Mean Girls (2004)

Director:

Mark Waters

Writers (WGA):

Rosalind Wiseman (book)
Tina Fey (screenplay)

Release Date:

30 April 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Welcome to Girl World.

Plot:

Cady Heron is a hit with The Plastics, the A-list girl clique at her new school, until she makes the mistake of falling for Aaron Samuels, the ex-boyfriend of alpha Plastic Regina George.

Plot Keywords:

High School | Africa | Mathletes | Teenage Girl | Hit By Bus

Awards:

7 wins & 15 nominations

Cast

Lindsay Lohan	...	Cady Heron
Rachel McAdams	...	Regina George
Tina Fey	...	Ms. Norbury
Tim Meadows	...	Mr. Duvall
Amy Poehler	...	Mrs. George
Ana Gasteyer	...	Cady's Mom
Lacey Chabert	...	Gretchen Wieners
Lizzy Caplan	...	Janis Ian
Daniel Franzese	...	Damian
Neil Flynn	...	Cady's Dad
Jonathan Bennett	...	Aaron Samuels
Amanda Seyfried	...	Karen Smith
Rajiv Surendra	...	Kevin Gnapoor
Elana Shilling	...	Spelling Girl
Graham Kartna	...	Homeschooled Boy

Also Known As:

Méchantes ados (Canada: French title)
Queen Bees and Wannabes (USA) (original script title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, language and some teen partying.

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English | German | Vietnamese | Swahili

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Switzerland:12 (canton of Zurich) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Singapore:PG | Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG (TV rating) | USA:TV-14 (TV rating) | South Korea:15 | USA:PG-13 | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Chile:TE | Czech Republic:12 | Finland:K-7 | Germany:6 | India:A | Ireland:12PG | Netherlands:12 | Norway:7 | Peru:PT | Philippines:PG-13 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12A | Germany:12 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Convocation Hall, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Amanda Seyfried, who plays Karen in the film, was initially supposed to play Cady, but producer 'Lorne Michaels' thought she may be better as the "dumb girl".

Goofs:

Errors in geography: When Aaron walks into Cady's room, he sees a picture of a little girl on an elephant. Cady grew up in Africa, yet the photo shows an Asian elephant.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Chip Heron: This is your lunch, OK? I put a dollar in there so you can buy some milk; you can ask one of the big kids where to do that.
Betsy Heron: Do you remember your phone number? I wrote it down for you just in case. Put it in your pocket, I don't want you to lose it. OK? You ready?
Cady: I think so.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Indie Sex: Teens (2007) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Oh Yeah

Queen Bee and Wannabees

Rosalind Wiseman wrote the novel that Tina Fey adapted for the screen. The result, "Mean Girls" is a statement about what it's like to be a student going through high school today. In fact, it presents an ugly side about how school, a place for lasting friendships, camaraderie, and just a place for learning is everything but that, according to what one witnesses. In fact, in order to navigate its cliques and groups, one needs a route map in order not to offend anyone. "Mean Girls" is directed by Mark Waters, who gives it a light touch.

At the center of the story we find Cady, a newly arrived girl who has lived in Africa and has been taught by her parents. Since they are back in the country, they enroll their daughter so she can have the experience of mixing with her peers. Cady, who is a sweet and naive girl unexposed to the real world, finds friendship with a pair of unpopular students, Janis Ian and Damian.

Cady is guided through the ropes by her new friends who suggest to her to penetrate the world of the "Plastic" trio who are the local fashionistas in their school. These young women live to dress for school; instead of studying, the trio has their own set of rules, which totally confuses Cady, who adapts, but she has no feeling for her new acquired friends.

Cady makes the mistake of liking one of the Plastics former boyfriend, the hunky Aaron. When she confesses it to Gretchen, this one tells her that is a no-no according to an unknown code of conduct because Aaron is Regina's former boyfriend, and she is to stay away from him. Cady excels in math, but she decides to play dumb in order to have Aaron like her. That develops into more than friendship until Regina intervenes.

"Mean Girls" will be loved by teen age girls, the audience for which the film is targeted. Lindsay Lohan is immensely appealing as the newly arrived Cady. Rachel McAdams and Lacey Chabert are Regina and Gretchen, respectively. Tina Fey plays one of the teachers in the school who is wrongly accused of being involved in drugs.

The film is fun to watch thanks to the young and talented cast in it.