usually when people say something like "they couldn't make [movie] today" they mean it in a reactionary way about how movies should be all be about white men or something. when i say they couldn't make a movie like DEBS today i mean not only does this kind of goofy budget movie not get made anymore but also it is so deeply embedded in the world of 2004 that it simply couldn't come into existence in any other time. the soundtrack! the CASTING! the pre-Marvel primary colored supervillain lair! it may look like a made-for-tv snoozer but even with my biases i genuinely enjoyed watching it. the only recent movie i can compare it to for solid lesbian fun is maybe Bit (2019), which is not romantic but is also just a blast to see.
i barely registered the existence of DEBS when it came out (probably because i was too deep in my "play something horrible and gruesome and Japanese" phase (that i never left)) but i'm glad it exists now and people still watch it. i wish i could see it at a small local theater screening with a bunch of other weirdos.