Mean Girls

Mark Waters's 2004 film follows Cady, home-schooled in Africa and now starting high school in America. She learns the school's groups by watching from outside. She works her way in among the popular girls and comes to resemble them. The film gives the hierarchy of adolescence in the language of field research; the narrative makes Cady not a victim but part of the order. Tina Fey wrote the script, drawing on a non-fiction book. Lindsay Lohan and Rachel McAdams lead. Its lines circulated well beyond the film. Who it's for: those who like high school comedy and sharp dialogue. Who it's not for: viewers expecting a serious teen drama; the film puts the humour first.