Movie review: ‘Mean Girls’

It has been 20 years since the release of the original “Mean Girls,” and in that time we have seen a few reimaginings from writer Tina Fey, but do we really need them?

“Mean Girls” (2024) follows the exact same plot – and mostly the same script – that the original 2004 film followed. The only difference being that this new adaptation allows added time to compensate for the dancing and singing. While the choreography and vocals are just as stellar as is to be expected from a musical of this caliber, the film seems to be missing some of the magic that both the original, and the broadway versions have.

While this film still very much deserves its PG-13 rating, it is excessively toned down from its ‘04 counterpart. Almost all of the vulgarity and a majority of the derogatory language has been replaced with a more ‘appropriate’ and ‘politically correct’ vocabulary.

However, this film is, at times, raunchy for the sake of being raunchy. The original film embraces its sexuality in a much more toned-down way, this film does not beat around the bush on sexuality. Between overly flashy costumes and the recurring joke of a character's “body count,” it appears that the directors overdid the sexuality to create controversy where it was not needed. We must remember that these characters are supposed to be high schoolers, not college-aged kids.

The question becomes, ‘is this movie funny?’ And ‘is this movie worth watching?’ While the original film is full of comedy and is funny from all angles, actor Jaquel Spivey – who plays the character of Damien in this new film – carries most of the comedy on his  back for almost the entire film. Without Spivey, this musical remake would have been a flop from the get go.

Outgoing and charismatic, Spivey offers the much needed relief from the film’s overly dramatic teen drama. Although Spivey does a good job at keeping the movie light and funny, it is not enough. We have to remember that this is a comedy movie at its core – musical or not. Without the same comedic pacing as the original, this film can feel a little too heavy for its own weight at times.

In the gymnasium scene for this film, instead of bringing all of the characters together over shared experiences, Janis leaves the auditorium flipping everyone off, saying she would “rather be me than be with you.” Ultimately this detracts from the film's overall theme of coexistence, or at least temporarily distracts the viewer from that theme. With this being the culminating event in both films, the original does a better job of capturing the feeling of togetherness and overwhelming sense that something needs to change. The scene ultimately leads to the inevitable change we see within the main character Cady, and subsequently, every other character. As we learn by the end of the film, everyone just wants to coexist – but this scene takes away from that message.

As always, the final verdict is up to the viewers. Fans of “Mean Girls” will surely enjoy this new adaptation. However – unless this is just something on tv while flipping through free hotel cable – it may not be worth spending the money to go see in theaters – especially considering ticket prices.

We may long for the nostalgia of teen camp movies like 2004’s “Mean Girls,” but we must realize that times have changed and, as such, our cinema must change as well. Was this movie change enough? It feels like they just found young, aspiring actors, musicians and dancers and threw them in a watered down version of the original, and added a pop beat to it before calling it a day.