Congratulations—you’ve lived 20 years since Spice World (1997), the gehl powah-centric Spice Girls vanity film that permanently changed how the public viewed tour buses and what they are capable of.
Looking back on the film, I don’t remember what the LA Times’ David Kronke called, “A movie about four months too late to endure in the pop-culture annals and about four stars too short to be a four-star movie,” or what the Washington Post called, “about as awful and shamelessly pandering as a fanzine movie could dare to be,” or what CNN described as, “What’s the plot?”
I remember a story about a down-to-earth group of feminists, grown weary of the demands of fame and fortune! I remember a madcap romp through 1990s Britain! I remember appearances by Alan Cumming and Meatloaf! I remember a moving onscreen romance (possibly the first!) between a human and extraterrestrial! I remember the line, “Um, blah blah blah, um girl power, feminism, do you know what I mean,” which later went on to become Jezebel.com’s site motto! I remember women named Ginger, Scary, Sporty, Posh, and Baby who weren’t afraid to search for something more meaningful than a platinum record—and that something is lasting female friendship, at least until Ginger ultimately launches her solo career in 1999!
In the video above, we steep ourselves in a pot of nostalgic tea and remember what Spice World, and the girls, meant to us (spoiler alert: it will make you cry).
Producer: Phoebe Bradford
Producer: Anastasia Weeks
Creative Producer: Anders Kapur