#BTColumn – Dissecting two teen movies

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by this author are their own and do not represent the official position of the Barbados Today.

by Jade Gibbons

Mean Girls (2004) by Mark Waters was the teen girl movie for Millennials. It told the story of an outsider coming into the American high school system and learning to navigate the ‘jungle’ of adolescence. The character of focus is Cady played by Lindsay Lohan.

The film begins with a voiceover which establishes the character and deconstructs a stereotype. In the sequence that shows Cady entering the school, the non-diegetic sound emphasises how out of place she is in the environment.

The lyrics to the song go: “She’s so dumb; rip her to shreds.” Additionally, the lunch scene highlights how harsh this new environment has been to Cady as she sits in the toilet and eats lunch by herself. No one has been kind to her. This foregrounds in the audience’s mind the alienation Cady must be feeling.

Eventually, Cady is shown kindness by two fringe characters, Janice and Damian. These two characters do not belong to any of the established cliches and float on the outside of the social hierarchy.

The extent to which these two do not belong comes into full focus in the second lunch scene. In this scene, Janice breaks down the various social groups of the very stratified lunchroom. It is in this scene that Cady has her first interaction with ‘The Plastics’.

When Cady is being accosted by a male character who preys on her foreignness by asking her question laced with a sexual innuendo, Regina George, the queen of The Plastics, saves her. Here we see that the fringe characters are not the only ones capable of kindness; so are the ones at the top of the social hierarchy.

As the narrative progresses, a plot is hatched by Janice to exploit Cady’s physical appearance, pleasant nature, and desperation for friends to get revenge on Regina for something that occurred in middle school. The irony of this situation is that inasmuch as Janice condemns The Plastics for being “mean girls” she is no different.

It is Janice who teaches Cady how to be mean and fake. It is Janice who teaches Cady how to lie and manipulate. When Janice is bitten by the meanness she has bred in Cady, Cady lashes out: “You are the one who made me like this.” Here, we see that The Plastics are not the only ones capable of meanness; so are the fringe characters.

Tall Girl (2019), by Nzingha Stewart, in my opinion, is the Gen Z equivalent of Mean Girls. It tells the story of a fringe character trying to find her place. The character of focus is Jodi played by Ava Michelle.

The film begins with Jodi in the library reading “A Confederacy of Dunces”. A boy is across from her reading the same book. The shots of the two establish a spatial relation between them, which indicates that they are equal. The costumes and shot size emphasize this. Jodi looks at the boy, making him look at her. Yet, she can’t believe that he’d notice her. The dialogue between them is the first indication that they are not equal.

As they talk about the book, Jodi has to explain that it is about alienation. She has to pull him up to her level. When she stands, we see a high-angle shot of the boy which establishes a new spatial relation in terms of height.

The cut to a low angle on Jodi reinforces the difference. The boy leaves and in the wide shot that succeeds his departure the camera pulls away from Jodi establishing her alienation.

The following sequence showcases the root cause of Jodi’s insecurities, i.e., her father and his worries. This sequence highlights that Jodi’s father is willing to destroy her future
(with infertility) to make her normal (stunt her growth). Of importance to note is that unlike Cady in Mean Girls, Jodi is not an outsider.

Jodi belongs to this environment. She has friends who value her for who she is and are trying to help her navigate the environment. She also comes from a family who understands the environment and each member, in their own peculiar way, is trying to help her.

When we see Jodi with her family, we notice that she has a beautiful sister and a beautiful mother, and that Jodi too is beautiful. When we see Jodi at school, we notice that she dresses the same way as all the ‘beautiful’ people. The only thing that makes her different is her height.

As the narrative progresses, an outsider enters the environment – a foreign exchange student from Sweden. This outsider, Stig, is a tall boy who makes Jodi feel normal because “to him [she is] not a tall girl. To him [she is] just a girl.” Jodi decides to pursue him.

Ironically, in her pursuit of a perceived equal (Stig), Jodi ignores the fact that she already had an equal (Jack). Jodi’s actions result in social chaos, and in the chaos one thing becomes apparent. The only person who ever saw Jodi as a freak was Jodi. The pretty girl (Kymmie) always just saw Jodi as competition. This is highlighted by the hot guy’s perspective on her: “Just a girl… a beautiful girl.” And emphasised by the jock’s perspective on her: “She’s the same amount of ugly.”

Jade Gibbons is an arts and business graduate with a keen interest in social issues and film-making.