Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context YMMV / MeanGirls

Go To

1!!The first film:
2* AdaptationDisplacement: As mentioned on the film's main page, very few people know that this film is based on a ''non-fiction'' self-advice book.
3* {{Adorkable}}:
4** Cady, especially in her early scenes when she's just a cute NaiveNewcomer hanging out with her friends and having poor musical knowledge.
5--->"I love her. She's like a Martian!"
6** Regina's mother takes the cake during the performance of Jingle Bell Rock when, instead of filming the dance like she appeared to be planning, just dances along in the aisle. Very dorky but oh so precious. She even takes a little bow at the end.
7* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
8** A fairly popular belief with fans is that back when Janis and Regina were friends, Janis was the [[AlphaBitch queen bee]] and Regina was the innocent friend (like Cady) who was [[FromNobodyToNightmare slowly evolving]]. Notably when Cady lies and says that there's nothing about Janis in the Burn Book, Janis seems annoyed (perhaps narcissism that the girls aren't even talking about her full stop?) -- and at times Janis seems just as bitchy as Regina and is more of a DirtyCoward to boot.
9** Regina herself appears to care for the other Plastics in her own twisted way. When Jason is two-timing Gretchen, she gets revenge. She gives Cady a makeover and compliments her appearance. And she seems genuinely hurt when her friends turn against her -- especially when she finds out everything Cady did to her. How much of these PetTheDog moments are genuine or for a cheap narcissistic laugh...or [[TakeAThirdOption both]]?
10** Is Regina an ArmouredClosetGay or Bi? It's a popular interpretation that she has feelings for Cady and/or Janis, and is simply projecting her internalized homophobia onto the latter.
11*** Although she seems to have genuine feelings for Shane Oman, she is shown to be very comfortable and close with her female friends. She and Janis ended their friendship because Regina thought Janis was a Lesbian, told everyone, and uninvited her from her pool party allegedly because Janis would make it "awkward". Maybe she was voicing her own feelings? Maybe she was in fact in love with Janis, not the other way round, and felt ashamed?
12*** Regina becomes close with Cady fairly quickly, and doesn't seem keen on Cady dating at all. Maybe Regina hates the idea of Cady being with someone who isn't her? As well as that, Karen (who Regina admits is prettier than herself) has no boyfriend (but is mentioned to be promiscuous) so maybe it's not just Cady Regina wants to keep to herself. Gretchen does have a boyfriend, but then remember, Regina apparently doesn’t think Gretchen is pretty.
13*** There's also the fact that Regina is far more upset upon discovering that Cady betrayed her than she is about Aaron breaking up with her. She has a full-blown VillainousBreakdown when Shane reveals that Cady tricked her into gaining weight. When Regina gets back together with Aaron to snipe Cady, it could be argued that she's dating Aaron again to stop Cady from dating someone else.
14** A lot of people see the girl whose apology is "I don't hate you because you're fat. You're fat because I hate you" as giving a BackhandedApology, but is she? What she said could well be a more sincere apology as in, she is meaning that the other girl has got into [[ComfortFood comfort eating]] in excess because of her horrible bullying, [[WhatHaveIDone which she is now horrified by.]]
15** The Jingle Bell Rock sequence not only provides memorable costumes, but it also reveals a subtle detail about Janis. Damian asks her if she is bothered by the fact that The Plastics still use the choreography she came up with in the talent show every year. This small line may imply that Janis was once a Plastic herself, and it adds an additional layer of explanation as to why Janis is so intent on ruining all of The Plastics, not just Regina.
16** Is Mrs George actually a better mother than she's given credit for? While she does offer Cady alcohol due to a misunderstanding, what she actually says "if you're gonna drink, I'd much rather you do it in the house", meaning that if a teenager is going to drink she's going to make sure it's at least happening in a controlled environment where she could supervise her. And she offers Regina and Shane a condom when they're making out on her bed. Let's face it -- Regina is going to do whatever she wants regardless of whether her parents forbid anything, so at least her mother is trying to get her to have safe sex.
17** Wouldn't Cady's parents have received word that she wasn't at the Spring Fling—even though she wasn't home due to being grounded—because she had to compete with the Mathletes due to it being something assigned to her by Ms. Norbury to avoid failing Math? That would clearly be permitted due to it being for school and not for recreation or leisure, wouldn't it? It would indicate that while they were upset she left the house—and that she'd possibly be in trouble for still going to the Spring Fling ''after'', once they got word of where she actually was, it's also possible they stuck around just to pick her up after the competition too since the next logical step would be Cady coming back to the school after the event was over.
18* {{Applicability}}: According to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4i6b0gtsWeM this character analysis of Regina]] by ''The Take'', Regina George and the social structure of North Shore High is similar to a dictatorship. The movie supports this by having Regina being compared to UsefulNotes/JuliusCaesar (the plot of the film also being remarkably similar to that of [[Theatre/JuliusCaesar the Shakespeare play]]) and having Janis call Regina an "evil dictator" with three key pillars (with academic research to support it): Legitimacy (her boyfriend Aaron Samuels and conventional beauty and physique), Co-Optation/Co-Option (inviting challengers like the sexually attractive Karen, wealthy and gossipy Gretchen, and physically attractive and naïve Cady), and Repression (keeping the Burn Book of secrets and insults about the student body, using Gretchen as her SecretPolice, using swift punishment like the phony Planned Parenthood call, silly rules like wearing pink on Wednesdays). Though most likely a coincidence, the only date mentioned in the movie is October 3rd, which becomes the unofficial Mean Girls Day among the fans, happens to be the mentioned date of the birthday and death day of Cassius, a prominent character in ''Theatre/JuliusCaesar''.
19* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: You'd think Cady falling headfirst into a trash bin in the middle of a busy school hall would inspire some mockery. ''One person'' kind of notices, [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight no one else even bothers to look at her]].
20* CargoShip: One NoodleIncident being "the girl who made out with a hot dog". In the original script she ''masturbated'' with it, but this was dubbed over for the theatrical release (you can still lip-read the original word).
21%%* CharacterPerceptionEvolution: Time has not been kind to Janis, with many viewers finding her to be among the bitchiest characters in the movie. The entire plot is driven by her desire to get revenge on Regina -- including some schemes that involve manipulating Gretchen's very low self-esteem and tricking Regina into gaining weight. It's for this reason, in fact, that a popular fan theory speculates that Janis was Regina's BetaBitch back when the two of them were friends, and was just as mean as her, or that Janis was the AlphaBitch and Regina was a naive girl (like Cady) who gradually evolved into a mean girl, betraying her best friend and getting her unpopular.
22* CommonKnowledge: Pop culture often imagines this as the film about girls' cattiness and back stabbing -- ignoring the context that the film ''deconstructs'' said behavior and the Aesop is that Cady was wrong to backstab Regina in revenge.
23* CrossesTheLineTwice: A father teaching his kids to hate gay people: Horrible. Telling them that God made the Remington bolt action rife specifically to hunt them and dinosaurs: So stupid it's funny.
24* CryForTheDevil: Regina after getting [[spoiler: hit by a bus]]. Despite her being a world class bitch, considering [[spoiler: such an injury would leave her [[AndIMustScream in constant pain and unable to move for months]]]], you'd have to be pretty heartless not to feel at least a ''little'' bad for her.
25* DesignatedVillain: Karen barely even qualifies as a villain, and is really only depicted that way since she's [[GuiltByAssociation one of the plastics]]. And given how unbelievably stupid she is, it's hard to tell if she even had an understanding that she's associated with bad people.
26* EndingFatigue: The movie really loses steam after the massive fight and the following assembly. By the time they get to crowning Cady at the end, you're a lot like Tim Meadows in that you just want it wrapped up already.
27* EnsembleDarkhorse:
28** Damian is very popular for getting some of the best lines (he's the ringleader of the below one for instance) and being a positive portrayal of a gay teenager. Daniel Franzese has even spoken about being approached by many viewers who thanked him for that portrayal.
29** Special mention has to go to Glen Coco. To put this in perspective, he appears on screen for about 4 seconds, the only part of him shown is the back of his head, he does not speak, and we only hear a single line about him:
30--->Glen Coco? Four for you Glen Coco! You go Glen Coco!
31** According to the special features, the Mathletes were the favorite characters of the cast and crew.
32** Mrs. George's obsession with being seen as a "cool mom" has made her fairly popular for a small role. Being played by Creator/AmyPoehler helps.
33* FanPreferredCouple: In both the film and musical adaptation, Cady is in love with Aaron, but most of the fanfics and fanart which centers around her instead pair her with Janis, due to the authors and artists feeling that they have better chemistry. Meanwhile, Janis hooks up with Kevin Gnapoor in the film (the musical removes this plot point), but most fans ship her with Regina, mainly due to the film having multiple scenes in which ​many characters claim Janis has a crush on Regina.
34* FandomRivalry: There's a minor one between fans of this and those of ''{{Film/Heathers}}'', due to the former coming out first and pioneering many of the tropes that this one uses. ''Heathers'' was also a flop on its release and only became a CultClassic later, while ''Mean Girls'' was a mainstream success. Not helping matters was both of them getting musical adaptations around the same time. However, there are plenty of fans who love both.
35* {{Fanon}}: It's an accepted fan theory that Gretchen [[InformedJudaism downplays her Jewish heritage]] in order to better fit in with Regina.
36* FightSceneFailure: During the hallway fight scene, paying close attention reveals that some of the girls aren't really "fighting" and are only batting at each other lightly with their arms.
37* FirstInstallmentWins: The first film is considered a pop culture classic, extremely quotable and a FountainOfMemes. The second is considered a weak effort overall and quickly forgotten. The musical is likewise seen as SoOkayItsAverage at best.
38* FountainOfMemes: Karen is the DumbBlonde of the group, and lots of her lines are instantly quotable ("So if you're from Africa, why are you white?") as are her facial expressions.
39* GeniusBonus:
40** Gretchen's "we should totally just stab Caesar!" speech may just be a history report, but when taken out of context, it sounds like something an actual Roman senator would say about [[UsefulNotes/JuliusCaesar Caesar]]. Furthermore, it's almost a direct line-for-line parody of a monologue from Cassius to Brutus in Creator/WilliamShakespeare's ''Theatre/JuliusCaesar''.
41** Regina's name means "queen" in Latin.
42*** Also, her full name, "Regina George"... King George III, anyone?
43* HarsherInHindsight:
44** Considering that Lindsay Lohan would later fall into heavy life-altering substance addictions, Ms. Norbury sarcastically greeting Cady (Lindsay's character) with "Oh, hi, did you wanna buy some drugs?" in reference to what the latter wrote in the Burn Book is this.
45** The movie follows [[Creator/LindsayLohan Cady]] as she falls in with the wrong crowd and goes from a mild-mannered nice girl into a party-happy temperamental bitch. Lohan's constant arrests and trips to rehab afterwards have led to the [[MemeticMutation widespread idea]] that Regina got the last laugh on Cady in the end. [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mean_girls_xl_05--film-A.jpg This shot]] has become surprisingly prophetic.[[note]]Yes, that is Lohan in the garbage bin.[[/note]]
46** The fact that the film was toned down to PG-13 after Creator/LindsayLohan was cast, due to her being too "family-friendly" to star in an R-rated film at the time. And that Lohan worried that starring in the film as a "mean girl" would hurt her rep. Contest all that with Lohan's public image only a few years later.
47** Betsy Heron is shown to be a down-to-earth, responsible mother who has no problem disciplining her daughter when she's gone too far. Sadly the opposite would be true with Lindsay Lohan's actual mother -- who took her daughter to nightclubs while she was underage, and then used her public breakdown to launch a reality series of her own. She then tried to push her younger daughter into show business as well.
48** Damian being "almost too gay to function" is a lot less funny now when Daniel Franzese revealed in 2018 that he was subjected to severe homophobic bullying from actress Bijou Phillips when they costarred in the 2001 film ''Film/{{Bully}}''.
49** Hearing Mr. Duvall say "I got parents calling me on the phone asking, 'Did someone get shot?'" ends up becoming unsettling to hear due to the increasing publicity given to school shootings.
50* HilariousInHindsight:
51** Regina's "I couldn't have a lesbian at my party..." took on a whole new (and funny) meaning seeing as Creator/LindsayLohan has an ex-girlfriend. There's also Amanda Seyfried dealing with a DepravedBisexual who's also a Regina-like character in ''Film/JennifersBody'', and her being one herself in ''Film/{{Chloe}}''.
52** Regina telling Gretchen that she's never going to make 'fetch' happen. Given the MemeticMutation the movie has undergone -- including that line -- it seems she ''has'' made it happen after all (in at least some form)!
53** The fact that "Karen" has since become a term used in TheNewTens to describe a particular type of [[ObnoxiousEntitledHousewife entitled, upper-middle-class, usually white suburban mom]] who acts like a SchoolyardBullyAllGrownUp is quite hilarious, since Karen Smith in the movie is basically the [[KindHeartedSimpleton complete opposite]] of this stereotypical "Karen". Oddly enough, some people have pointed to this film as the origin of the meme, specifically in the various ways that Regina insults Karen as well as Gretchen's line "Oh, my God, Karen, you can't just ask people why they're white".
54** Gretchen's line "we should totally just ''stab'' Caesar!" -- since Lacey Chabert's next notable role after ''Mean Girls'' was ''Film/BlackChristmas2006'' (in which she'd have to deal with someone doing a lot of stabbing).
55** Lacey Chabert announced she was pregnant with her first child on social media in 2016. She has said that most common responses to her post were, “Will you name the baby Gretchen?” and “Gretchen Wieners finally got some!”
56** A student asks what “marijuana tablets” are when he’s asked if he’s ever been sold “marijuana or ecstasy tablets.” Now that more states have implemented legalization, marijuana coming in multiple forms, including tablets, isn’t uncommon.
57** Remember how, in the movie's denouement, "Regina's spine healed, and her physical therapist taught her to channel all her rage into sports"? Meet the real-life [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regina_George Regina George,]] who competed in track and field at the 2012 Olympics. Oh, and she [[BookEnds grew up in Chicago and moved to Africa]].
58* HollywoodHomely:
59** Creator/LizzyCaplan as Janis Ian. Anybody who's seen her in anything else she's done (especially ''Series/TrueBlood'' and ''Series/MastersOfSex'') knows that [[MsFanservice she is drop-dead gorgeous in real life]]. In fact, she almost didn't get the part, as the casting director [[AbilityOverAppearance thought she was too pretty at first]]. As such the costume designers deliberately gave her an alternative/goth type look, rather than trying to dress her down. Caplan's beauty is probably a contributing factor to the theory that Janis is a former Plastic.
60** {{Downplayed}} with Gretchen, who was originally written as a much homelier character who was only popular because she was rich. This was changed when Creator/LaceyChabert was cast in the role, but the occasional line to this effect still shows up, including Regina straight up saying she isn't pretty, when in actuality, some consider Chabert to be the most gorgeous actress in the film. With that said, it's done in a way where it can be written off more as cattiness than her actually being viewed as unattractive. And in all fairness, Gretchen [[IAmNotPretty being beautiful while fearing others don't think so]] is a scenario [[TruthInTelevision that can and does happen in real life]] (especially since she's Jewish and brunette in comparison to two [[WhiteAngloSaxonProtestant WASP]]y blondes).
61* HollywoodPudgy: Regina's weight gain is almost entirely informed. Wardrobe allegedly stuffed Creator/RachelMcAdams's sweatpants and gave her an oversized hoodie to give her the appearance of having gained weight... but her upper half is swimming in the hoodie, and the pants only appear to be a trifle snug. Presumably it's a mockery of this trope, as Regina is considered fat because she can't fit into a size 5 dress.
62* JerksAreWorseThanVillains: A deliberate example. Regina is the primary antagonist of the movie, but even before she starts showing her sympathetic side, she's beloved for being a quotable LoveToHate MagnificentBastard who is still seen as a pop culture icon to this day. The only person who is not given any sympathy and is universally despised is Coach Carr for preying on his underage students, which, in all fairness, is worse than anything Regina ever did; it's just an extraneous factor that has little effect on the plot.
63* JerkassWoobie:
64** Gretchen is the BetaBitch who frequently gossips about people behind their back and does a lot of backstabbing. But when it's revealed just how much she suffers under Regina's treatment, it's impossible not to feel sorry for her.
65** Janis may have been immature on many levels, however it's hard not to feel bad for her when you learn that she was made into a social pariah, all because Regina [[DeliberateValuesDissonance was homophobic and thought she was a lesbian, therefore ended their friendship in disgust.]] Anyone who has felt like a social pariah for any reason can really understand how painful it was for Janis. And at the point in the movie where she and Cady fall out, although it's hard to see, Janis can be glimpsed starting to cry as the car drives away.
66** Even though Regina brought it on herself, it's possible to feel sorry for her when she sadly says, "These sweatpants are all that fits me right now". This also applies to her after being hit by the bus, being in constant pain and requiring to wear a metal brace for the upper half of her body. Also the fact she's apparently so hated that so people voted Cady to win Spring Fling Queen because they thought she pushed Regina in front of the bus is worthy of sympathy. At least she got some votes too because people felt bad she got hit.
67** Even as Cady dips into bitch territory, it's hard not to feel some sympathy for her, seeing how much she was manipulated and mistreated before. She really hits the pinnacle when even her own ''parents'' think she pushed Regina in front of the bus. Thankfully, she gets better.
68* LesYay:
69** Cady, and to a lesser extent Gretchen's, obsession with Regina and gaining her approval borders on this. Notably, Cady's face when she first sees Regina isn't that different from when she first sees Aaron.
70** Janis is also crazy obsessed with having revenge on Regina. Note that we never get an actual explanation as to why did Regina decide to tell everyone that Janis's a lesbian in 8th Grade. Maybe Regina thinks Janis is a threat to her popularity or Janis is too "uncool" to be around her, but it could be because Janis ''is'' actually a lesbian/bisexual, or that Regina is, in fact, ''projecting''. (Or is it a stealth joke that Regina misunderstood 'Lebanese'?)
71* LGBTFanbase: Ridiculously popular among LGBT audiences. The film is considered a camp classic and is often quoted and referenced in queer circles even to this day. The fact that all three male leads--Creator/JonathanBennett, Creator/DanielFranzese, and Creator/RajivSurendra--have since come out as gay has only further cemented this film's place in queer culture.
72* LoveToHate: Regina George is one of the biggest {{alpha bitch}}es of all time, but the sheer scale she takes this attitude to makes her both a hysterical and genuinely competent villain. Couple that with Creator/RachelMcAdams's performance, and you have the film's most popular character.
73* MemeticBadass:
74** He doesn't get any lines, but he still gets a lot of play on the internet, "Four for you Glen Coco! You go Glen Coco!"
75** Also Regina George for the "How do I begin to explain Regina George?" meme, which makes her something of an in-universe example.
76* MemeticMutation: On Website/{{Facebook}} and Website/{{Tumblr}} (''especially'' Tumblr), there is not a single line from this movie that is not memetastic. Seriously, it's too many to count. [[Memes/MeanGirls So we made a page for it.]]
77* MisaimedFandom: Oddly, this movie seems to be most popular with the same kinds of people that it mercilessly makes fun of. Regina George and her cohorts are considered almost aspirational by some fans of the movie, which is particularly sad considering that the screenplay was based on a book written by an anti-bullying activist.
78* {{Narm}}: For some, [[TitleDrop Janis calling Cady a "mean girl"]] feels too light an insult both as the dramatic end of their argument, and for Janis' character, given she has a repertoire of much harder hitting insults than that.
79* NightmareFuel:
80** There are young boys being raised to believe that gay people should be hunted with Remington bolt action rifles.
81** We notice how a silly rumor based on an offhand comment got Ms. Norbury into serious legal trouble. Thankfully averted when Cady owns up to the rumor, but imagine how this suspicion of drug dealing would have utterly ruined a teacher's career and life.
82** While Ms. Norbury's drug-dealing entry in the Burn Book was false, the one about Coach Carr being involved with two underage students ends up being true.
83** Regina's mom is apparently just fine with giving under-18 year old teenagers alcohol, if they ask her for it. Considering how alcohol consumption has amplified effects on minors...
84*** Granted, seeing that kids would probably get alcohol some way or another, letting them have a bit at a safe place is a wiser decision.
85** The riot itself is this, not helped by Regina's PsychoticSmirk as she watches the chaos unfold in front of her. You see a bunch of girls throwing down with each other over rumors that were photocopied and spread throughout the school. There is also the fairly gentle, meek boy sounding terrified on the phone, calling his mum. Some of the teachers trying to peacefully break them up to get beaten in turn, as seen with Ms. Norbury; meanwhile, the creeps like the coach can't resist a bit of touchy-feely while holding the girls apart, which Principal Duvall notices and has to stop. Later, he says that some parents were worried a ''school shooting'' had happened. Cady herself is aghast at the chaos, praying that it's only a bad dream. It's a good thing this was a work of fiction, otherwise, someone could have gotten badly hurt rather than just having their hair and clothes ruined by the sprinklers.
86* OlderThanTheyThink: The often quoted line "It's like you've got ESPN or something" is a [[{{Malaproper}} malapropism]] probably almost as old as the channel itself.
87* OneSceneWonder: Glenn Coco. Notably, he doesn't actually even do anything in the mere seconds he's onscreen, yet he's still one of the most popular characters, purely because of ''Damian's'' line.
88* OutOfTheGhetto: It's still generally considered a "girls' movie", but it's gotten a generous amount of positive word-of-mouth from men who were pleasantly surprised by it and it's often seen as one of the best comedies to come out of the TurnOfTheMillennium. It doesn't hurt that all three (or four) Plastics are played by VERY attractive actresses who (despite playing high school students) wear skimpy clothing most girls in their 20s go clubbing in. Regina's go-to fashion seems to be a micro mini-skirt.
89* PeripheryDemographic:
90** This movie is popular with a lot of guys, particularly those who had a thing for Lohan back in the day and are nostalgic for her pre-trainwreck career or are fans of [=McAdams=], Seyfried or Chabert and are curious about their early careers. Naturally, it's also heavily related to TestosteroneBrigade as listed below. And, of course, there's the fact that great comedy transcends all boundaries.
91** People that work with teenage girls, such as middle/high school faculty, find this movie very comical and a little too close to home.
92** And even a few SNL aficionados by way of Creator/TinaFey. ''Still'' very much related to Testosterone Brigade in this case.
93* PopularityPolynomial: ''Mean Girls'' was moderately successful when it first came out before fading into obscurity. Its popularity suddenly exploded in TheNewTens into [[MemeticMutation one of the most quoted movies ever]].
94* RetroactiveRecognition:
95** Before voicing [[WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy Meg Griffin]], Creator/LaceyChabert played Gretchen Wieners.
96** The jock Shane Oman is played by Diego Klattenhoff, who currently has a main cast role as FBI Agent Donald Ressler in ''Series/TheBlacklist''.
97* SugarWiki/SheReallyCanAct: A retroactive example. While she was seen as a talented up and comer before this film and was praised for her performance at the time, Creator/LindsayLohan's disastrous public image completely {{overshadowed|ByControversy}} any ability she had as a performer. Now that she's mostly dropped out of the spotlight though, many viewers look back on her strong, promising work here and lament that her career went so wrong.
98* SignatureLine: "On Wednesdays we wear pink".
99* SpiritualSuccessor:
100** Many people considered this as the closest adaptation for a female version of ''Literature/LordOfTheFlies'' -- minus the island and the pigs. It's also drawn [[https://culturacolectiva.com/movies/mean-girls-gretchen-weiners-shakespeare-julius-caesar direct comparisons]] to Creator/WilliamShakespeare's ''Theatre/JuliusCaesar'', complete with Gretchen rewriting a piece of dialogue from that play for her English paper.
101** This movie has been called a [[LighterAndSofter PG-13 version]] of ''Film/{{Heathers}}'', and not without justification. Also, the writer of ''Heathers'' and the director of ''Mean Girls'' are brothers.
102* StrawmanHasAPoint:
103** Cady at one point post FaceHeelTurn snaps at Janis, reminding her that it's her own fault things turned out this way -- since the plan to take down Regina was entirely her idea.
104--->"You're the one that made me like this so you could use me for your eighth grade revenge!"
105** And ironically in that same scene, it's one of the few times Janis is somewhat in the right; Cady turned down Janis's art show because of her trip to Madison with her parents. She got out of the trip to have the party and didn't invite Janis or Damian, giving them good reason to feel snubbed.
106* TestosteroneBrigade: While written by [[Creator/TinaFey a woman]] and marketed heavily to teen girls, it was released at the height of Creator/{{Lindsay Lohan}}'s [[HollywoodHypeMachine "it girl"]] popularity, and features Lohan and a number of other sexy young actress in provocative dress throughout. Lots of men went to see it for the hot high school chicks. Creator/BellaThorne, when promoting ''Film/TheDuff'' on Creator/TheBBC's Radio 1, even invoked this when trying to persuade the DJ's producer (a man) to see ''Mean Girls''[[note]]That's right, she was promoting a different movie -- luckily Paramount and CBS Films, which made ''The DUFF'', are part of the same corporate family[[/note]], pointing out its brilliance and adding "Plus it's [[Creator/LindsayLohan got]] [[Creator/RachelMcAdams four]] [[Creator/LaceyChabert hot]] [[Creator/AmandaSeyfried girls]]!"
107* UnintentionalPeriodPiece:
108** It's telling that, in a DeconstructiveParody of high school cattiness and how even nice people get caught up in it, cyberbullying is never mentioned once, despite it becoming a hot topic by the end of the decade. Gretchen's cell phone (which only shows up in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_K4L9K8oUZ8 one scene]]) is a [[TechnologyMarchesOn then-cutting-edge]] flip phone that's [[StatusCellPhone used to demonstrate how rich she is]], the characters interact with and spread rumors about each other almost entirely through "low-tech" means (such as the "Burn Book", which is a physical, pen-and-paper journal as opposed to a private webpage or online group), and a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLjMbaMazbs "three-way calling attack"]] could only work in a time when landline phones were commonplace. In the early-mid '00s, even teenagers were just starting to get used to the internet and cell phones being omnipresent forces in their lives as opposed to novelties -- Website/{{Myspace}} had been launched just nine months before the film was released, and had yet to really take off -- and this film's portrayal of technology marks it as a clear product of that immediate pre-UsefulNotes/WebTwoPointOh time.
109** The showcasing of [[AlphaBitch Regina George]] and her family's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEQV2OJVBx4 materialistic life]], while meant to show [[StepfordSmiler how empty and hollow her life truly was]] even in 2004, also marks the film as having been made before the Great Recession, at a time when [[ConspicuousConsumption flaunting immense wealth]] was in style. While the scene of Regina's little sister shaking her booty to trashy pop-RAndB still resonates in the age of Music/MileyCyrus and twerking (and the fact that said sister is named [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kylie_Jenner Kylie]] is HilariousInHindsight), the fact that she's shaking it to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGL2rytTraA "Milkshake" by Kelis]] definitely doesn't (''Forever Young Adult'' even [[http://foreveryoungadult.com/2014/11/13/a-highly-scientific-analysis-of-mean-girls/ called the film]] a "2004 musical time capsule" in their retrospective). Regina's mom is also shown wearing 'youthful' clothes in an attempt to be hip... which, in 2004, meant garish Juicy Couture sweatpants and tracksuits that, [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools in hindsight]], make her look [[AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents even more pathetic]].
110* UnintentionallySympathetic:
111** It's meant to be a low moment for Cady when she doesn't own up to her crimes at the assembly. However, some viewers find it quite reasonable that Cady wouldn't want to admit writing something in the Burn Book in front of the entire school -- especially since that would lead to her getting blamed for it all, and probably blow the whistle on Gretchen and Karen too involuntarily.
112** Gretchen's ending feels a bit too mean-spirited given she essentially just moves into another group to play the same position as before, one she was miserable in, which is PlayedForLaughs.
113** As discussed under the ValuesDissonance entry, Regina's mom can come off as much less of a pathetic push-over than she's meant to be seen as if the audience lives in a country with a different drinking culture than the U.S.
114* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic:
115** Janis. She is just as manipulative as Regina (if not more so), encouraging Cady to make friends with the Plastics (and sabotage them) in the first place, then taunting her by revealing her manipulations in front of the entire school (throwing Cady under the bus in the process), and gets cheered for it. Even before that, she would pressure Cady to do things she was clearly uncomfortable with, like skip class or spy on the Plastics, for her own amusement. She also [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking deliberately mispronounces Cady's name]] for no apparent reason other than the fact that [[ItsAllAboutMe she prefers saying it that way]]. This, combined with her HollywoodHomely appearance, has only fueled some fans' theories that Janis is herself a [[FallenPrincess former]] AlphaBitch.
116*** Janis is also extremely manipulative in her TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Regina, where she exposes the plan to destroy her. She attributes most of the light-hearted stuff to herself, and the nasty stuff to Cady. Particularly she says that Cady "made out with her boyfriend and convinced him to break up with her" -- conveniently leaving out that Regina was in fact cheating on Aaron, and Cady merely told him this. Their kiss was also accidental, rather than a tactical move by Cady. Thus this speech can look less like an empowering moment, and Janis once again getting petty revenge on a friend who wronged her, while also avoiding any comeuppance for her own actions.
117* UnconvincinglyUnpopularCharacter: Janis Ian. She's good-looking, smart, and funny, but her reputation was destroyed by a rumor and she now willingly embraces outsiderdom. The producers were actually reluctant to cast Lizzy Caplan as Janis because they thought she was too pretty for the role but settled by giving her a goth/alternative look that would explain the popular girls avoiding her.
118* ValuesDissonance:
119** The line where Regina's mother says Cady can have alcohol in the house is meant to be another example of how under Regina's thumb she is. In Europe, particularly the UK and Ireland, underage drinking is not quite as big a deal. Several parents allow their teenagers to have little amounts of alcohol at home -- so as not to have them going mad when out with friends (which in turn also makes Mrs. George's line "if you're going to drink I'd much rather you do it in the house" come off as more responsible than her parenting is meant to be). What's more is that the drinking age there is either 18 or sometimes even 16 instead of 21, so giving alcohol to a 16-year-old isn't as big a deal. Plus, given that Cady grew up outside the US and the parenting lifestyle her parents had, and it's unknown what the laws wherever they live in Africa about minors and alcohol are, the parental irresponsibility is more about Mrs. George not having parental jurisdiction nor parental permission of allowing Cady, a minor she does not know, to have alcohol rather than underage drinking.
120** The portrayal of Janis and Damian illustrates how attitudes towards LGBT people among teenagers were evolving in the early-mid '00s. Regina suspecting that Janis is a lesbian was enough to get her to kick Janis out of her social circle and spread rumors about her sexuality, leading to her present outcast status, while the Plastics list Janis in the Burn Book as a "dyke" and Damian as "too gay to function". This sort of casual homophobia on their part was shown as a sign of their AlphaBitch tendencies even in 2004, but characters with such tendencies from the 2010s onwards would be portrayed as downright bigoted rather than merely callous, given that nowadays, homophobia is seen by teenagers as roughly on a par with racism. It illustrates how, while tolerance of LGBT people was growing, full equality and acceptance was still a ways away (this was the year when Massachusetts became the first US state to legalize same-sex marriage, an occasion that sparked controversy and [[MediaScaremongering moral panic]]), and being gay, or even MistakenForGay, could make somebody an outcast. This is partially acknowledged in the musical adaption. Whereas in the film Regina makes it clear that Janis wasn't invited to her party during middle school because of her alleged homosexuality, in the musical she ''pretends'' it's just because she was only allowed to invite six people.
121** Regina casually using the word "retarded" as an insult in various occasions. While it ''is'' being said by a villain, the fact that nobody bats an eye over what's now regarded as an offensive slur doesn't fly well with modern audiences.
122** Ms. Norbury saying that girls calling each other sluts and whores opens the door for guys to call them sluts and whores. The idea that a girl being called a slut would ever be her own fault, as well as the idea that girls should base their behavior solely on how guys will respond, falls into the “outdated” category.
123* ValuesResonance: Damian, being a confident and out and proud young gay man definitely has aged well. Daniel Franzese even said years later that he had many LGBT teenagers coming up to him and thanking him for his portrayal -- as Damian gave them a positive role model.
124* VanillaProtagonist: Cady. She starts out as an easygoing and friendly girl-next-door type. Her main trait, her social awkwardness, is due to her being home-schooled, not because she's "naturally" dorky. She quickly grows out of it and blends easily with both cliques, the Plastics and the artsy weirdos. The cast otherwise consists of more over-the-top characters: LargeHam AlphaBitch Regina, stereotypical DumbBlonde Karen, ProfessionalButtKisser Gretchen, CampGay Damian, and the rebellious outcast SnarkKnight Janis.
125* WatchItForTheMeme: Get in loser, we're going to watch the source of this meme.
126* TheWoobie: Karen has her moments in a lot of scenes, where she seems to be the ButtMonkey of the Plastics, and Regina outright insults her many times. Not to mention that when she's told Regina called her a slut, she looks incredibly offended. She and Gretchen also think Cady is their friend when she's just using them for revenge.
127
128!!The musical:
129* AccidentalAesop: "Someone Gets Hurt" is mostly a {{Fanservice}}-laden seduction song by Regina towards Aaron, but it can also be read as a cautionary tale about abusive relationships, in particular those featuring emotional abuse and {{Gaslighting}}.
130* {{Anvilicious}}: Karen's part of "Stop" has stop singing and [[BreakingTheFourthWall address the audience directly]] to tell them that the boy who leaked her nude should be blamed, not her circa age 13.
131-->'''Karen:''' Stop, 'cause I'm actually a human being and not a prop! ''(spoken, to the audience)'' Maybe we should just... teach boys not to do that!
132* AwardSnub: The musical was nominated for ''twelve'' Tony Awards, but won ''none''. This tied the record for most nominations with no wins.
133* BrokenBase: Whether or not the musical is a strong adaptation. Some think the LighterAndSofter feel works well adapting it into a musical, others believe this version lacks the wit and bite that made the original a classic. Also extends to the score, with one side calling it charming and catchy, and the other saying it's generic and messy.
134* BestKnownForTheFanservice: Expect a lot of people to know about the musical from Kyle Selig's repeated {{Shirtless Scene}}s, Taylor Louderman being dressed as a Playboy Bunny during "Someone Gets Hurt", and the frequent sequences where the cast are dressed in {{Sexy Whatever Outfit}}s.
135* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: Karen's part in "Stop" mentioned above. This moment isn't hinted at beforehand or mentioned again afterwards, and the dark lyrics do not match up with an otherwise upbeat song or the lighter tone of the musical in general.
136* CrossesTheLineTwice: This little gem from "Sexy". All of it.
137-->'''Karen:''' I can be a sexy doctor, and cure some sexy cancer!\
138...\
139'''Karen:''' I can ''sexy'' cure some cancer!\
140...\
141'''Karen:''' I can cure ''sex cancer!''\
142'''Gretchen:''' Sex cancer doesn't exist.\
143'''Karen:''' ......''I DID IT!''
144* CrossoverShip: Regina and Heather Chandler together have a rather sizable fanbase, likely due to their similar personalities and both their statuses as the AlphaBitch.
145* FandomRivalry: With ''Theatre/{{Heathers}}'', due to many ''Heathers'' fans writing off ''Mean Girls'' as just an attempt at [[FollowTheLeader aping the former's popularity]] as a CultClassic. It varies between different fan groups on how affectionate or meanspirited the rivalry is, to be fair.
146* FriendlyFandoms: With ''Theatre/LegallyBlondeTheMusical'', thanks in large part to both having the same lyricist Nell Benjamin.
147* HilariousInHindsight: The comparisons to ''Film/{{Heathers}}'' that the film gets become this after Barrett Wilbert Weed (aka [[Theatre/{{Heathers}} the musical's original Veronica Sawyer]]) got cast as Janis for the musical's first run.
148* ImprovedSecondAttempt:
149** In the movie, Janis lost Regina's friendship when Regina publicly called her a lesbian, but by the end she's implied to be dating Kevin. [[ValuesDissonance In recent years,]] some people find this unfair because it implies [[MistakenForGay being called a lesbian]] is the greatest insult of all. The musical, however, doesn't confirm Janis one way or the other, and adds a different layer to Janis's humiliation, so [[AmbiguousSituation it could still very well be about Janis being angry that Regina outed her.]]
150** The musical also removes any of the Asian stereotyping from the film, and Gretchen's original actress Ashley Park, is of Korean descent (thereby diversifying the cast). The film also catches some flak for saying that [[AfricaIsACountry Cady just grew up in Africa]], and the musical clarifies that it was Kenya.
151* LesYay: The musical increases the Gretchen/Regina subtext. "What's Wrong With Me?" is about their toxic friendship, but it could become a song about an abusive romantic relationship without changing a single word.
152* LGBTFanbase: The show has a notable sapphic following, with probably the most popular ship in the fandom being Regina/Cady due to the fervent amount of both LesYay between the two.
153* QuestionableCasting: Fans of the show, and Broadway in general, had this reaction towards internet celebrity Cameron Dallas being cast as a replacement in the role of Aaron Samuels, after he received middling reviews. Especially after a video was leaked of him, in which he appeared to be sleep walking through his performance and his listless singing was downright flat-with some of Aaron's lyrics even being deleted due to reports that Dallas couldn't reach the notes-to the point laughter could be heard from the audience in the middle of his song, led to many theatre vlogs discussing the dangers and possible harm of StuntCasting, and a sense of outrage that far more qualified musical actors had been passed over.
154* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: The harder-hitting and edgier humor of the original film is generally downplayed and replaced with a lighter tone to several fans' disappointment. Likewise, Regina's meanness is almost entirely an InformedFlaw with the LighterAndSofter tone, arguably missing the whole ''point'' of the original film.

Top