The remake of “Mean Girls,” which came out Jan. 12, is the latest in the franchise. In 2004, the first “Mean Girls” movie became a cult classic, leading to a 2011 sequel and a 2018 musical. The newest version is a screenplay adaptation of the Broadway show, which combines the original movie with the music from the stage show.
Tina Fey and Tim Meadows provide familiar faces as they reprise their roles as Ms. Norbury and Principal Duvall, characters from the 2004 film. Lindsay Lohan, who starred in the original film, has a small cameo as well. The return of these characters brings back nostalgic memories from the 2004 movie. Reneé Rapp reprises her Broadway role as Regina George in the remake, and she is a showstopper.
Something that they thankfully changed from the original movie’s cast was the amount of diversity. Changing a predominately white cast to a diverse cast full of different races and sexualities makes a world of difference in 2024. The original character Karen Smith, has been renamed Karen Shetty in the new movie and is played by Indian actress Avantika Vandanapu. Hawaiian actress Auli’i Cravalho replaces the white character Janis Ian as well, creating a more racially diverse movie.
Regina George actress Reneé Rapp, who is outwardly bisexual, consistently calls her character “absolutely gay” and “a lesbian,” even saying her character should get together with Janis Ian, a canonically lesbian character in the film. Rapp calling her character queer can make other LGBTQ+ people feel seen.
Viewers may be hesitant to see a movie containing songs that they can just listen to at home. Still, most of the songs and vocals in the movie are better than the recorded Broadway soundtrack versions that are available on music streaming apps. Keyword: most. Angourie Rice, who plays the main character in the film, had many of her character’s songs cut from the film, and for good reason. The remaining songs that Rice sang lacked emotion and technique, causing many people on TikTok to make fun of her voice and compare her to the Broadway version. Thankfully, Rice’s performance was the only one lacking during the film.
Overall, I was very pleased with the film. The only aspect I thought was bad was the lead’s singing abilities. Rice’s mediocre singing was only apparent during a couple songs, and the powerful vocals from the others thankfully overpowered her, so I happily rate this movie 4/5 stars.
