Lohan was given the lead in two films, Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (her first feature that was not a remake) and Paramount's Mean Girls, both released in 2004. Drama Queen was a moderate success at the box office, grossing about US$30 million, but was a failure with critics. "Though still a promising star," Robert K. Elder wrote, "Lohan will have to do a little penance before she's forgiven for Confessions." That "penance" came with Mean Girls, her first PG-13 (and first non-Disney) film; her breakout lead performance pushed the critical and commercial hit to grosses of over US$86 million domestically and US$128 million worldwide, "cementing her status as the new teen movie queen," wrote Brandon Gray. "Lohan dazzles us once more," said Steve Rhodes. "The smartly written script is a perfect match for her intelligent brand of comedy."
|