Crossroads

**Crossroads** is a 2002 American comedy-drama film directed by Tamra Davis.

The film was released on February 15, 2002 by Paramount Pictures & MTV Films.

## Plot

The film centers on three teenage girls (Britney Spears, Taryn Manning & Zoe Saldana) as they take a cross-country road trip, finding themselves and their friendship in the process.

## Cast

* Britney Spears as Lucy Wagner
	+ Jamie Lynn Spears as Young Lucy Wagner
* Zoe Saldana as Kit
	+ Dajine Colon as Young Kit
* Taryn Manning as Mimi
	+ Crystal Milton as Young Mimi
* Anson Mount as Ben
* Dan Aykroyd as Pete Wagner
* Kim Cattrall as Caroline
* Justin Long as Henry
* Richard Voll as Dylan
* Beverly Johnson as Kit's Mother
* Kool Moe Dee as Bar Owner
* David "Gruber" Allen as Bar Patron
* Jesse Camp as Audition Applicant

## Production

In early 2001, Britney Spears said that she had plans to make her film debut. She and her team then created a concept for it which was later developed by creator Shonda Rhimes (who is well-known as the creator of the ABC network series, "Grey's Anatomy").

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."*

On January 19, 2002, a press conference was held during the Marché International du Disque et de l'Edition Musicale (MIDEM) in Cannes, France where Britney Spears also premiered the film.

Filming for "Crossroads" began on March 12, 2001 in New Orleans, Metairie, Baton Rouge, and Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, near Britney Spears' hometown.

Due to the fact that Spears was also recording her third studio album, "Britney" (along with the film's production), filming only wrapped up after six months. Additional scenes were filmed in Los Angeles County, California.

The film had a total budget of $12 million (a relatively low budget by industry standards). According to the Louisiana Film and Video Commission, it was originally titled "What Friends are For."

Britney Spears described it as a teen movie that deals with real issues that normal teenagers live on a daily basis.

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."*

Justin Long (who plays one of Lucy's best friends from high school) thought that "Crossroads" is *"like a road trip buddy movie for girls."*

He also said that he was impressed by Britney 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."*

Anson Mount (who plays Ben) revealed that actor Robert De Niro ran a few of Britney Spears' lines with him while rehearsing for the film. He revealed that De Niro called Spears "a sweet girl" and convinced him to do the film.

Dan Aykroyd created a detailed back-story for his character, Pete and his life in the Navy. He even had a friend draw a Navy tattoo on his arm (which can be seen in the scene where he is working on the car in the garage).

In a 2020 interview for the Los Angeles Times, Kim Cattrall said that she only accepted the role of Lucy's mother, Caroline because she was curious to meet Britney Spears. According to Cattrall, the role of Lucy's mother was originally intended for Madonna.

## Box Office

"Crossroads" grossed $14,527,187 at the box office during its opening weekend. Overall, it grossed $61,141,030 on an estimated budget of $12,000,000.

## Critical Reception

"Crossroads" received mostly negative reviews from critics.

On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an approval rating of 14% based on 104 reviews with an average rating of 3.95\10. The site's consensus reads: *"A cliched and silly pop star vanity project, Crossroads is strictly for Britney fans only."*

Metacritic gave the film a 27 out of 100 based on 31 reviews from critics.

Robert K. Elder of the Chicago Tribune said: *"[[Britney Spears delivers a performance with the same sincerity she invests into a Pepsi commercial, only this film contains twice the sugary calories."*

Writing for the New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzma noted: *"Here's what Crossroads does not have: Cohesive direction from Tamra Davis, intelligent dialogue, a comprehensible plot."*

Maitland McDonagh of TV 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."*

Claudia Puig of USA Today considered "Crossroads" to be *"less a movie than a mind-numbingly dull road trip"*.

The Washington Post reporter Ann Hornaday said: *"Not a music video, not yet a movie, but more like an extended-play advertisement for the Product that is Britney."*

Jane Dark of Village Voice compared Crossroads to Mariah Carey's 2001 film, "Glitter", saying: *"You spend a lot of time wondering, Better or worse than Glitter? You think if the projectionist cranked the volume a little you could actually sort of get into this."*

John Anderson of the Los Angeles Times commented: *"[Britney] Spears acquits herself as well as anyone might, in a movie as contrived and lazy as this one."*

Chris Kaltenbach of The Baltimore Sun said: *"Go see Crossroads if you want to hear Britney sing or see her wear next-to-nothing. But otherwise, avoid this train wreck at all costs."*

Despite the negative feedback, Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave "Crossroads" a positive review, saying that it *"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 desperate Glitter, or any of Mandy Moore's gummy pap in A Walk to Remember."*

Bret Fetzer of Amazon.com also gave the film a positive review, noting that the movie *"could have been trite schmaltz, but the script has some grit and the direction is fresh and relaxed—and, most significantly, Spears is far more sympathetic and engaging than you might expect."*

Jane Crowther of BBC applauded Kim Cattrall and Dan Aykroyd's interactions with the characters, and said that *"[Britney] Spears manages to come across on film as natural, endearing, and extremely likable."*