True romance, “talking” costumes and the best kiss: we remember the cult film “Cruel Intentions”
The film "Cruel Intentions", released in 1999, became one of the iconic youth films of that time and at the same time was radically different from them. This was not a light-hearted romantic comedy like American Pie, but a really disturbing psychological drama, where the words "blood" and "love" rhymed quite well. The film was also remembered for its casting – young but already gaining popularity actors played in it, including Reese Witherspoon, Sarah Michelle Gellar (she already had the popular series Buffy behind her), Selma Blair and Ryan Phillippe. Today we offer to recall this film, as well as learn some interesting facts about the creation of Roger Kumble’s painting.
Ryan Phillips, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Reese Witherspoon
Scene from the 18th century
Plots are like notes, many argue – there are only a limited number of them, and they are mixed and interpreted in new ways.
And the plot of the French epistolary novel Dangerous Liaisons, first published in 1782, can clearly be attributed to stories that excite people of different eras.
It is noteworthy that the book is the only major work of fiction by the French general, inventor and writer Choderlos de Laclos, but this single time was enough for crazy success – the work is called one of the best and most read French novels.
And the plot, built around jealousy, envy, intrigue and love, is still fascinating: it is difficult to pass by such a burning mixture of emotions in any century.
In the original novel, we are talking about an intrigue started by the Marquise de Merteuil in order to take revenge on the former lover of the Comte de Gercourt, who is now going to marry the young Cecile. The marquise asks her friend, the famous heartthrob Vicomte de Valmont, to seduce the girl and thus discredit her in front of the count.
Illustration from a 1796 edition
In an argument with the Marquise, Valmont agrees to seduce an innocent girl, but he himself falls in love with Madame de Tourvel, whom he leaves because of the word given to the Marquise. Soon he will die in a duel with the young Danceny, who fell in love with Cecile. Well, the insidious marquise is also overtaken by punishment – because of smallpox, she loses her beauty and becomes an outcast in society. In a word, evil was defeated and punished.
Already in the 20th century, the novel was filmed several times – Kumble’s film became the fifth film adaptation. By that time, such well-known directors as Milos Forman and Roger Vadim had already shown their version to the audience, and Stephen Frears’ 1988 film with John Malkovich, Uma Thurman, Keanu Reeves and Glenn Close even won three Oscars.
Glenn Close and Uma Thurman. Frame from the film "Dangerous Liaisons", 1988
But Kumble was inspired not by them, but by the black comedy about teenagers “Welcome to the Dollhouse" by Todd Solondz, which was released in 1995. Kumble came up with the idea to transfer the plot of the French novel from the world of adults to school and make teenagers his heroes.
"School" version of the story and casting
Kumble decided to modernize the plot and replaced the earls and marquis with the "golden youth" of New York. His main characters were Sebastian Valmont and his half-sister Katherine Merteuil. The first has fun seducing girls, describing his adventures in a personal diary, Katherine – intrigues.
At some point, a cynical couple (and there is sexual tension between them, and what else) makes a bet: Sebastian must seduce the director’s daughter, Annette, who also stated that she would not sleep with anyone before marriage. If he wins, then his half-sister will also be given to him, but if he loses, he will have to give his Jaguar to his sister.
Kumble wrote the script in 12 days – as soon as the last performance of his play D Girl was played on the stage of the Century City Playhouse in Los Angeles (the star of the series "Friends" David Schwimmer played there), he went to Mexico and plunged into creativity. Since the play was a success, it was an opportune moment to take on a new project – the production was his directorial film debut.
When everything was ready, the leading actors – Ryan Phillippe and Sarah Michelle Geller – were found pretty quickly. They were brought in by producer Neil Moritz, who worked with the cast on I Know What You Did Last Summer. But with the role of Annette there was a hitch.
Studio Columbia Pictures insisted on the candidacy of Katie Holmes, but the director doubted this actress – it seemed to him that she did not have enough strength of character to embody a difficult image. As usual, chance decided the case. Philip, who had already been cast as Sebastian, offered to try his girlfriend, Reese Witherspoon, for the role.
Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe
The three of them went out for lunch, and Kumble ended up on his knees begging Reese to join the team.
Roger later recalled.
Ryan Phillippe and Selma Blair
Well, the role of Cecile – here it was a girl, once already seduced by Valmont – went to actress Selma Blair. She impressed the director immediately at the audition, so he simply could not think about other candidates. By the way, among the "schoolchildren" she was the oldest on the set – at the time of filming she was 26 years old.
But in the end, Kumble changed the finale of his script – already in the process of work, he seemed too gloomy to him, and the film was already quite heavy. He originally wanted Annette to continue blackmailing Katherine into more "violent games", but ultimately decided that this was too much.
The film ends with Annette exposing Katherine’s nefarious personality and driving away in Sebastian’s Jaguar to the hit Bitter Sweet Symphony of ’90s idols The Verve.
Hidden meanings in the costume of heroes
In good films, the costumes of the characters are always not just clothes, but another means of expression. This picture was no exception, where the costume designer was Denise Wingate, who also previously worked on the Melrose Place series. From the first frames, colors are used as a non-verbal way to contrast the characters.
So, the heroine Reese is often dressed in light clothes, while Sebastian is constantly in black. Gravitates to this color and his sister.
In one of the episodes, she is dressed the way heroines are usually dressed up for funeral scenes: in a skirt and jacket suit and a wide-brimmed hat. Considering that this episode unfolded at a picnic in the park among relaxed people resting, the contrast only intensified.
Katherine’s clothing style generally gravitates towards the image of a mature woman, it is worth remembering her power suit – a black trouser suit or corset, which again comes into "conflict" with Cecile’s deliberately teenage, almost childish clothing, like T-shirts with a koala print .
This opposition emphasizes a kind of hierarchy: Katherine clearly acts as an imperious "adult", while Cecile is like a "child" who is being manipulated. But there is a thing in Cecile’s wardrobe with a special meaning – we are talking about a red hoodie.
Denise said.
Katherine’s corset (definitely one of the most memorable outfits in the film), by the way, is also an attempt to connect modernity with the era of the original work: rococo coexists with a Dolce & Gabbana suit.
Katherine’s manipulativeness is also emphasized by the way her clothes change when she specifically wants to pretend to be harmless.
Wingate recalled.
It was also necessary to emphasize that Sebastian is a representative of the "golden youth", comes from a wealthy and privileged family. To do this, Denise used a lot of Prada items in his wardrobe – the brand was then at the peak of popularity.
Well, Annette’s white clothes also played an important role in the climax of the film, when Sebastian accidentally dies.
shared the costume designer.
By the way, it is noteworthy that sexuality in the film is conveyed with virtually no demonstration of nudity: only Ryan had to undress, but the actresses, even in "candid" scenes, are partially, but dressed.
The director noted that he did not need excessive frankness: all the tension was achieved through the play of actors and hints.
Real romance on set
Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe started dating two years before the filming of the film, and a couple of months after the work on the tape was completed, they got married. But, I must say, on the site of their relationship passed a real test of strength.
Ryan Phillippe and Reese Witherspoon
One emotional scene where their characters fought was filmed for four hours.
Ryan admitted.
The actors’ marriage lasted almost ten years – they divorced in 2008, despite the fact that the separation was announced back in 2006. Reese and Ryan have children together: daughter Ava Elizabeth Philippe was born on September 9, 1999, and son Deacon Reese Philippe was born on October 23, 2003.
Ryan Phillippe and Reese Witherspoon in 2006
Reese Witherspoon with children
In 2011, Reese married agent Jim Toth, with whom she became a mother again: in 2012, the couple had a son, Tennessee James Toth.
But Ryan’s personal life after breaking up with Reese looked pretty chaotic. First, he met with actress Abbie Cornish, then model Alexis Knapp became his chosen one. She gave birth to his daughter, but by that time the couple had already broken up.
Phillippe then had a relationship with law student Pauline Slagter, who eventually accused him of stalking and filed a complaint with the police.
Ryan Phillippe and Paulina Slagter
Relations did not work out with the next chosen one? Elsie Hewitt, who accused him of violence in 2017? – as a result, the actor received a restraining order and cannot approach the ex-lover closer than 90 meters.
The legendary kiss between Sarah Michelle Gellar and Selma Blair
Viewers followed not only the game of "cat and mouse" between Sebastian and Annette. Passions boiled between Katherine and Cecile. As a result, it was their kiss that received an award from MTV, and Entertainment Weekly included it in the list of the 100 greatest kisses on the silver screen.
But on the site she was almost sent to marriage, because saliva was visible on the screen, but the situation was saved by the cameraman Theo van de Sand, who was pleased with the filmed material.
Kumble recalled.
Do you consider Cruel Intentions a cult film?