In 2004, the Lindsay Lohan/Tina Fey teen comedy ‘Mean Girls’ ended up being one of the biggest surprises to arrive in theaters that year. And, to this day, this unexpected hit is still considered a popular teen classic.
And, with the 20th anniversary of the 2004 teen comedy in a few months (and yes 2004 is 20 years ago), a new version of the modern classic has hit the big screen. Only this time, it’s an adaptation of the Broadway musical that’s based on the still popular 2004 movie.
From the comedic mind of Tina Fey (who also wrote the first movie) comes a new twist on ‘Mean Girls.’
New student Cady Heron is welcomed into the top of the social food chain by the elite group of popular girls called “The Plastics,” ruled by the conniving queen bee Regina George and her minions, Gretchen and Karen.
However when Cady makes the major misstep of falling for Regina’s ex-boyfriend Aaron Samuels, she finds herself prey in Regina’s crosshairs.
As Cady sets out to take down the group’s apex predator with the help of her outcast friends Janis and Damian, she must learn how to stay true to herself while navigating the most cutthroat jungle of all: high school.
Over the years, I have heard that the 2004 ‘Mean Girls’ was really entertaining. I never got around to watching it, but will likely give it a shot soon to see how it holds up with this adaptation. This new adaptation of ‘Mean Girls’ is an energetic, fun version that fans of the 2004 movie could really enjoy.
‘Mean Girls’ delivers a good amount of humor scattered throughout that can really give you a good laugh. Some of the laughs come from the new cast of this musical remake. But, Tina Fey, Tim Meadows and Jon Hamm provide a good amount of the laughs. Quick fun fact here: both Tina Fey and Tim Meadows also appeared in the 2004 movie in the same roles they play in this movie.
This ‘Mean Girls’ movie also features some sequences that dives into the experiences of social media, which works for this modern take of the original movie. Another thing that also works for this movie is that this version helps promote messages of kindness and respect for diversity and inclusion.
Since this is an adaptation of the Broadway play, the major (and obvious) difference between the two theatrical movies is that this is a musical. There are a few musical sequences that are really entertaining. A couple songs and musical numbers do have a bit of a campy feel, but I imagine that that is how the Broadway play is (not familiar with the Broadway musical).
Overall, this take on the ‘Mean Girls’ musical is full of energy and features some memorable musical moments. There are some scenes (such as the Halloween party) that fans of the first movie will really like. So, come on down to the theater and check out this remake!
The cast: Angourie Rice as Cady Heron; Renee Rapp as Regina George; Auli’i Cravalho as Janis ‘Imi’ike; Bebe Wood as Gretchen Weiners; Christopher Briney as Aaron Samuels; Jenna Fischer as Ms. Heron; Busy Phillips as Mrs. George; Tina Fey as Ms. Norbury; Tim Meadows as Principal Duvall and Jon Hamm as Coach Park.
‘Mean Girls’ is written by Tina Fey and directed by Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr. This movie is also based on the Broadway musical and the 2002 book ‘Queen Bees and Wannabes’
In 2013, Tina Fey announced that a stage musical adaptation of ‘Mean Girls’ was in the works. The musical premiered in 2017 in Washington D.C., and later transferred to Broadway at the August Wilson Theatre in 2018. This movie adaptation was announced in January 2020 and was initially set for a streaming release on Paramount Plus before it was switched to theatrical after positive test scores.
‘Mean Girls’ is rated PG-13 for sexual material, strong language and teen partying and has a running time of 112 minutes.
And coming up on the review front - The Beekeeper; Anyone But You; I.S.S.l
Comments