For most of us the years spent in high school are among the most pivotal in
our lives. It is the bridge between complete dependency on our parents and the
first stirring of adult independence on our own. Most films that consider this
brief but vitally import time quickly descend into a juvenile romp fueled by
sex, drugs and alcohol. One movie of this ilk, ‘Mean Girls’, has risen above the
lamentable pack providing a sharply composed, very well present look at the
social hierarchy of female high school students. I have to admit that this is a
subject that is not colored for me by personal experience. I attended an all
male technical high school that precluded most of the social interactions that
drive the thoughts and actions of teenagers of both genders. As such I approach
film like this with as boy of investigative objectivity treating it like some
research project for a sociology class. As it turns out this methodology is in
line with the approach used by the writer and film maker. This way of looking at
the high school experience is not a new one. I first encountered it in the
hilarious musings of American humorist Jean Shepherd. What makes this possible
is basically a teen in high school is part of a strange and foreign culture that
adults find difficult to comprehend. In ‘Mean Girls’ the look at the socially
politics of high students is laid bare in a darkly amusing story of a girl
representing the ultimate outsider in her attempt to infiltrate the most popular
and influential cliché on campus. For the most part this works exceptionally
well although the story does meander off track towards the end of the third act.
The film is also notable for the couple of the young actresses who have gone on
to garnering a lot more attention in the media. Actually, for two actresses
feature here one was about to experience a great bump in her career while
another who embark on a personal and professional plunge.
The best feature of this film is the incredibly well honed script provided by
Tina Fey. Based on the novel by Rosalind Wiseman Ms Fey has distilled the high
school experience into a story that cuts directly to the meat of the issue; high
school is more than just clichés it is a formalized caste system as rigorously
enforced as any found in history. Fey has established herself as one of her
generation’s best comedy writers. This includes being the first woman to be the
head writer for ‘Saturday Night Live’. No one can doubt her keen sense of dark
humor and satire especially after her wildly popular impersonation of vice
presidential candidate Sarah Palin. She brings that well sharpened eye to bear
with style here. I’m sure most girls encounter mean girls sometime in life, Fey
got even with hers in the best possible way; writing a hit screenplay about
them. Success is the best revenge after all. This was director Mark Waters’
second time helming a picture staring Lindsey Lohan, his first was the remake of
the Disney classic ‘Parent Trap’ co-starring Jamie Lee Curtis. He does extremely
in his pacing of the film keeping the story flowing naturally with random
interruptions that give the impression the tale was being told through the
perspective of a bright but somewhat confused sixteen year old girl.
Cady Heron (Lindsay Lohan) is about to start her first day at school. Unlike
most kids this milestone is occurring while she is sixteen. Her parents are both
research zoologists so Cady is accustomed to being home schooled. As such she is
somewhat bewildered at the social structure of her peers and the almost inherent
lack of trust exhibited by her teachers. Her first day is a disaster with her
making just about every faux pas imaginable. Cady does begin to make some
headway befriending social outsider Janis Ian (Lizzy Caplan) and her gay best
friend Damien (Daniel Franzese) who offers to guide her through the treacherous
waters of high school cliques. At the very top of the order is the elite group
known as the plastics. They are the undisputed royalty of the school. Karen
Smith (Amanda Seyfried) is beautiful but dumb enough to validate every blonde
joke ever written. Gretchen Wieners (Lacey Chabert) comes from the wealthiest
family in town and is the source for gossip. They are only the ladies in
waiting. The true queen is the aptly named Regina George (Rachel McAdams) who is
catered to by teens and adults alike. Janis used to be her best friend but was
left behind in the post puberty social status change. When Regina becomes
curious about the new girl Janis hatches a plan to use Cady to infiltrate the
Plastics and mount a fifth column program of destruction. While the plan shapes
up well Cady not only supplants Regina’s exulted position but she begins to
become as superficial as the former queen bee. Unfortunately this sets up the
story for an overly predictable conclusion complete with the after school
special morality lesson.
The Blu-ray of the film is perfectly done. The 1080p video is so crisp that
you can see the freckles on her face and the shading of her blazing red hair.
This was before the ravages of substance abuse took their toil and a reminder of
how much talent and potential this young woman. Ironically Seyfried got a
featured role in the HBO hit series ‘Big Love’ which helped to launch her film
career. The audio is equally well mastered with a booming sub woofer punctuating
the soundtrack. In all the movie holds up as one of the best of the genre and is
fun to watch with the older kids in your family.
Commentary By Director Mark Waters, Screenplay Writer & Actress Tina Fey, And
Producer Lorne Michaels
3 Featurettes:
- Only The Strong Survive
- The Politics Of Girl World
- Plastic Fashion
Word Vomit (Blooper Reel)
So Fetch - Deleted Scenes With Commentary
3 Interstitals
- Frenemies
- New Girl
- PSA
Theatrical Trailer
Posted 12/14/2010