| Crossroads | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Tamra Davis |
| Screenplay by | Shonda Rhimes |
| Story by | Britney Spears |
| Produced by | Ann Carli |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Eric Alan Edwards |
| Edited by | Melissa Kent |
| Music by | Trevor Jones |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by |
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Release date |
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Running time | 94 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $10–12 million[2][3] |
| Box office | $61.7 million[3] |
Crossroads is a 2002 Americanteenroadcomedy-drama film directed byTamra Davis, from a screenplay byShonda Rhimes. The film starsBritney Spears,Anson Mount,Zoe Saldaña,Taryn Manning,Kim Cattrall, andDan Aykroyd. Set inGeorgia, its plot centers on three teenage girls on a cross-country road trip, as they find themselves and their friendship in the process.
Development began in late 2000 when Spears created a concept that was later expanded by Rhimes. Principal filming began in March 2001, and encompassed over six months.Crossroads was produced byMTV Films and released on February 15, 2002, in North America byParamount Pictures, and was a box office success, grossing $61.7 million worldwide on a $10‒12 million budget. The film received unfavorable reviews from critics, though Spears' performance was praised. Spears's third studio albumBritney (2001) was promoted as the soundtrack to the film, in addition toCrossroads (Music from the Major Motion Picture).
As part of a promotional campaign for Spears' memoirThe Woman in Me, the movie was acquired bySony Music Entertainment (viaRCA Records label, current holders of the formerZomba Recording Corporation /Jive Records' catalogue) who re-released it to theaters on October 23 and 25, 2023, alongside a special edition of the soundtrack.[4][5]
As children growing up in a smallGeorgia town, Lucy, Kit, and Mimi bury a "wish box" and vow to dig it up on the night of their high school graduation. However, as the trio grows up, their friendship fades: Lucy becomes the introverted valedictorian, Kit becomes the most popular girl in school, and Mimi becomes an outcast from the trailer park facingteenage pregnancy.
On the night of graduation, they reunite to dig up the "wish box", remembering their old wishes: Kit wanted to get married, Lucy wanted to find her mother who abandoned her, and Mimi wanted to travel toCalifornia. Lucy and Kit try to convince Mimi, who is five months pregnant, not to go toLos Angeles to audition for a record company. Lucy's secret dream was being a singer like Kit and her father wanted her go to medical school. However, they decide to go with her to Los Angeles the next morning. Kit is going to see her fiancé who is a student atUniversity of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and Lucy is going to find her mother inTucson, Arizona.
Unbeknownst to her overbearing father Pete, Lucy, Kit, and Mimi depart in a yellow 1973Buick Skylark convertible with Mimi's friend Ben. During the trip, the car breaks down inLouisiana and, with little money, Mimi suggests that they sing karaoke at aNew Orleans bar for tips. At the bar, Mimi develops stage fright and is unable to sing. Lucy takes her place and is a hit, and the girls earn enough money to fix the car and continue on their way.
While staying at a motel inAlabama, Kit tells Lucy and Mimi that she heard a rumor about Ben going to jail for killing a guy. Uneasy for most of the trip, the girls finally confront Ben about the rumor, who reveals that he actually went to jail for driving his stepsister across state lines without parental consent because his stepfather was abusing her. Lucy and Ben fall in love with each other, and the girls have their first honest conversation since they were children: Lucy reveals that her mother left her and her father when she was three years old, but believes that her mother wants to see her again. Kit, who was overweight as a child, reveals that her mother sent her to "fat camp" every summer until she reached her goal weight. Mimi mentions that her baby's father is not her ex-boyfriend Kurt, but a man whoraped her at a party, and that she is planning to put her baby up for adoption.
In Tucson, Lucy finds her mother Caroline, who has remarried with two young sons and is unhappy to see her. Caroline reveals that Lucy was anunintended pregnancy and that she wants nothing to do with her, leaving Lucy heartbroken. At the motel, Ben consoles Lucy and impresses her by writing music to a poem she has written during the trip. Lucy then rejoins Kit, Mimi, and Ben, and they reach Los Angeles.
One night, Kit takes Mimi with her to surprise her fiancé Dylan. Alone together in the motel, Lucy loses hervirginity to Ben. Kit and Mimi arrive at Dylan's apartment to find him cheating on Kit with another woman. She then realizes that it was Dylan who raped Mimi, and punches him in the face. While running away, Mimi falls down the stairs and loses her baby. In the hospital, Lucy and Kit console her as she comes to terms with her loss, having decided to keep her baby once they reached Los Angeles.
Lucy calls her father to come take her, Kit, and Mimi back home, and Kit and Mimi tell her that she should go to the audition in Mimi's place. Lucy declines and prepares to leave with them and her father, but realizes that everything she has done has been to please her father instead of herself. Lucy tells her father to let her go, runs to Ben, and they kiss. She, Kit, and Mimi head to the audition with Ben and receive a standing ovation for their performance of her song, "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman". The girls re-bury the "wish box" at a Los Angeles beach, deciding not to make any wishes for the future, but to focus on the present and their friendship.
In early 2001, Spears said that she had plans to make her film debut.[7] She and her team then created a concept for it,[7] which was later developed byGrey's Anatomy creatorShonda Rhimes.[8] Spears commented that she "talked to [Rhimes] and told her what I wanted the movie to be about and she elaborated on it. It was my little project. When you do a movie, I think you have to be really passionate about it. I was having a lot of offers, but this is something my heart was into."[8] A press conference was held during theMarché International du Disque et de l'Edition Musicale (MIDEM) inCannes,France, on January 19, 2002, where Spears also premiered the film.[9]
Filming forCrossroads initiated in March 2001 inNew Orleans,Metairie,Baton Rouge, andTangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, nearSpears' hometown.[10] Due to the fact that Spears was also recordingher third studio album along with the film's production, filming wrapped up after only six months.[10] Additional scenes were filmed inLos Angeles County, California.[10]Crossroads had a total budget of $12 million;[3] a relatively low budget by industry standards.[2] According to the Louisiana Film and Video Commission, the film was originally titledWhat Friends Are For.[2] Spears described it as ateen movie that deals with real issues that normal teenagers live on a daily basis.[11] She continued to explain the film's content, saying that it "is about this journey that the three of us best friends take, finding ourselves and what we want out of life and getting our friendship back. Friends are all you have at the end of the day. When your boyfriend breaks up with you, who do you call? Your girlfriend. I just love that message."[11]
Justin Long, who plays one of Lucy's best friends from high school, thought thatCrossroads is "like a road trip buddy movie for girls."[12] Long also said that he was impressed by Spears' work ethic, commenting that "she could not have been more down to earth. She's the sweetest girl. After 10 minutes, I forgot she was a big pop star."[12]Anson Mount revealed that before he took the role of Ben, he was on the set of the filmCity by the Sea with actorRobert De Niro.[13] De Niro saw Mount with theCrossroads script and encouraged Mount to take the role, running a few of Spears' lines with him.[13][14]
Crossroads was released in the United States on February 15, 2002. On its opening day,Crossroads grossed an estimated $5.2 million in 2,380 theaters, becoming the second highest-grossing film of the day.[15] On the first weekend of its release,Crossroads placed second behindJohn Q., grossing an estimate of $14,527,187.[16][15] By the second week, the film dropped a 52% on tickets sales, ranking at number five at the box office.[15]Crossroads was a moderate financial success, grossing a total $37,191,304 in the United States.[15] Worldwide, the film grossed a total of $61,141,030 until its close day, on May 9, 2002.[15]
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OnRotten Tomatoes, the film has a 15% approval rating based on 103 reviews, with an average rating of 4.10/10, with the consensus: "A cliched and silly pop star vanity project,Crossroads is strictly for Britney fans only."[17]Metacritic, which assigns aweighted average score, gave the film a 27 out of 100 based on 31 reviews from critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.[18] Audiences surveyed byCinemaScore gave the film a grade "B" on scale of A to F.[19]
John Anderson ofLos Angeles Times commented "Spears acquits herself as well as anyone might, in a movie as contrived and lazy as this one".[20] Chris Kaltenbach ofThe Baltimore Sun said, "go seeCrossroads if you want to hear Britney sing or see her wear next-to-nothing. But otherwise, avoid this train wreck at all costs".[21]Lisa Schwarzbaum ofEntertainment Weekly gave the film a positive review, commentingCrossroads "not only makes excellent use of the singer's sweetly coltish acting abilities, but it also promotes a standardized set of sturdy values with none of Mariah Carey's desperateGlitter, or any ofMandy Moore's gummy pap inA Walk to Remember".[22] Jane Crowther ofBBC rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, applauded Cattrall and Aykroyd's interactions with the characters, and said that "Spears manages to come across on film as natural, endearing, and extremely likable".[23]
Robert K. Elder of theChicago Tribune said "Spears delivers a performance with the same sincerity she invests into a Pepsi commercial, only this film contains twice the sugary calories",[24] whileNew York Daily News writer Elizabeth Weitzman noted, "Here's whatCrossroads does not have: Cohesive direction from Tamra Davis, intelligent dialogue, a comprehensible plot".[25]Maitland McDonagh ofTV Guide commented that "the film's mealy-mouthed messages about feminine empowerment will almost certainly fall on deaf ears, since even 11-year-olds know Spears's power resides largely in her taut torso".[26]Claudia Puig ofUSA Today considered it "less a movie than a mind-numbingly dull road trip",[27] whileThe Washington Post reporterAnn Hornaday said, "not a music video, not yet a movie, but more like an extended-play advertisement for the Product that is Britney".[28]
Jane Dark ofVillage Voice comparedCrossroads toMariah Carey'sGlitter, saying, "you spend a lot of time wondering, 'Better or worse thanGlitter?' You think if the projectionist cranked the volume a little you could actually sort of get into this".[29]The film was criticized for not promotingsafe sex, to which Spears responded: "I think by the time my character, Lucy, decides to make love in the film the audience realizes she's responsible enough and hopefully did do that. There was a scene where I took a box of condoms out but they took that scene out because the movie was too long."[30] In 2010,Time named it one of the top 10 worstchick flicks.[31]
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In the years following its release,Crossroads has been reassessed more favorably by several critics and publications. In October 2023,Rolling Stone published an article titled "Britney Spears'Crossroads Is a Lost Classic," highlighting the film's enduring appeal and cultural significance. The piece emphasized the film's themes of female friendship and empowerment, noting that it has gained recognition as a "lost classic" over time. The article also praised Britney Spears's performance, describing her as "absolutely breathtaking to watch," and commended the film for its portrayal of complicated female characters, reflecting early expertise in writing such roles.[32]Writing forTime in 2023, Stephanie Zacharek praised Britney Spears’s performance as “much better than she herself probably thinks it is,” highlighting moments where the singer “comes off as fully relaxed and alive.”[33]Vanity Fair noted that although the film “initially received poor reviews,” it is now “being reevaluated in a more favorable light,” emphasizing its female-driven creative team and themes of friendship and empowerment.[34]Business Insider similarly reported that director Tamra Davis believes the film “deserves a second look,” pointing to how early criticism was shaped by gendered biases in media coverage of Spears and her work.[35] In a 2022 reflection for theCBC, journalist Amil Niazi wrote that she had expected the film to be “a shallow hate-watch,” but was surprised by how “invested [she] found [herself] in the characters” and how much she “rooted for them,” calling it a sincere story of friendship rather than a disposable pop-star vanity project.[36]
In 2021, Pamela Hutchinson wrote a critical reassessment inThe Guardian, noting that prior negative reviews had "recoiled at the film's savvy as a star vehicle – the way it builds up and reinforces Spears's commercial persona, from her virginity to her work ethic." Hutchinson argued "Crossroads was designed to represent what Britney Spears meant to her young fans, a hand to hold through the minefield of growing up. That's why her endearing earnestness shines through every deliberately unironic scene."[37]
| Group | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| MTV Movie Awards[38] | Best Female Breakthrough Performance | Britney Spears | Nominated |
| Best Dressed | Britney Spears | Nominated | |
| Teen Choice Awards[39] | Choice Drama Movie Actress | Britney Spears | Nominated |
| Choice Breakout Movie Actress | Britney Spears | Nominated | |
| Choice Movie Chemistry | Britney Spears andAnson Mount | Nominated | |
| Golden Raspberry Awards[40] | Most Flatulent Teen-Targeted Movie | Crossroads | Nominated |
| Worst Actress | Britney Spears | Won | |
| Worst Director | Tamra Davis | Nominated | |
| Worst Original Song | "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" | Won | |
| Worst Original Song | "Overprotected" | Nominated | |
| Worst Picture | Paramount Home Entertainment | Nominated | |
| Worst Screen Couple | Britney Spears and Anson Mount | Nominated | |
| Worst Screenplay | Shonda Rhimes | Nominated | |
| Stinkers Bad Movie Awards[41] | Worst Actress | Britney Spears | Nominated |
| Worst Original Song | "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" | Nominated | |
| Worst On Screen Couple | Britney Spears and Anson Mount | Nominated | |
| Worst Fake Accent – Male | Dan Aykroyd | Nominated |
Crossroads was released onVHS andDVD on July 23, 2002. It is out of print and has yet to be released as aBlu-ray version, or a DVD re-release.[42]
In October 2023, the film's director, Tamra Davis, confirmed thatSony Music Entertainment had acquired the film's distribution rights back fromParamount Pictures.[43] Later, it was reported thatNetflix had purchased worldwide streaming rights for the film and was made available to watch on February 15, 2024.[44][45]
Crossroads (Music from the Major Motion Picture) features two songs by Spears: akaraoke version of her cover version of "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" and a remix of "Overprotected" byJS16.[46] The release also includes tracks byMystikal,Matthew Sweet,Jars of Clay andBowling for Soup.[46] A new, expanded version of the soundtrack was released in October 2023, which accompanied the film's theatrical rerelease.[47][48]Spears's third studio albumBritney (2001) contains three tracks that were used inCrossroads: "I Love Rock 'n' Roll", "Overprotected", and "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman".[11]Britney was also promoted as the soundtrack to the movie.[49]
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)| Studio albums | |
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