The ten realest teenage girls in film

In brief: Janis (Lizzy Caplin) and her BFF Damien aka The Coolest People You’ll Ever Meet are the high school loners who guide Cady (Lindsay Lohan) through her first weeks at North Shore High.

Why we love her: She plots revenge against the popular kids, she gets some of the best lines in the movie - ‘Your mom’s chest hair!’ - and, most of all, her socially-awkward-but-straight-talking attitude is uncomfortably true to life. 

Classic quote: ‘Oh, I love seeing teachers outside of school. It's like seeing a dog walk on its hind legs.’

In brief: Mary (Jena Malone) is a Christian who ends up getting pregnant after sleeping with her closeted boyfriend in a desperate attempt to save him from being gay.

Why we love her: She’s a clever but confused teenager having to make adult decisions, while questioning the world she’s been brought up in. She represents everything growing up is about.

Classic quote: ‘So everything that doesn't fit into some stupid idea of what you think God wants you just try to hide or fix or get rid of? It's just all too much to live up to.’

In brief: Mac (Anna Paquin) is the so-called hero Zach’s self-assured little sister.  While he’s off chatting up nerdy Laney Boggs for a bet, she keeps his moral compass in check.

Why we love her: The female leads of 'She’s All That' are ultimate clichés – the catty popular babe and the nerdy art-dork – but Mac is a sass-queen who doesn’t care about social standing.  It’s thanks to her #realtalk that the movie’s iconic makeover scene isn’t vomit-inducing.

Classic quote: Zach: ‘She kinda blew me off’. Mac: ‘I like her already’.

In brief: Jess (Parminder Nagra) goes against her Sikh parents' wishes and joins a girls' football team. Then she inadvertently falls for Coach Joe.

Why we love her: Jess is an independent teenager with a lot to deal with: the clash between her Sikh Indian and British backgrounds, the prejudices that come with not fitting in with society's gender norms and the childhood scar she’s self conscious of.

Classic quote: ‘Anyone can cook aloo gobi, but who can bend a ball like Beckham?’

In brief: Kat (Julia Stiles) is the meanest girl in school: the ultimate challenge for Patrick (Heath Ledger), who's paid to seduce her. Naturally, he falls at her feet.

Why we love her: With her take-no-prisoners attitude, Kat challenges teachers, her dad, her sister and society. She’s a feminist who’s happy to call out high school bad lads and she dances on tables when Biggie comes on. 

Classic quote: ‘I guess in this society, being male and an asshole makes you worthy of our time.’

In brief: When her high school girls’ football team gets cut, Viola (Amanda Bynes) pretends to be her own twin brother Sebastian so she can join the team at his boarding school.

Why we love her: She’s on the front line in the fight against gender norms, battling her debutante obsessed mum. She’s precocious. She’s a messy eater. And, the scene where ‘Sebastian’ convinces the boys in his dorm that he uses tampons to stop nosebleeds is straight fire.

Classic quote: ‘And when I close my eyes, I see you for who you truly are, which is UUUG-LAY.’

In brief: After lying about losing her virginity, Olive (Emma Stone) is subjected to scurrilous rumours about her sex life. But rather than deny them, Olive chooses to play along and embrace her new sexy image. 

Why we love her: Not only is Olive super smart and funny, she’s loyal to her friends, helping out a closeted gay mate by pretending to have sex with him at a party.  She’s also sex positive – even though she never actually has sex in the film.

Classic quote: ‘All I could think was, "Great, now I'm a tramp! I'll have to get a lower back tattoo and pierce something not on my face."’

In brief: Ruby (Rosario Dawson) goes with her friend Jennie (Chloe Sevigny) to get an STI test after chatting about sex with a group of friends.

Why we love her: Ruby leads her group of friends as they discuss virginity, unprotected sex, oral sex and STIs in an explicit way that’s more associated with teenage boys on screen. Her trying-to-be-a-grown-up attitude towards sex will remind you of late-night sleepover confessions.  

Classic quote: ‘There's a difference between making love, having sex, and then fucking.’

In brief: Elin (Alexandra Dahlstrom) is a bored teenager trying to break out of her small town, whose life changes when she’s dared to kiss the high school nerd.

Why we love her: Did you grow up in a leafy suburb where nothing exciting ever happened? Elin perfectly captures your desperation.  

Classic quote: ‘You know what my nightmare is? That I'll stay in Amal. That I'll never move from here. I'll get kids, a car, a house... all of that. Then my husband will leave for someone younger and I'll be stuck with kids that just scream and nag. It's so fucking meaningless.’

In brief: Sarah Bailey (Robin Tunney) moves to a new Catholic school in LA and hooks up with a group of girls – Bonnie (Neve Campbell), Nancy (Fairuza Balk) and Rochelle (Rachel True) – who are rumoured to be witches.

Why we love them: Okay, we admit the witchcraft part of the movie isn’t all that reflective of the real-life teen experience. But their tight-knit friendship captures all the dynamics of a high school clique: jealousy, power struggles and – above all – alliance against everyone else.

Classic quote: Driver: ‘Watch out for the weirdos, girls’. Nancy: ‘We are the weirdos, mister’.