I wish it were better news, team.
I didn’t love Mean Girls BUT I didn’t hate it so … here we are in middle-town, I guess?
There’s basically two audiences for this ‘remake’ of the 2004 version, I reckon. I’m in one of them (people who liked the original and are back for more with a nostalgic lens) and my 16 year old niece who I saw it with is in the other (young kewl people) so I reckon we have this covered for you. There’s a third outlier group whose view I can also bring you - people aged 40+ who haven’t seen the original.
In summary…
Me: As mentioned, didn’t love, didn’t hate - 2.5 stars.
16 year old: Bit the same, liked some elements, didn’t like others - 3.5 stars.
40+ year old woman who hasn’t seen original: Enjoyed it way more than she expected to but had pretty low expectations - 4 stars.
Australian actress Angourie Rice plays the main character and she’s excellent, so that’s something. That kid is going places.
OOOOH IMPORTANT FACT YOU MAY NOT KNOW …. this is a musical! The distribution company seems to have been at pains to conceal this; you certainly wouldn’t know it from the trailer. But if you’re a kewl young gal about town like my niece, of course you know that because you’re all over the talents of the other main actress in the film - the meanie/baddie - Renee Rapp. She sure can sing, and a lot better than Angourie.
Here’s The Guardian giving it three stars, if you want to read a proper review.
Mean Girls is rated PG, runs 112 minutes and is in cinemas now. It’s a ‘wait til it’s on a streaming service’ for me.