Reese Witherspoon Actually Helped Write Cruel Intentions

Reese Witherspoon Actually Helped Write Cruel Intentions

Teen movies are a very unique genre, and can vary greatly in quality from movie to movie. While some are over the top comedies and rom-coms, others take on decidedly more adult content. Just take 1999's Cruel Intentions, which saw its young cast manipulating and seducing each other. That movie became an instant classic, with dialogue still quotable today, fantastic cast, and a killer soundtrack to boot.

The Cruel Intentions cast and crew are currently celebrating the whopping 20th anniversary of the beloved cult classic. As such, some new information is coming out about the teen drama, and the behind-the-scenes scoops that moviegoers haven't been privy to. Just take the role of Annette Hargrove, played masterfully by Reese Witherspoon. As it turns out, she helped to craft the character, and even re-write the dialogue. As director/writer Roger Kumble recently revealed:

It’s true, she came and sat with me for a week, and we worked on the dialogue together. Annette was the character most removed from me. There’s no way the movie would have its success if it weren’t for [Reese’s] talent as a writer.

Well, this is impressive. Reese Witherspoon may have only been 22 years old at the time of filming, but that didn't stop the young actress from contributing greatly to the Cruel Intentions. This includes adjusting Annette's dialogue to ensure both the audience and Witherspoon herself identified with the character.

Roger Kumble's comment to EW show what a talent Reese Witherspoon has always been, and seems to tease her eventual role as a producer. The Oscar winner knows storytelling, and her point of view has been brought to the forefront with the various project she's produced-- in addition to her work on camera. She was a producer on movies like Gone Girl and Hot Pursuit, although her influence is perhaps best seen through the highly successful HBO series Big Little Lies.

Playing the movie's ingenue isn't always easy. It's easy for an innocent and virtuous character to fade into the background, or be overshadowed by the bigger characters. Reese Witherspoon combatted this by working on the script, and giving Annette Hargrove her own agency in Cruel Intentions. Annette is sharp, funny, and empathetic. And she wasn't going to take any of Sebastian's typical crap.

Ultimately Annette changes arguably as much as Sebastian throughout the course of the movie. Her naivety is destroyed by Sebastian's sudden death, and she honors her late lover's memory by exposing Sarah Michelle Gellar's Kathryn for who she really was. Cue "Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve. Also cue my tears as a teenager watching Cruel Intentions for the first time.

Cruel Intentions is celebrating its 20th anniversary. You can join the festivities yourself, and stream Cruel Intentions when it arrives on Netflix April 1st. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Watching Rocketman Makes Elton John’s Husband Want To ‘Give Him A Hug’

Watching Rocketman Makes Elton John’s Husband Want To ‘Give Him A Hug’

Biopics can be a difficult business. Real life stories can often be the most satisfying, but it isn't always easy when it comes to dealing with the rougher elements of somebody's life. Elton John very much lived a rock and roll life and as such has many of those darker elements in his past. For John Furnish, Elton John's husband, it was especially difficult for him to be on set when the new movie Rocketman was filming some of those rough moments, as he saw the man he loved going through a very tough time. According to Furnish...

Elton John is somebody that I think I know incredibly well, but then also it’s like watching a film about somebody you don’t know at all. The Elton in all that madness is not the Elton I know. At times, he’s a bit of a monster and also, deeply unhappy. That’s hard. Many times as I watched the film, I wanted to go and give him a hug, like I could help him. I thought, ‘God, you’ve been through a lot.’

Elton John and John Furnish have been together for 26 years according to Variety, but that means that the events of Rocketman all, or at least largely, take place prior to Furnish having met the singer/songwriter. One can only imagine how unusual it must be to see the person you love at a time before you knew them. In most cases that person might be largely unrecognizable.

Based on the trailer for Rocketman we see that the film will deal with the way that the singer lived life to excess in the days of his early success. Furnish admits that Elton John is a "monster" to some degree here. Of course, he doesn't see that person now.

From John Furnish's comments one gets the distinct impression that the version of Elton John's story we're going to get in Rocketman is fairly true to life. It's been difficult to tell just how much of the film will be a true biopic and how much will simply be an Elton John rock opera. The movie itself refers to the production as a fantasy, implying the events won't necessarily be based on reality, but perhaps that's not quite the case.

Rocketman comes on the heels of Bohemian Rhapsody, which was partially directed by Dexter Fletcher who also helmed Rocketman. It was a fun time with lots of great music but it told a story that failed to add any depth to it's characters or story. It feels like Rocketman is largely going to take the same approach, but maybe these elements being mentioned here are an indication that there will be a little something more.

We'll find out for certain when Taron Egerton plays Elton John in Rocketman beginning May 31.

The Biggest Challenges To Bringing Rocketman To The Big Screen

The Biggest Challenges To Bringing Rocketman To The Big Screen

A lot of footage was shown at CinemaCon this year, including but not limited to a Hobbs & Shaw trailer and the first 17 minutes of Toy Story 4. Among that footage was another glimpse at Rocketman, the upcoming Elton John biopic starring Taron Edgerton and led by Dexter Fletcher, who did reshoots on Bohemian Rhapsody recently. When asked at CinemaCon 2019 what the toughest part of bringing a real-life person like Elton John to light on the big screen, Fletcher revealed the musical numbers were often the hardest bits.

It’s not just the musicality that was tough but also getting Elton John right in 141 minutes. Dexter Fletcher said:

Well, Elton’s known for his spectacle and his theatricality and so bringing the music to the big screen was a challenge but also exciting. His fans love him and his music so much that I wanted to be sure they got an honest and truthful portrayal of this man; it’s extremely important to us and to him.

Onstage at CinemaCon 2019 as part of Paramount Pictures’ panel, Taron Egerton joined director Dexter Fletcher onstage, whereupon he was also asked what was the most difficult thing to manage while making Rocketman. Per Egerton:

I think probably managing the pressure. We always felt that we wanted to be irreverent with the role and make sure the audience feels like it’s getting a glimpse behind closed doors, a glimpse behind the scene, and you know a glimpse at the life of a man who’s had a notoriously turbulent time. But we also felt like it was very important to make fans happy and make him likeable. We wanted to tell a raw human story but it’s also so important the movie is fun and a celebration of a great man.

That’s a lot to juggle and it’s not always easy to juggle, as we’ve seen with other musical biopics. First and foremost, directors have to service the story they are telling, which is why last year’s Bohemian Rhapsody changed the timeline narrative a bit. Yet, when that happened people were upset about factual inaccuracies in the movie and how it ultimately played out.

So far, Rocketman has already been in the press for allegedly editing down Elton John’s sex life, as well as nudity related to that sex life. Dexter Fletcher has already addressed the rumors, but it just goes to show that people want a movie that tells the truth but that is also a lot of fun. It’s not an easy feat to achieve.

Luckily, it sounds as if Taron Egerton at least got the spirit of Elton John right. Although the actor mentioned the singer has been pretty “hands off” throughout the whole Rocketman experience, Dexter Fletcher had nothing but praise for the younger actor, who also does his own singing in the movie.

Anything with Taron in it is my favorite. There are many, many great, standout numbers that I’m extremely proud of. We’re all proud of “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting” is quite extraordinary, “Rocketman” as you know you saw Taron singing on his back at the bottom of a 15 meter tank is something to behold. They’re both very different and both filled with vibrancy and energy.

If you’ve seen the trailer for Rocketman, you should have some idea of what you are getting into with the new movie, which is out on May 31.

In the extended footage we saw at CinemaCon shown on a large screen in Las Vegas, Rocketman looks even bolder and bigger than in the early trailers. If you’ve been a fan of recent musical biopics, this one might even blow those away. It may be my most highly anticipated movie this spring (and yes I’m including Endgame but obviously tastes differ). To see what Rocketman is competing with, take a look at our full movies schedule.

12 Classic Marvel Scenes We Now Feel Differently About Thanks To Avengers: Endgame

12 Classic Marvel Scenes We Now Feel Differently About Thanks To Avengers: Endgame

Avengers: Endgame really had us geeking out all while tugging on our heartstrings for three hours straight. There’s a good reason why the movie is called the culmination of the MCU thus far: it includes a LOT of callbacks to the past movies, even including literal visits as the heroes completed their time heist. There’s perhaps no better way to provide fan service then to reward the audience for seeing all 22 of the other Marvel epics, and that’s just what Endgame does.

What’s especially exciting is how fun it’s going to be to go back to previous MCU movies and find the relevance and new weight some of the scenes hold now that they’ve been used in another context in the satisfying conclusion. So let’s travel back to the beginnings of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and see what key scenes we’ll never look at the same again now that Endgame exists.

That Up There… That’s The Endgame

It is crazy to imagine that just a few months ago we were theorizing about Avengers 4 titles, and it ended up being right under our noses in Age of Ultron. The scene has a special significance now because of Tony calling the mysteries in the sky their “endgame,” which he created Ultron at the time to fight off and Captain America saying they can take anything down together. Tony throws the line back at Steve in the beginning of Endgame when he’s distraught about their dire situation, and now every time we see this Ultron scene, it’ll have an extra special connection.

No More Surprises

Among the many memorable scenes in Infinity War, this quick one between Tony and Pepper before the action begins seemed a bit random. Now we know that it was foreshadowing for their future life in Endgame. Tony says he had a dream that they had a child together and named it after her eccentric uncle, Morgan. In Endgame, five years later, that’s exactly where we find the Iron Man couple. The scene may play a little sad for fans now as we see Tony promise his girl that all the “surprises” are over and it’s time for them to settle down, give that we know how it ends.

I Want Another

When we meet back up with Thor in Endgame, we see an unexpected transformation. He’s packed on a lot of weight, he drinks a lot of beer and plays Fortnite with his friends from Ragnarok. How did he let himself go? And why is Thor now the most hilarious Avenger? This early scene of the hero eating breakfast and smashing coffee mugs in demand of “another” shows that this characterization has been made the entire time. He’s prone to being excessive when not in check and he’ll be tested by this in Endgame.

Avengers Take Down Loki in Stark Tower

After seeing Endgame, we’ll always imagine future Cap, Tony and Ant-Man roaming around the 2012 New York battle sequence, attempting to steal the Tesseract. While they said the movie doesn’t go by Back to the Future time travel rules, viewings will certainly start to run together a little bit as we imagine how Endgame built off that original Avengers scene. I don’t know about you, but I always find myself already thinking about how another Marty is backstage at the dance trying to fix up time in Part II whenever I view the first movie.

The Winter Soldier Elevator Scene

Endgame has a great nod to Winter Soldier when some of the team is in the 2012 New York timeline, and Cap is tasked with nabbing the Tesseract. It’s a great moment when he finds himself in an elevator again with some of the same Hydra agents from The Winter Soldier. As an audience, we expect another epic scene to go down, but he instead tricks them by saying “Hail, Hydra.” We’ll always remember how clever and evolved Endgame Cap is during this classic scene now.

Frigga’s Death

Thor: The Dark World may be one of the least favored MCU films, but Endgame actually made it relevant! (Gold stars to the Russos!) During the Time Heist, Thor and Rocket are transported a few moments before the God of Thunder’s mother is murdered. The hero is going through his own grief and guilt about his failure to protect the world from Thanos. He has a sweet moment with her when she gives him a much-needed pep talk, giving the Dark World scene more weight.

Come And Get Your Love

The Guardians of the Galaxy opening will perhaps go down as one of the most iconic and entertaining MCU scenes. Seeing Chris Pratt jam out to “Come And Get Your Love” on cassette as he kicks around some alien creatures is already a lot of fun! After Endgame, we can’t help but think how ridiculous Quill is to onlookers (Rhodey and Nebula) when they come back to that moment in Endgame. He’s never going to live that one down!

Say Something, If You Don’t You’ll Regret it.

Toward the beginning of Civil War, we meet Tony at an MIT presentation where he is showcasing some cool tech that shows the last moment Tony shared with his parents before they were killed. He is clearly regretful that he lost his parents at a time when he didn’t have the healthiest relationship with them, and wished he could buy back some more time with them, particularly his father. Now that we know Tony is able to go back and have a positive conversation with Howard Stark as an adult, the presence of this scene in Civil War is poetic.

Cap Moves Mjolnir

In one of Avengers: Age of Ultron more funs scenes, Thor invites his fellow heroes to take a crack at moving the his hammer. While a majority of them are unsuccessful, Cap is able to squeak it over a bit, resulting in a bit of anxiety from Thor at the time. In Endgame, Cap turns out to be worthy of Mjolnir and swaps weapons with the God of Thunder. This scene is now an origin story for that badass moment.

Doctor Strange Gives Up the Time Stone

Among a few other WTF moments in Infinity War (cough Quill) was the time when Doctor Strange straight up hands the Time Stone over to Thanos in order to save Tony’s life. It was an odd decision at the time, but since he did look into the future possibilities, we knew there was hindsight to it. Audiences will now be able to look at this scene now and see the moment much differently: through Strange’s eyes.

You’re Not The Guy To Make The Sacrifice Play.

Okay… this one stings. Back when Cap and Tony first met in 2012’s Avengers, the two were already pushing each other’s buttons with their different ways of thinking. In one scene, the two get in a heated argument as tension builds about Bruce Banner exploding into the Hulk, and Steve says the above words. Of course, now that we know that Tony makes the ultimate sacrifice by putting on the Infinity Gauntlet and saving the world; he is that guy.

Hogan, Drive. Cheeseburger First.

How fitting is it that one of the last references in Endgame is one of the earliest in the MCU? Back in Iron Man, when Tony arrives home from the treacherous journey that would define him as the hero, the first thing on his list is devouring an American Cheeseburger. In Endgame, Happy Hogan shares a touching moment with Tony’s daughter Morgan about the fast food. So naturally every time we watch this funny note in the 2008 flick, we’ll be crying 3000 tears.

It's time for an MCU rewatch. What classic MCU scenes will you be going back to post-Endgame? Let us know in the comments!

Why Godzilla Chose Its Three Main Villains For King Of The Monsters

Why Godzilla Chose Its Three Main Villains For King Of The Monsters

When Godzilla returns to the big screen in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, he'll go up against three new (for this franchise) threats in Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah. While there were any number of other giant monsters that Godzilla could have battled from his decades long film history, King of the Monsters director Michael Dougherty told CinemaBlend during a recent Q&A in Japan that these three were chosen because they were the best known, even among those who don't necessarily know Godzilla. According to Dougherty...

They are the crown jewels of the Toho universe. They are the ones that I feel like most Godzilla fans, and non-Godzilla fans, are the most familiar with. So as much as I love King Caesar and Gigan and those guys, they're a little bit more obscure.

As pragmatic as it is, it certainly makes a lot of sense. The reason that remakes and sequels are so popular is because audiences tend to be attracted to stories and characters that they are already comfortable with. So if you want to get people interested in a Godzilla movie, give them the monsters they love the most.

I certainly fall into the category of somebody who isn't a major Godzilla fan. While I've seen a few the films I'm far from an expert, but I do know the names of Rodan, Mothra, and Ghidorah. This is exactly what the new production is counting on.

While the name recognition was part of the reason that these three were chosen to appear in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Michael Dougherty says there's another reason they were used. The four characters have a connected history in the past of the Godzilla franchise. The director goes on...

But [these are] also the first ones who kind of teamed up. There's a key point in Godzilla history when Mothra, Rodan and Godzilla put aside their differences and decided to team up against King Ghidorah. It's an amazing scene, by the way. I strongly suggest you go back and watch that movie. But there's, there's literally a scene where Mothra goes to Rodan and Godzilla and says, ‘Hey, this new asshole just showed up and he's going to mess everything up if we don't stop him.’ And the two twin fairies are translating for the monsters, so the humans can understand what the monsters are talking to her about. But they're actually having dialogue. Rodan and Godzilla are like, ‘Fuck the humans! They bully us. Why should we help them?’

The movie in question is 1964's Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster. The sequence is an important one in the history of the the Godzilla franchise because, according to Dougherty, it's the first time that the giant monsters are seen as anything other than, well, monsters...

And suddenly, for the first time as a kid, that was where you suddenly saw things from the monsters’ point of view. Where the monsters saw us as the monster. The monsters saw us as the bullies that we're trying to prevent them from having happy lives. But anyway, they were the first giant monster team up, box and I feel like their truly the most iconic of the Toho universe. So it made sense that they should be the first ones to get adapted to the big screen for Hollywood.

Could we see any of the other, more obscure Godzilla antagonists appear in future films? At this point, it's hard to say. The only film in this particular franchise that we know is coming is Godzilla vs. Kong, which, based on the title, is unlikely to include any other giant monsters, though it certainly could. And depending on the outcome of that battle, we could still see more Godzilla films in the future. So if you're a serious fan of Megalon the giant beetle, don't lose hope.

When Shazam! Will Finally Arrive On DVD And Digital

When Shazam! Will Finally Arrive On DVD And Digital

If you holler “Shazam!” starting on July 2nd, you’ll be treated to copy of the popular DC flick starring Zachary Levi. OK, OK, perhaps a click or two on Amazon will also be required. The point is, Shazam is about to hit DVD, Blu-ray and Digital and should be the perfect summer treat for your family, particularly if your school kids are home and sitting on their laurels.

As has become more common of late, Shazam!’s Digital release will be coming earlier than the physical copies of the DC movie. Digital will be out on July 2nd, followed by the DVD and Blu-ray releases on July 16. The good news? You can pre-order your copy now.

The movie is also hitting 4K, which is great news for fans of the format. Those copies will also have Dolby Vision HDR.

All of the hard copies of the flick will come with the same special features. There’s a motion comic that will be included, although the deleted scenes should be the most delightful extra here.

Previously, we learned there were 20-24 minutes of deleted scenes that were cut from the film. CinemaBlend spoke with editor Michel Aller, who noted the lengthy amount of deleted footage before giving us a tidbit about what we could see with the set:

One of the scenes that regretfully we had to pull out was a scene between young Billy and Mary, when he’s about to sneak out. It’s just a really touching scene, but it came so early in the movie, and we were trying to get to get to the Shazam character, that we couldn’t put everything that we liked at the front of the movie. So that was one scene that we pulled out. I’m glad there are DVDs out there so we can show these great scenes.

It's not always easy to get a movie just right, and it will be interesting to see what Shazam! left on the cutting room floor with the home entertainment release.

Take a look at the other extras below.

Shazam Exclusive Motion Comic

The Magical World of Shazam

Super Fun Zac

Carnival Scene Study

Shazamily Values

Who is Shazam?

Deleted Scenes

Gag Reel

Shazam’s kind of an interesting flick. The movie had a nice run – albeit not spectacular – at the box office, pulling in over $361 million worldwide on an alleged $100 million budget. So far, DC has started looking into Shazam 2, hiring screenwriter Henry Gayden to pen the sequel.

The problem is that DC and Warner Bros.’ movie schedule is a little bit of a mess right now, and it’s not like Shazam 2 has gotten off the ground in terms of production, much less gotten an official release date yet.

A nice run on DVD and Digital could always help the process move a little faster, however. So, if you liked the movie, it may be one to add to your collections.

New Detective Pikachu Video Is A Great Primer If You Don't Know Anything About Pokemon

New Detective Pikachu Video Is A Great Primer If You Don't Know Anything About Pokemon

Picture the following scenario: a popular franchise is about to hit theaters with a brand new installment that promises to spark a new cinematic universe. While you’re interested in catching this film in theaters, you’re not sure if you’ll be able to as there’s a bit of a knowledge gap that stands in your way. That’s the time that a nice, easy video like the one Ryan Reynolds just shared for Pokemon: Detective Pikachu would be handy. If you’re not particularly familiar with the world of Pokemon, take a deep breath and watch the video below:

As you’ve now seen, the world of Pokemon is a pretty diverse ecosystem of creatures, each with their own classifications and abilities. So if you’ve been watching the trailers for Pokemon: Detective Pikachu and have marveled at the live-action debut of not only Pikachu, but also tons more Pokemon that will reach the eyes and hearts of audiences in May, you’re not alone in being interested to know more about their names and skill sets.

Of course, you don’t need to know anything about Pokemon to want to see Pokemon: Detective Pikachu, as anyone who enjoys a good crime caper and/or Ryan Reynolds’ comedy stylings might happen to be up your alley anyway. The trailers have certainly done a good job setting up the world of the famous pocket monster video games for the common moviegoer, and now with this extra bit of background, audiences should be ready for the adventure that Pokemon: Detective Pikachu is ready to dish out.

But if you really want to take in the world of Rime City, and the other locales that Pokemon: Detective Pikachu will travel to, it helps to know if that little pink creature in the coffee shop will write on your face, should you be lulled to sleep. Pop quiz, hot shot: that creature is a Jigglypuff, and it will draw on your face if you fall asleep to its song. If you knew that, you’re pretty well off, but if you didn’t, you might want to hit the books a couple more times before setting off.

Still, if you’re interested in the deeper world of Pokemon: Detective Pikachu, you have this video Ryan Reynolds posted to his Twitter account to start you off. After which, you’ll probably want to check out the film’s various trailers again, as you’ll basically have the visual equivalent of flash cards to help guide you. However, if you’re really industrious and ready to test yourself in the world of Pokemon, you should try getting into the official augmented reality game Pokemon Go.

Pokemon: Detective Pikachu begins its quest to be the very best on May 10. Though if Pokemon isn’t your thing and you’ve somehow found yourself tricked into reading this entire article, the 2019 release schedule is going to be your new best friend. And we promise, there’s nary a Jigglypuff to lure you to sleep.