh’s co-worker Susan basically embarks on a romance with a 12-year-old boy, which only gets weirder the more you think about it. Best not to think about it.
Prelude To A Kiss (1992)
The swappers: Dying, elderly man Julius (Sydney Walker) swaps with young, free-spirited graphic designer Rita (Meg Ryan).
The method: Sydney requests a kiss from Rita on her wedding day, and poor Peter Hoskins (Alec Baldwin) finds himself married to an elderly man in Meg Ryan’s body.
The lessons learned: Going beyond the physical and learning about the metaphysical; providing happiness to a grieving old man;
Hilarious misunderstanding: Bit of an awkward honeymoon!
The Hot Chick (2002)
The swappers: Career criminal Clive Maxtone (Rob Schneider) and high school cheerleader Jessica Spencer (Rachel McAdams).
The method: Magic Abyssinian earrings.
The lessons learned: For Jessica, the usual stuff about learning the more important things in life; for Clive, who continues his life of crime, not much.
Hilarious misunderstanding: Rob Schneider is hairy!
Freaky Friday (2003)
The swappers: Mother Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis) and daughter Anna (Lindsay Lohan), in a modern-day remake of the 1976 original.
The method: Fortune cookies, endowed with a body-switching spell.
The lessons learned: Respect for each other's romantic conquests; to always be suspicous of fortune cookies.
Hilarious misunderstanding: Tess finds herself on stage at Anna's gig. But Tess can't play guitar!
13 Going On 30 (2004)
The swappers: 13-year-old Jenna Rink swaps lives with her future 30-year old self (Jennifer Garner).
The method: “Magic wishing dust”.
The lessons learned: That she should really just fall in love with Mark Ruffalo already.
Hilarious misunderstanding: Jenna dances to Michael Jackson’s Thriller. No-one listens to that song any more!
The Change-Up (2011)
The swappers: Old pals Dave (Jason Bateman) and Mitch (Ryan Reynolds).
The method: Urinating into a fountain. Y’know, the usual method.
The lessons learned: Dave learns to chill out a bit; Mitch learns not to chill out so much.
Hilarious misunderstanding: Mitch gets stuck with an ‘I Love Dave’ tattoo!
See all the latest blockbusters every week with 2 for 1 cinema tickets from MEERKAT MOVIES, only when you buy through comparethemarket.com. To find out more about MEERKAT MOVIES and how to become a member click here.