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'Cheetah Girls' loses member, gains diversity in bad TV flick submitted by: Lisa D. source: Akron Beacon Journal (Ohio) Date: August 15, 2003 TV Spotlight By R. D. Heldenfels; Beacon Journal television writer Cheetah Girls fans, don't adjust your sets. The Disney Channel has made some noticeable changes for a TV movie based on the Cheetah Girls books by Deborah Gregory, which premieres at 8 tonight. It shrank the fictional singing group from five members to four and changed one of the characters to a white girl. ''We decided to spread the diversity and including a white character... to make it accessible for everybody,'' Cheetah Girls executive producer Debra Martin Chase said recently. As for shrinking the group, that involved replacing the books' twins with one girl. ''Do you know how hard it was to find two twins even for the covers of the book?'' said Gregory. In any case, Disney has used the characters to put a lot of good messages into a pretty bad movie. The Cheetah Girls involved friends and would-be singers Galleria, Dorinda, Chanel and Aqua, played respectively by Raven, Sabrina Bryan and two thirds of 3LW -- Adrienne Bailon and Kiely Williams. The movie blends musical numbers with a thin story about the girls hoping for a big break from a slimy producer, their friendship being strained as Galleria becomes too bossy and a happy ending. I liked some of the things the movie had to say, including its emphasis on girls' independence and the casting of young women who have noticeable waists and hips. Less encouraging is the obsession with consumer culture (an extension of the books) -- the love of shopping and brand names, and the way Galleria is named after a shopping mall. Seriously. Here's Gregory: ''I had... a great time shopping at the Galleria (in Houston). That's where Galleria's name came from. Because that is the best mall in the world to buy the Gucci shoes.'' And there's the way the movie is, well, bad. The musical numbers are somewhat bearable but the girls' good cheer at times seems forced and over the top, and the occasional dramatic moments repeatedly ring false. And the story is one we've seen over and over again in sitcoms, which at least take less time to tell it than the movie. R.D. Heldenfels writes about television for the Beacon Journal. Contact him at 330-996-3582 or rheldenfels@thebeaconjournal.com Site design by: Dolphin Webpage Designs © 1996-2003