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A Scathing Review of the Cheetah Girls | Episode 17
35 Plays5 months ago
The Cheetah Girls is the ultimate tale of friendship, fashion, and following your dreams. A diverse group of besties chase stardom and navigate the ups and downs of life together.
Let's discuss:
– The Cheetah Girls 2 is better
– Diversity of all kinds
– Aqua is ridiculously smart?
– They’re not wearing cheetah spots?!
All that and more in this episode!
The Cheetah Girls is a trilogy starring Raven-Symoné, Adrienne Bailon, Kiely Williams, and Sabrina Bryan, with a soundtrack full of iconic hits like "Cinderella" and "Together We Can." It was released August 15, 2003. You can watch The Cheetah Girls on Disney+!
Welcome to Once Upon A DCOM Podcast where we rave (and sometimes roast) classic DCOMs! We're rewatching every single Disney Channel Original Movie.
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Transcript
Introduction to 'Once Upon a Decom'
00:00:00
Speaker
So, this movie is bad. I'm sorry, what?
00:00:09
Speaker
Welcome, fellow Disney Channel babes, whether you're from the nostalgic 90s or the awkward aughts or you're giving Gen Z. We're glad that you're here. I'm Gabriella. And I'm Natalie. And this is the podcast where we rave and sometimes roast classic Disney Channel original movies. You're listening to Once Upon a Decom.
00:00:29
Speaker
Hello and welcome to Once Upon a Decon, the podcast all about your favorite Disney Channel original movies. If you don't already know us, my name is Natalie and this is my brilliant co-host Gabby. Aw, thanks Natalie. Hi guys. We are two 90s babies reliving the glory days, rewatching all of the Disney Channel original movies, one random selection at a
Initial Impressions: The Cheetah Girls
00:00:51
Speaker
time.
00:00:51
Speaker
Yes, and it has been such a journey already. Can you believe we're almost at the end of season one? I know. Just so you all know, this episode, and then we have one more, and then we're doing a little bit of ah a little bit of some mini-sodes in between, and then we'll see you for season two. Yeah, and we'll get more details on that at the end. All right, so last week, our random selection was pure gold, and we got to watch The Cheetah Girls. Gabby, real quick, what is your one-word review to describe this film? Just one word. Oof.
00:01:21
Speaker
ah I mean, if you listen to the cold open, you already know, uh, bad.
00:01:32
Speaker
Okay, we're gonna glide right over that and move on. All right. Before we dive into the movie recap, let me give you some Cheetalicious stats. Did you like that? Did you like it? That was cute. That was okay. This movie came out in 2003 and was the first Disney Channel original movie musical. And of course it was a musical because fun fact, this was actually produced by the one and only Whitney Houston. Did you know this?
00:01:58
Speaker
I actually learned that when I was doing my research um on Rotten Tomatoes, as somebody had mentioned it. That's just wild. I had no idea. I didn't either. I was like, what are they talking about? Oh, it's real. Yeah. So immediately Cheetah Girls was a massive hit. The movie premiered with 6.5 million viewers and the movie soundtrack made it to the number one spot on both the Billboard's Kids albums and soundtrack charts. And it went double bottom. Wow.
00:02:25
Speaker
And I'm not gonna lie to you, I have no idea what double platinum means, but I'm pretty sure it's i impressive. It sounds impressive. I don't know what it means either, but I've heard it so many times. Yeah, so ah big success
Comparing Films: The Cheetah Girls 1 vs 2
00:02:36
Speaker
right away, right? And the movie led to two sequels, Cheetah Girls 2 and the Cheetah Girls 1 World, both of which everybody has to look forward to us covering on this podcast. Especially me, because I love the second one. The second one may be contributing to why I don't like this one. and I tried to tell listeners back me up. I said in the last episode, Gabby, it's good, but don't compare it to the second one because the second one is better. I tried to tell you- I didn't compare it and I didn't even go in thinking- You did. No. No. No. Listen. I didn't go in intentionally thinking it will be as good as the second one. I literally went in like it won't be as good as the second one, but it was so far below the second one in Caliber that I like- I think just because I knew the second one existed, and because I love that one so much, it just naturally brought this down even lower for me. Well, I'm going to rock your world with the discussion points about why it's such an impactful movie, so just you wait, just you wait. I would love for you to convince me why I'm wrong. I also, I would like to clarify, me thinking it's a bad movie doesn't mean I didn't enjoy watching it. I enjoyed watching it. I had fun.
00:03:47
Speaker
But I think it's a really bad movie. Okay, so we're moving on. Some fun facts about our Cheetah Girl sisters. So originally, Aqua was supposed to have a twin and Tia and Tamara were considered for the roles before they were determined to be ah quote, too sophisticated for the roles.
00:04:06
Speaker
I'm not sure what that means, but it sounds like maybe they thought they were too old. I don't know. Wouldn't that have been so fun? It would have been fun. I do like the dynamic of the four though and how they're each so distinct and unique, and I think it would have taken away from that overall if they had had twin sisters. It would have been interesting, but I like the way they went.
00:04:26
Speaker
I love the way they went. Yeah. My other favorite fact that I definitely pointed out to my mother and sister in the early 2000s is that the Cheetah Girls are all liars because most of the time they're wearing leopard print in this movie and not Cheetah print. Really? Liars.
Plot Recap and Character Backgrounds
00:04:44
Speaker
I choose to believe they didn't even know. like They were just like, oh, animal print. thats Yep, Cheetah, mine. I mean, like most people can't tell the difference, right? so It's whatever.
00:04:53
Speaker
Anywho, let's tap into that growl power and see what our girls got up to in this movie. Yes, here we go. As the movie opens, we are treated to a musical performance by Galleria, Chanel, Aqua, and Dorinda, a musical group of best friends who call themselves the cheetah girls. We later learned that they call themselves this because the cheetah is the fastest and fiercest feline in the jungle. And these girls have got exactly two goals in their lives. One, to win their upcoming school talent show.
00:05:23
Speaker
and two, to become incredibly famous and wealthy due to the success of winning that school talent show. But first, we have to learn a little bit about the girls' personal lives. Galleria comes from a supportive and loving family. She is strong, a talented songwriter, and incredibly focused, but she has a tendency to overwork herself and she often forgets about other important things in her life outside of the cheetah girls like chores and homework. She's very single-minded.
00:05:50
Speaker
Yes. Then we have Chanel, who lives in a loft with her single mother, who is dating some French guy named Luke that Chanel does not seem to like. But what seems to be bothering her the most is that her mom is distracted and often busy with this guy. But despite this, they have a pretty good relationship.
00:06:07
Speaker
Aqua is a down home Texas girl who carries hot sauce in her purse and she only moved to the big city six months ago and she's just a tad high maintenance. She refuses to ride the subway and she loves fashion. She's also a super genius. Oh, is she? I don't remember that point. Well, the reason that she's there is, I don't want to say it if it's wrong, but I'm pretty sure the reason she there is like attend NYU. Oh.
00:06:32
Speaker
Yeah, she's like in college level courses while in high school also, and that's why she's in New York. And she's in this band? Mm-hmm. Maybe I just didn't hear that line. I don't know. Anyways, and finally, we learn that Dorinda, the fourth cheater girl, is always on the move. Her main passion and talent is dancing, and she never really shares much about her family, other than the fact that she has one little sister.
00:06:56
Speaker
The movie takes off after the Cheetah Girls perform their song at the talent show auditions. Their art teacher is impressed, but not as impressed as Jackal Johnson, an incredibly famous music producer who gained his fame after winning this very talent show years prior. Jackal just happened to be secretly sitting in on these high school auditions evidently in search of new talent. A little weird if you ask me. I mean, he's listen, he's a weird guy. He's a weird guy. and it's never really explained why he's there. Anyways, he takes an immediate liking to the cheetah girls and offers for them to call and set up a meeting with his teen, which the girls are obviously elated about this opportunity, but Galleria and Chanel's moms both swoop in and terminate any chance of the girls calling Jackal because ah rightfully so, their mom instincts are going off that this is a bad idea.
00:07:47
Speaker
Galleria spends most of the night fighting with her parents over why they won't let her call Jackal, and Chanel goes home to find out that her mother is considering moving them to Paris to live with her boyfriend, Luke. Chanel calls Galleria to vent about how awful this all is, but in the midst of their call, Galleria's parents interrupt to tell her that they've changed their mind and she can call Jackal Johnson. And this is mainly because Galleria's dad insists that she needs to make her own mistakes and her mom needs to let her.
00:08:13
Speaker
As they lead up to the meeting, Galleria starts to become a little bit controlling of the group, telling them like what they need to wear, how they need to act, and calling herself the founder of the Cheetah Girls. But when Galleria ends up being late to the meeting because of traffic and the unfortunate decision to wear high heels, the girls kind of get a chance to bond with Jackal without her there. To make matters worse, she steps in dog poop in her rush to get to the meeting and brings the smell with her.
00:08:41
Speaker
Chanel helps her clean up in the bathroom, and while they have a moment alone, she reminds Galleria that the Cheetos are four people and they will all have a part in making group decisions. Unfortunately, Galleria hears none of this and continues to act like she owns the group. When Jackal requests that the girls come back to record a demo the following Saturday, Galleria agrees, despite the other girls protesting that that is the same day as the talent show.
Conflict and Resolution in the Cheetah Girls
00:09:04
Speaker
But Galleria decides that recording the demo is more important.
00:09:07
Speaker
She's a big fan of making decisions for the whole group. Yeah, she definitely is a control freak and likes to be in charge. Back at school, Galleria continues getting worse and worse, annoying all of the other students with her overinflated stories and disrespecting their art teacher. like She is horrible.
00:09:26
Speaker
so she Yeah, it's like rude and like to the point where you're like, I'm uncomfortable watching this. Yes, it's terrible. And so at that point, the other three girls begin to express their frustrations with Galleria, but she just completely brushes off all their complaints with all of them in a funk. Chanel goes to visit Durand at home to see how she's doing after what happened.
00:09:48
Speaker
When she arrives, she comes to learn that there's a reason Dorinda never talks about her family. She's been keeping it a secret the whole time, but Dorinda is a foster kid. She lives with 10 other siblings and has no money for new clothes, and Galleria wants them all to get new clothes. At first, Dorinda is mortified, and she breaks down in tears, begging Chanel not to tell her secret because the cheetahs are all that she has, and she's afraid that they're going to kick her out of the group.
00:10:11
Speaker
Chanel reminds her that the Cheetahs love her for who she is and that they all have things that make them diverse and unique and this is just something that she has to deal with and they're all going to be there for her. After this, Chanel tries to talk to Galleria about the group, how frustrated everyone is, and what's been going on with Tyrinda, but once again Galleria ignores all of this and continues to stand by her actions that what she's doing will be best for everyone and they will all thank her once they're famous.
00:10:37
Speaker
Things really come to a head the next day when the cheetahs attend a pitch meeting with Jackal and his marketing team, who have decided to change everything about the cheetahs. They want to change their sound, their name, even make them wear masks and lip-sync. The girls are all uncomfortable with this, but none so much as Galleria, who has the group perform one of their original songs to convince Jackal that they don't need to change. But Jackal stands firm that this is what the label wants, and the girls can either go with it or walk.
00:11:06
Speaker
The Cheetahs have a private meeting in which Aqua finally goes off on Galleria for how she's been acting. Chanel and Dorinda back her up and they tell Galleria that they really can't trust her anymore. In her hurt and frustration, Galleria leaves on her own. The rest of the group tell Jackal that they need some time to think things over. And as they walk out, they see a swarm of other girls that Jackal has ready to replace them with.
00:11:29
Speaker
That night when tensions are highest, Chanel and her mom also get into a fight when Chanel finally expresses how she's been feeling, like overlooked because of Luke. But also after learning what she did about Dorinda's family, she is just happy to have a mom who loves her and it's a really sweet and cathartic scene. And some excellent acting from from that cheetah girl.
00:11:49
Speaker
Yeah, she's phenomenal. I really like that actress. So to wrap things up, you're going to love this ending if you don't know. Galleria is one day out walking her dog, Toto, and Toto runs away from her and somehow gets stuck down a street train. The event rallies the entire New York fire and police departments, and within an hour, she is the top news story of the evening. This is really how the movie goes. Yup, yup. Stuck dog, top story of New York City.
00:12:18
Speaker
That's not even on the main road. like He's off on a sidewalk and and some for some reason this has shut down the entire New York City block. Yes, yes it has. and Traffic is backed up for miles. so Having seen the news story, the rest of the cheetah girls, even though they're angry, rush to help Galleria and Toto.
00:12:38
Speaker
When they arrive, the fireman cannot get Toto out and he claims that the dog needs to willingly crawl back up to where they can reach him. So Galleria and her friends decide that they need to sing because the dog loves to dance to their music and wouldn't you know it, it works. They sing into the steam grate and Toto wiggles and dances and eventually he is saved. Huzzah! And it's beautiful and amazing and there's a music video number and we love it.
00:13:06
Speaker
Oh yeah, I'm getting to the music video number. Sorry, I skipped ahead. No, no, it's okay because they're not they haven't forgiven each other yet. Obviously, they're just saving the dog, right? So as the girls begin to walk their separate ways, Galleria uses the power of song to bring them all back together for one final show, which the media captures and puts on the news. By the end of the song, all the girls are friends again Oh, and by the way, they also win their school talent show, even though they weren't even there.
Themes: Diversity and Female Friendship
00:13:36
Speaker
If you want to know, you have to watch the movie. Oh, and, and, and Galleria makes out with the guy at school who's been bullying her all year, but only because he really super duper likes her. And that is the Cheetah Girls.
00:13:50
Speaker
And then Jackal Johnson calls them and says, hey, I saw you guys on the news and they all give him a piece of their mind. I do really like that they had him admit that he was wrong. Like, I like that he says to his team, like, oh, we really screwed up here. Well, he doesn't say anything. His team is like, you messed up. And he just kind of like nods and he's like, yeah.
00:14:08
Speaker
Yeah, but there's like a recognition like I'm having a steak. For sure. So yeah, how do you feel about it? You love it, right? Do you want me to start or do you want to start? Because I feel like maybe you should end on a positive note.
00:14:23
Speaker
You don't want to open on a positive note? Okay, fine. all I'll open. This movie is incredible. I adore it. I loved this as a kid. I obviously, as everyone in the universe can agree, think Cheetah Girls 2 is better. It is. It's totally better. But Cheetah Girls 1 is the foundation, and that is why I love it.
00:14:45
Speaker
I love it because it is so diverse. I love that it is like culturally and racially diverse. I also love that it's diverse in like upbringing styles and socioeconomically and types of females. I love that it is a story that is like about female friendship and like is genuinely shows the highs and lows of female friendship and doesn't shy away from the fact that girls can fight and get mad at each other and still come back to being such wonderful friends.
00:15:18
Speaker
I love that it talks about like powerful leadership styles and bad like detrimental leadership styles.
Critique and Character Development
00:15:26
Speaker
I love that it has such like incredible moms and dads that show up in this movie and speak so positively into the girls' lives. i just I think it's such a complex and like really, really diversified story that I just adore.
00:15:44
Speaker
Okay, all of that, yes, I agree with you. I feel kind of similar to when we talked about Go Figure and you were like, I agree with all your points and I still just didn't like it. Yeah, I know. I think what this movie has going for it 100% more than anything else is the diversity in all the various ways that you were talking about. That is by far the best part of it for sure. and I agree with you and I stand by that it it is one of the most progressive Disney movies in that way and I think it did it really beautifully and we'll get into that more in the discussion because all the things you brought up I was like yes those are all points I have to talk about later um things I didn't like I for me and I watch Disney Channel movies like all the time and
00:16:29
Speaker
It was a cheese factor level that I could not tolerate. like I felt like the jokes were so bad. They were landing so flat for me. like I was uncomfortable. like The dialogue, the writing, I just thought was really bad. like Just my opinion. Really?
00:16:49
Speaker
I'm not like a screenplay writer. I just feel like the only reason that it even like is what it is, is because of who they chose to act in it. The actors made it memorable, but for me, barely tolerable. Barely tolerable.
00:17:09
Speaker
I would not watch it again. like It made me uncomfortable. The second one is so good and stands on its own. like I needed no further information. I wanted to know the backstory, but with the second one, like I watched it having never seen this and I never went for it. like I just really need to know because it stood alone on its own so well. and I feel like these characters as compared to the second one, and again, I know I watched them out of order. I can't, I get it.
00:17:35
Speaker
like that was wrong. But because I've seen the second one, they are so developed and complex in the second one, like the the girls, the four girls, the four main girls. And in the first one, I feel like they're just so one dimensional. And I don't see any growth in them. Like Raven's character sucks.
00:17:54
Speaker
No one is that mean and her friends come back around that fast. Maybe Chanel because it seems like they have a history or whatever, but like the other two have just been around for like a couple months to a couple years in Galleria's life.
00:18:10
Speaker
I would not go back to that friendship that was that toxic. And so that to me was frustrating that she was as awful as she was and has like really no conviction about it whatsoever at the end. She's just kind of like, oops, sorry. Anyways. And like, they're all just like, cause we got sisters. And I'm like, sisters don't act like that. Like the rest of you were right. And she was horrible. And it was just, so and then I'm like, all the little like,
00:18:37
Speaker
things they said it was just like it was like too I don't know too cringy for me think I think this is where our friendship ends. I think this is it. so Thank you listeners. um I'm signing off. Thank you all for joining us for this season. um and We will be recasting Gabby for the next one, so send in your applications. Recasting. I do all the editing, Natalie. I'm kidding. I love you so much.
00:19:10
Speaker
I love you too. Okay, well, I'm totally open to being proven wrong. So like, let's hash it out. Let's let's fight like tell me why I'm wrong because I'm open to being wrong here. I just personally didn't enjoy it. That's fair. And in like real talk, honestly, it's okay that you didn't enjoy it. I understand. I understand that it's not a perfect movie. I think it was just one of those movies that I really enjoyed as a kid because I loved seeing something that wasn't the DCOM norm. Right. Because like so many of our DCOM specifically in that early 2000s range was a bunch of white people, which granted you and I are both white people. But like, you know, we saw the same thing all the time and there was variations in plot, but not in in character necessarily, not in socioeconomic status, not in like
00:20:08
Speaker
racial status or cultural or anything like that. And this was, I believe, the first DCOM movie that really did that and did it like times four, right? Because all four of them are such different characters from what we've seen in all of the DCOMs before that. That's completely fair. And real quick, before we continue, can we just take a brief pause?
00:20:33
Speaker
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00:21:05
Speaker
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00:21:34
Speaker
And then also I appreciated Galleria's like being a strong woman. I think all four of them are really strong women. I will agree that Galleria sucks a hundred percent, but I still respect the fact that she cares so much. I think at the end of the day, I understand why they're able to forgive her.
00:21:59
Speaker
so quickly because I think they see how much she loves them and how much she cares for them. She just went about it a very wrong way. And she has a lot of work to do and things to unpack in therapy, obviously. But I think at the end of the day, they understand that she didn't mean it in a detrimental way. Does that make sense? But she kind of doesn't care about them at all. Like, that's the thing is she only cares about her vision for getting them famous and she only keeps them around because she needs it to be a group and even when she has the potential to go out on her own she's like fine I'll do it myself like I don't think she does really care about them maybe Chanel like I said because they have a longer history but even her I feel like she's kind of only hears what she wants to hear she only loves them as far as it benefits her and and she just kind of wants to be the puppet master of the group. She likes to be in control and like she cares a lot about the music, which is great, but that's not the same as caring about the people singing the music. like She makes it all about her. It's not just, I'm pushing us too hard because i like that's that is the Galleria of the second movie that I can
00:23:14
Speaker
see where she has a really good point where she's like, we came all the way out here to work our butts off to sing and nobody's singing. Like nobody's working hard with me. I'm bearing the weight alone in this one. They are all willing to carry weight and she won't let them. She's like, no, I'm going to do it myself because it's all about me. And she makes herself like the front cover and they're like her backup singers and she just kind of puts them all in a corner. And I'm like,
00:23:40
Speaker
and Nobody puts the other three cheetah girls in a corner. like What are you doing? I don't know. I didn't see her really give any empathy. When Chanel tells her about Dorinda's situation, she's just like, wow, guess she needs this more than the rest of us. and I was like, awful, awful. Yeah. Listen, girls got to go to therapy. She is very, very selfish.
00:24:03
Speaker
But she's also like 16 years old or even, what is it, they're freshmen, 14, 15? Maybe she's just the most realistic one of all of them because the other three are very emotionally mature and developed, I think. So transition, I think we can both agree Galleria sucks. So who is your favorite cheetah girl and why? Ooh, I mean, I love Chanel. Based only on the first movie.
00:24:29
Speaker
I stand by what I just said. I love Chanel. You don't get a lot of aqua in the first movie. She's kind of just the fourth one there. She's funny and cutesy, but like she doesn't have a lot going on other than that she keeps pushing Chanel to talk to a Galleria, and then when Chanel doesn't, she kind of calls her out. but Then they all agree with her, so it's not even like she really did much. You know what I mean? so Not her. um i'm I'm doing my process of elimination. and And then the other one, Dorinda, whose name sounds like Dorito. Anyways, she has a lot going on. And I want to say Dorito every time. She has a lot going on in this first movie, and I do really like her. I just like to know more. I think she's so nuanced. She's spicy, but not in an annoying way.
00:25:22
Speaker
She has a lot of depth and emotion, and I think she navigates it for a young girl really well. She values friendships so much, and she genuinely cares about each girl individually for who they are.
Character Analysis and Growth
00:25:36
Speaker
She's the one who's like first to forgive Galleria, first to accept Orinda, first to like help Aqua in her journey to being a New Yorker. like I don't know, just her empathy for each individual person and how she handles the situation with her mom. She's angry at her mom and she's like, I need to get this out. I am so mad at you for not paying attention to me. Also, I recognize I would not do well without you and I'm so glad you're in my life. The fact that she can carry that, and I just think she's adorable. She's so pretty, so cute. I just love her. She's so pretty. She's so cute.
00:26:08
Speaker
yeah So she's my favorite. What about you? yeah um As a kid and as an adult, Dorinda has always been my favorite. I adore her. i I think a part of me, I am not a dancer. um it's like not and Not at all. But I have always loved to dance, and so I think that is kind of how it started.
00:26:29
Speaker
But I think also I love her story and how like she Yes, the other cheetah girls are also dealing with things But I feel like it's her story that really makes this like movie like punch you in the face with reality you know And when she has that scene when they're by that chain-link fence, like that lives in my brain and has lived in my brain for ah two decades. I love how real and raw, how that grounds the movie so much. In a musical, it's sometimes like hard for you to be like, this is a realistic movie, but that's one of those moments that hits you and makes it seem real and really makes you love that character like instantaneously. so She's always been my favorite.
00:27:12
Speaker
Right. This also came out before the musicals became like, you're just randomly singing in a cafeteria. like All the songs were in the actual plot. like If they were singing, it was for a reason. There was no just, and now I'm singing to move the plot along. and so That that kind of makes it a little bit more um grounded as well. Because even the second one, that's not the case. like When they're singing strut and everyone knows the choreography in the streets of Barcelona, you're kind of like,
00:27:42
Speaker
Oh, well, okay. Then this is a musical. Whereas in this one, like when they're singing and dancing, it's cause they are singing and dancing. Natalie is lip-syncing. Sorry. I'm singing the song strut. You guys can't see such a good song. Yeah. Anyways, no, she, I do love her. She's my favorite from the second movie. ah So good. She also gets that dreamy man who looks like that guy from American Idol. That's everything I have for discussion. What do you have?
00:28:10
Speaker
I wanted to talk about how family expectations can shape each person's journey, and you especially see that with each of these girls, um the choices that they make and how they handle the situation with Jackal ah based on like where they came from.
00:28:25
Speaker
Yeah, no, I totally, it's an excellent point. Like the way that they were raised affects how each of them respond to the idea of this record label, right? Record deal, record label. What do you, I don't know what you call them. I don't even know. It's like a demo. I think it's neat that because Galleria's parents believe she will be successful, she believes she will be successful. So she's more willing to take risks.
00:28:48
Speaker
and she's more willing to say yes to things and skip the talent show. Whereas Dorinda is incredibly hesitant about both options because she's like, the talent show isn't a guarantee, but it's steady. And this demo isn't steady, but it could potentially guarantee us fame. And then she's got this other offer, which I didn't bring up yet, but that she might get to like get paid to dance. And she really has to like struggle that ah balance of like which one am I supposed to do? Which one's going to be best for me? because she doesn't have a safety net. um And you know, Chanel's mom is absent, so she feels like she has to do everything by herself and take care of everyone. And she wants to do these things so she can be proud of herself and her mom can be proud of her, you know? Right. Oh, that too. Yeah. And I was just going to say her main priority is not even doing a record deal. It's just making sure the group stays together and like loves each other because she's like, we have to stay together because that's kind of how it is with her mom. She's the glue. She's absolutely the glue.
00:29:46
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, for sure. So I don't know. I just thought it was really cool how each of their backgrounds shaped their journey along the way. And that definitely carries through the rest of the series as well. So yeah, I love that. And my last stupid point was why was the boyfriend even in this movie? He contributes literally nothing. He had contributed nothing. Yeah, no. he We agree on this? Yeah. Okay. Useless character. Useless character. His hair was very floppy, but that was the only thing he added. He looks a lot like Angel. And him from the second one?
00:30:16
Speaker
Yeah, I'm like, she has a type, a very specific type. Oh, she for sure has a type. She for sure does. All right, Gabby, tell me about the public's opinion. You are going to be so mad. Don't do this to me. This isn't me. I'm not doing this. Not this time. This is the biggest disparity we have seen yet on the show.
00:30:40
Speaker
All right, everyone, we're going to go to Rotten Tomatoes, our favorite place to hear what the people think and what the critics think. And let me tell you, there's a tomato meter, which we don't always have because there's ah not always enough critics reviews. You have to have at least, I think it's like three or five. Well, this one had eight reviews for the tomato meter.
00:30:59
Speaker
Which is significantly less than the 50,000 plus from the critic erra i'm sorry from the audience. So are you ready for the numbers? You look like you're going to have panic attack, Natalie. I probably am. Tell me. All right. So the tomato meter with its eight critic reviews is 75%.
00:31:19
Speaker
the highest I think we've seen from the critics. Yeah. Okay, so I'm pleased with that. You made me all scared that it was going to be bad. Well, remember what I said, the biggest disparity we've seen between numbers. So that one's high. Okay, okay. Our audience score, 50,000 plus reviews, 49%. Okay.
00:31:41
Speaker
ah First of all, they're wrong. But second of all, that's not as bad as I thought it was gonna be. Okay, I really played it up. So you really you really played it up it I was gonna be like 14% and I was gonna be like Troy Bolton's number. No Well, if I had just come out right away and been like 49% you would have had a reaction right cuz that's shocking I think I yeah, you know, it's a bunch of haters coming in and watching it in 2024 and being like this movies garbage and Oh, but were they? I'm going to read you some reviews. We'll see. First I'm going to read our critics reviews. so I pulled four. They're all positive. It was crazy. The critics loved it.
00:32:22
Speaker
So here we have everyone it okay hold up so did everyone in 2004 or three or whatever this came out 2003 everybody loved this when it came out you all you're all liars if you said you didn't like this movie if you saw it in 2003 we all loved it we ate it up we thought it was great you're all lying you're lying You're watching it now and having opinions, but when you were a child, you loved this movie. I think you should open like a public forum for people to just disparage this film and you fight them on it. I will fight i will physically fight people who say this is a bad movie. That's you, Gabby. Next time we're in the same state, it's going down. Oh gosh, I'm going to have to go on the run.
00:33:05
Speaker
Okay, so, Jomi from The Ringer says, the film made stars out of its cast, especially Raven and Adrien by lawn. Is that how you say that? I have no idea how to say her last name. Anywho, it gave us incredible bops and dare I say, changed the way we dressed in 2003. Cheetah print became popular, or leopard print really, let's be honest.
00:33:28
Speaker
Let's be honest. Then we have Adriana Gomez from the cinema soloist who said, in the long run, the music is more memorable than the movie itself, but it's a pleasant reminder of a simpler past. I'll still bump girl power every now and then. Girl power, girl power. Mm-hmm.
00:33:45
Speaker
Then we have Jacqueline Cutler who said, despite the overly sappy and ridiculous ending, which it was, this is a pleasant way for preteens and teens to spend a Friday evening. The absolute worst that could come of this was viewers may start saying Cheetalicious. The ending was spectacular. I will take no notes. Please move on to the next one.
00:34:04
Speaker
Okay. Laura Fries from Variety says that Cheetah Girls aspires to be a culturally diverse morality lesson disguised as musical fantasy. Instead, oh, there's a negative one I forgot. Instead, it's a diva training film with a plot about as memorable as a Kelly Clarkson picture. I'm sorry, i didn't I didn't trigger warn you on that one. You did not. You did not. I think this plot is very memorable.
00:34:32
Speaker
I don't know. I can recite this word for word, but that's just me. So now here's some audience reviews. These go from good to bad to worse. So just know we're starting at the top. Ready? Okay. You're kind of like the first one. i sir Oh, and none of these have names. I'm sorry, but the audience that gave this a bad score was just grown people that didn't have a childhood.
00:34:58
Speaker
Exactly. Yes. Anonymous, you and I, same person. I get you. Okay. Anonymous part dos. This DCOM is known as a classic and it definitely earns that with its incredibly written characters and presents tension that elevates character growth and narrative, but where it stumbles is in the final act where the conclusion seems to be so simple yet so unearned that in a way it unravels what the whole movie set up. I agree with that person.
00:35:25
Speaker
I can respect an opinion and still think it's wrong. Next. That's fair. It's fun watching old movies from my childhood, but it's awful when some just aren't as great as you remember. Still, the songs made me want to dance. Ha ha. Next. And finally, it was horrible in 2003, but it seems to have gotten even worse today. I don't understand how that's possible since it's the same movie, but it is.
Cast Careers Post-Cheetah Girls
00:35:50
Speaker
Okay. Okay. So where are they now, Natalie?
00:35:53
Speaker
let's just Let's just move on so that your heart rate can come back down. Okay. Calm myself down. Moving on. Okay. All right. All right. I am flustered. All right. I'm so sorry. I feel like this is my fault. I feel like you wanted us to be on the same page against the critics. I wanted us to be on the same page. It's fine. I thought that because you like cheetah girls too, you would change your opinion, but it's fine. It's fine. It's fine. We're feeling spicy today. Okay, we covered our girl Raven Simone who played Galleria in previous episodes. I believe the first one was in Xenon, girl of the 21st century. Quick recap. She's been busy with the that so Raven spin off Raven's home. She got married in 2020. She's an active member and supporter of the LGBTQ plus community, and we love her. Moving on. Is this the third or the fourth one with her? Because she was in xenon? She was Inc. impossible. Was she also in cadet Kelly? No. No.
00:36:46
Speaker
I think this is the third. Okay, cool. And we'll see her two more times at least. Yeah, we see her a few more times. Girl was busy. All right, I should have looked it up. Adrienne, our girl who played Bestie Chanel.
00:37:04
Speaker
After the Cheetah Girls, Adrienne co-hosted the daytime talk show, The Real, from 2013 to 2022, earning a Daytime Emmy Award. Girl's an Emmy winner, did you know? Ooh, didn't know that. Good for her. She also competed on The Masked Singer in 2019 as The Flamingo, finishing in third place. I did know this, because wasn't Raven like a judge or she was another singer or something? Girl, I don't know. I don't watch those shows. I saw TikTok about it. like They were on the show together somehow, and it was like, oh my gosh, it's you. I love that.
00:37:33
Speaker
um In 2002, she joined E! News as a co-anchor, but she stepped down in 2023. She married musician Israel Houghton in Adrienne has been very candid about her experiences with IVF and her whole emotional journey um into motherhood. She faced a lot of fertility challenges and the couple eventually welcomed their son, Ever James, via a surrogate in August 2022.
00:38:02
Speaker
so Oh wow. She finally got there and and she's just like so sweet and honest about her whole journey and her Instagram is popping off y'all so go check her out. She's just stunningly beautiful.
00:38:14
Speaker
All right, who's next? We have Keely Williams who played Texas girl Aqua. She pursued solo music projects and she acted in a few other films after Cheetah Girls. um In 2021, she participated in a reality series called The Encore, which documented nine former R and&B girl group singers as they formed this super group and created an album in just 30 days.
00:38:39
Speaker
Wow. I know. I'd never heard of this. I was like, I want to go watch the show. This is reality TV. It wasn't like a scripted show. Oh, wow. Yeah. um She got married in 2016 and her fellow Cheetah girl, Sabrina Ryan, was one of her bridesmaids, which I think is so cute. Oh, is that the blonde one, Dorinda? Oh, that's Dorinda. And she has two daughters named Rowan and Archer.
00:39:04
Speaker
I love that. These are all making me so happy. Okay, where's Dorinda? Okay, last off, we got Sabrina Bryan, who played my favorite girl, Dorinda. She kept on dancing like we all knew that she would. um She competed on Dancing with the Stars in 2007, and she returned for the All Star season in 2012.
00:39:22
Speaker
Oh, I will be looking that up tonight and all of our dances. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. She appeared on a few television projects since then and has very publicly spoken about how she would love to do a Cheetah Girls reunion with her former co-stars. She is married with two kiddos. I'm going to attempt to say this name. I think it's Camilla. It might be Camilia. Tough to say. And Ledger. um And Gabby. And here's the best part.
00:39:49
Speaker
Something that I just discovered in doing this research. Sabrina hosts a podcast with fellow Disney Channel star Will Friedl of Ron Stoppable Fame. Stop it. Where so where they watch old DCOMs and interview Disney stars.
00:40:04
Speaker
Shut up. Can we connect with them? I know it's called magical rewind. I am so checking that out after our recording because I didn't have time before. I had no idea. I had no idea. Is this connected to the girl from Cadet Kelly slash Even Stevens or is this separate? It's separate.
00:40:22
Speaker
Oh my gosh, we have to look at it. I know, isn't that wild? Well, Friedel is like our favorite voice actor. I know, and I freaking love Sabrina Ryan. I'm so excited. Okay, this is amazing. And so they're just basically doing the same thing we're doing, but they're famous, so it's better. But they're famous, so it's a little different. Also, I don't think they like recap stuff. I think I just talk about the movies and then interview Disney stars.
Podcast Future Plans and Season Finale Announcement
00:40:43
Speaker
Uh-huh. You know what's funny? The recap has become such a significant part of our episodes. And I think they're pretty funny, the recaps that we do, because we make them funny. um But at first that was not our plan. It was just like, we'll do like a three sentence of like what the movie's about. And then it became like, here's an entire synopsis of every scene. And I like it that way. I like it that way too. And you know what? Our listeners that have given us feedback have said that they like it too. So we're not going to stop.
00:41:09
Speaker
It's super fun, and we interject funny comments throughout, so it's a great time. Anyways, we need to check them out. Okay, so exciting. Thank you for sharing that with me. Yes, of course. All right, Gabby, what are we watching next week? For our for our season finale. Oh my gosh, I know, I'm so excited. But before that, real quick, Natalie, could you tell our viewers, we don't have viewers, we have listeners, can you tell our listeners what we're going to be doing in the month of December while we take a short break between seasons?
00:41:37
Speaker
Yeah, for sure. So it'll be a break for us, but not a break for you guys. You're welcome. So we will be doing handful of- You're so generous. I know, we're so generous. Happy Christmas. We will be doing a handful of mini-soads. So like these mini episodes that are gonna be somewhere between like 10 to 15 minutes long. And we're just gonna chat about a couple of things that ah we think you will be interested in.
00:42:02
Speaker
Yeah, and it'll all still be relevant Disney content, so nothing too off-book from what you're used to. It'll be really fun. You'll like it. And around mid-January, we will be back with our regularly scheduled programming. Yes, and I am super excited we're going to tease our first little minisode. Gabby and I are going to be ranking all of the movies that we have seen so far, seeing what's at the cream of the crop and which movies should probably be deleted from our memories forever.
00:42:29
Speaker
Yeah, I'm so excited. I promise to put Cheetah Girls not at the bottom in honor of you, Natalie. Well, I don't want your ranking to be affected by me, but also please don't put them at the bottom. I'll cry. Well, of course it won't be at the bottom. We all know what's going at the bottom, but we'll we'll let you guys um me tune in. You'll see. Okay, what are we watching next week for our finale? For our finale, yes. Okay, so every week we have a randomizer select one of our many, many, many Disney Channel original movies. We're going to be watching them all over the course of this show. The randomizer does not discriminate. It honestly will pick anything from any era, any time. Sometimes we know the movie, sometimes we don't. So let's find out what our finale is going to be. Ready? Yes. So excited. All right. I have a number coming up. Let me see what it is.
00:43:17
Speaker
Oh my word. Okay, okay, with you okay, okay. This is gonna be a fun finale. We're gonna be watching Lemonade Mouth. Yes! This was filmed in Albuquerque, my hometown. Did you know that? Really? Yes. I didn't know that. i I've actually never seen Lemonade Mouth. Have you? Several times. I actually have friends in this movie, fun fact.
00:43:42
Speaker
Oh, you're going to need to talk about them. When we record, you're going to need to tell me about them. I totally will. Okay, cool. Well, I can tell you this is one of my husband's absolute favorites. He has been asking when we will watch this. I know the soundtrack is killer, so I'm very excited. Talk about songs being stuck in your head. This one. Oh yeah. Lemonade mouth will be in your brain for the rest of time. And it has Bridgette Medler. Dr. Bridgette Medler. It's a little teaser for next week.
00:44:10
Speaker
Oh, okay. I'm doing the where are they now next week. So will I actually have someone who's become successful? Oh, yeah. Thank goodness. o Okay, everybody join us for our finale episode lemonade mouth. Go watch it. So excited. Can't wait. See you guys next week. See you next week. Bye.
00:44:31
Speaker
Thank you all so much for listening to this episode of Once Upon a Decom. Like what you just heard? Leave us a rating and review. We'd love to hear your thoughts. Also, follow us on Instagram and TikTok at onceuponadcom.podcast and share this podcast with your Disney-loving friends. A big thanks to Gabby for editing this whole podcast together. Thanks, Brand! And don't forget to subscribe because there's always a new episode on the way. This is Gabriella. And Natalie. Signing off with a sprinkle of pixie dust. And a whole lot of nostalgia.