Mean Girls (Feature Film)

Bibliographic Information

Waters, M. (Director), & Michaels, L. (2004). Mean Girls [Feature Film]. USA: Paramount Pictures.

Plot Summary

Cady is new to public school. Raised in Africa, she braves the wilds of high school to discover that the hierarchy isn't too much different than the savannah, only a little more intentionally cruel. When she befriends two outcasts, Janis and Damien, they encourage her to join and spy on The Plastics, the school's most exclusive clique of girls. They wear designer clothes, date the hottest boys, and raise backstabbing and gossip to an art form. When Regina George, leader of The Plastics, goes after the boy Cady likes, Janis, Damien, and Cady enact a plan to end Regina's reign of terror. But can Cady defeat the seemingly all-powerful Regina? And most importantly, can she put the plan into action without becoming the kind of girl she's trying to destroy?

Review

This is a great movie about girl-to-girl bullying. Gossiping, starting rumors, and name-calling are all commonplace behavior for Regina and her group. The movie was made before Facebook, but it's easy to imagine the film's infamous Burn Book being made digital in today's world. Girls of all ages will resonate with the agony of being bullied by queen bees and the temptation to fight back using the same dirty techniques.