By bringing the Broadway musical to the big screen with starring leads from the musical’s cast, the 2024 “Mean Girls” movie exemplifies a modern, and musical, version of the iconic 2004 film.
Released on January 12, the new “Mean Girls” movie sparked controversy, as it aims to adapt the early 2000s film that many deem a classic American teen comedy.
Starring popular teen actors at the time that many had grown up with, such as Lindsay Lohan and Rachel McAdams, there wasn’t much to dislike about the film, as it represented an exaggerated version of typical teenage drama alongside comedic relief.
In 2018, the film was then brought to Broadway by original writer Tina Fey with original music but the same plotline.
The new adaptation combines both the musical and film into a movie-musical starring Renee Rapp, who plays the role of Regina George on Broadway, and Fey back in her role as Mrs. Norbury from the original film.
While the movie includes many of the iconic songs from the Broadway score, such as “World Burn,” “Revenge Party” and “Someone Gets Hurt,” it leaves out some of the best songs that contribute to the story line, such as “Where Do You Belong” and the full version of “Meet The Plastics,” which is upsetting.
Another musical aspect of the movie that is lacking are the vocals themselves.
While she portrays a great version of the main character Cady Heron, actress Angourie Rice doesn’t perform most of Cady’s songs to their fullest potential and with the power that they had on stage.
Another disappointment is the cut of love interest Aaron Samuels’ parts in songs such as “Someone Gets Hurt,” as Samuels is played by actor Christopher Briney in the film, who is a fan favorite for many, but is not a singer.
Although his portrayal of the character is very accurate and provides that “teenage crush” factor that many were hoping to see, a person with more musical training would have been a better choice for a musical film.
While the music in the movie lacks in these certain areas, the talent cannot be denied from Rapp who returns to play the on-screen version of Regina George, actress Auli’i Cravalho who plays Janis Sarkisian and actor Jaquel Spivey who plays Damian Hubbard.
While all three portray their characters as everybody knows and loves them, they are also able to pull off the musical aspect, singing the most pivotal songs from the Broadway show beautifully.
It is clear that their songs in the movie are supposed to be the significant moments, as the high-level production was evident during their screen time.
The dancing, lighting and set during “Revenge Party” and “Someone Gets Hurt” are visually pleasing and very entertaining to watch.
The new adaptation sticks to the original plot, adds details from the Broadway show, and keeps the most iconic lines that many people still quote today while also modifying some parts to better appeal to teenagers in today’s society.
For example, some suggestive lyrics and lines were cut from the songs and dated lines from the original movie script were cut.
This allows the movie to grow into today’s society while still being relevant.
While some may not agree with these cuts, it is only to be expected from a modern-day adaptation that is trying to morph around an ever-changing society.
Some of these topics in the movie are addressed in a different approach, such as changing some of the quotes in the Burn Book, but these changes do not alter the “Mean Girls” that we know and love.
Nonetheless, although not a direct remake, the adaptation still displays the message and heart of the original.