road trip movie britney spears

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Three childhood friends embark on a cross-country adventure to pursue dreams they once put aside, taking risks that are sure to change their lives forever. Three childhood friends embark on a cross-country adventure to pursue dreams they once put aside, taking risks that are sure to change their lives forever. Three childhood friends embark on a cross-country adventure to pursue dreams they once put aside, taking risks that are sure to change their lives forever.

• Tamra Davis
• Shonda Rhimes
• Britney Spears
• Anson Mount
• Zoe Saldana
• 615 User reviews
• 66 Critic reviews
• 27 Metascore
• 2 wins & 15 nominations

• (as Zoë Saldana)

• Kit's Mom

• (as Kool Mo Dee)
• See all cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Did you know

• Trivia Anson Mount was initially reluctant to accept the role of Ben - finding the script to be "cheesy" and "lame" - but was encouraged by Robert De Niro , with whom he was working at the time on City by the Sea (2002) . De Niro turned out to be a huge Britney Spears fan. They went over scenes from 'Crossroads' on breaks from 'City by the Sea,' with Mount reading his lines and De Niro reading Spears'.
• Goofs When Lucy is on the phone to her dad and everyone is loading up the car outside the second hotel, Mimi is putting her stuff in the trunk of the car. You see Mimi look over at someone, shrug her shoulders and say, "What?" The directors were telling her that she was in Lucy's shot.

[last lines]

Lucy Wagner : This time, we didn't make any wishes for the future. We said goodbye to our past. Now, none of us has any idea where life's gonna take us, 'cause what we have is now. And right now, we have each other.

• Crazy credits During the closing credits, Britney performs "Overprotected" and clips of bloopers are shown while Britney sings.
• Connections Featured in Siskel & Ebert: John Q/Maryam/Hart's War/Crossroads/Metropolis (2002)
• Soundtracks Open Your Heart Written by Madonna , Gardner Cole & Peter Rafelson Performed by Madonna Sung by Britney Spears (uncredited) Engineered and Mixed by Michael Verdick Courtesy of Sire Records By Arrangement with Warner Special Products

User reviews 615

• Jan 29, 2005
• How long is Crossroads? Powered by Alexa
• February 15, 2002 (United States)
• United States
• Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA (various interiors)
• Fuzzy Bunny Films (I)
• Paramount Pictures
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $12,000,000 (estimated)
• $37,581,825
• $14,527,187
• Feb 17, 2002
• $61,733,108

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 33 minutes
• Dolby Digital

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40 Thoughts We Had While Rewatching Britney Spears’s Crossroads

By Emma Specter and Christian Allaire

It is not an exaggeration to say that I’ve been waiting for the Shonda Rhimes–penned(!) 2002 film Crossroads to hit Netflix for pretty much the last five years, and now finally my wish has been granted. I knew instantly that I needed to revisit this classic, but I also reached out for help from Vogue ’s senior fashion and style writer, Christian Allaire, arguably the biggest Britney stan on staff, knowing that two devoted rom-com heads are better than one. Below, read all the thoughts we had while rewatching Crossroads.

• Christian Allaire: Our first Britney spotting is her as Lucy, singing Madonna’s “Open Your Heart” in her room. I love the princess of pop’s nod to the queen of pop. Side note: Have you ever heard Britney’s cover of “Burning Up”? Underrated bop.
• Emma Specter: I never had until this moment, but I’m playing it on YouTube now, and it is everything I never knew I needed.
• CA: Lucy is being painted as a nerdy valedictorian. It is hard to imagine Britney that way—she’s way too much of an It girl for this—but let’s go along with it.
• ES: I refuse to live in a world where Britney Spears is not popular, sorry.
• CA: Lucy’s graduation dress is so cute. An embroidered pink number. Very Miu Miu.
• ES: I just looked up the costumer, and it’s Barbara Siebert, who did the clothes for a bunch of iconic ’90s films, including Die Hard and Some Kind of Wonderful.
• CA: Kit (Zoe Saldaña) is, for some reason, engaged to some UCLA dude. Girl, you’re too young to be getting married! Have fun! Date! Sleep around!
• ES: Wholeheartedly agree. Also hear me out: There’s something a little bit queer about Kit’s early engagement to a UCLA bro, but don’t ask me to explain further.
• CA: Justin Long is trying to lose his virginity to Lucy, who is not having it. There are no sparks between these two lab partners. But aesthetically they are a hot couple.
• ES: Who knew Justin Long had abs???
• CA: Taryn Manning’s character, Mimi, is definitely the edgy girl I’d be friends with in high school. I’d definitely skip class and sneak a cig with her. (Just kidding, smoking is bad.)
• ES: I’d be right there with you and Mimi, pretending to smoke confidently (then hacking up a lung).
• CA: Okay, things have escalated. Estranged friends Lucy, Kit, and Mimi have all decided they are taking a road trip to California together. Mimi, who is pregnant, wants to audition for a record company; Lucy wants to find her mom; Kit wants to visit her fiancé.
• ES: I love the idea that three girls who never hung out in high school would celebrate graduation by immediately traveling cross-country together.
• CA: Lucy’s double denim and bucket hat is sooo Y2K. I’m here for it.
• ES: Did Crossroads plant the seeds for the bucket-hat revival?
• CA: The fact that RCA snuck in ’NSync’s “Bye Bye Bye” into this soundtrack when Britney and Justin Timberlake were dating at the time…you gotta love a Hollywood publicity team.
• ES: Ugh. All Britney did was advocate for Justin, and all he did was screw her over ! (Sorry, I’m still mad.)
• CA: The three girls are convinced their driver, Ben (Anson Mount), a friend of Mimi’s, might be a serial killer. Yet…they still get in the car with him?? Make it make sense.
• ES: I am officially old enough to relate more to these girls’ mothers than to them (cool realization), and I’m very stressed.
• CA: Ah, yes, we have arrived at the classic road-trip-movie trope—when the car breaks down. It causes everyone to have a big fight. It’s not that serious, babes. Call a tow truck!
• ES: This is something I have learned firsthand on my own road trips with besties: Your fellow drivers are not the enemy. The car is the enemy.
• CA: Kit’s butterfly pants are so hot. Love her chain belt too.
• ES: Do I need a chain belt?
• CA: Now they’re doing karaoke to raise money for the broken car part. I love that this is their first idea—because performing for strangers is a famously fruitful venture.
• ES: If you could make money doing karaoke, I wouldn’t have any credit-card debt. (Yes, I am good at karaoke and bad with money.)
• CA: These saucy punk-rock karaoke outfits, though. Lucy’s crimped hair! I live.
• ES: Soooo Lizzie McGuire coded.
• CA: Turns out Lucy is a total star on stage while singing “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll.” She works the pole, just like Britney does in her “Gimme More” video . Somehow the karaoke gig makes them rich, and they’re suddenly staying at, like, The Ritz. They order all the room service. How much money did they make performing one song?
• ES: I love scenes in movies where broke women get a shot at opulence and go all in on room service. (See also: Kate Bosworth eating blueberry pancakes in her robe in Blue Crush .)
• CA: They’re almost to California. Lucy shares a poem with that hot serial-killer dude who, it turns out, isn’t a serial killer. The poem is lyrics to her wonderful ballad, “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman.” He composes music on a piano to go with her lyrics. He sure has rizz.
• ES: Rizz, indeed. This actor creeps me out, though, I don’t know why.
• CA: Lucy finally gets to meet her estranged mother, who is played by none other than Kim Cattrall. How fabulous. She’s a chic Tuscan housewife who wants nothing to do with her. So we hate her, obviously. (Her house is great, though.)
• ES: Kim Cattrall, they could never make me hate you!
• CA: Things took a really dark turn. Mimi loses her baby, and we find out that Kit’s fiancé was the one who got her pregnant, against her will. But somehow, through the tough times, it brings the three friends closer.
• ES: Yeah, this shit is rough, and I honestly kind of forgot about it.
• CA: They finally make it to California. Lucy and the killer-but-not-a-killer guy get it on. It’s also suddenly decided that Lucy should audition for the record company—not Mimi—despite this whole idea being Mimi’s dream. But sure, we stan Lucy—let’s get her discovered!
• ES: If I were Mimi, I’d be pissed.
• CA: Lucy sings “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman” and totally wows the crowd. She performs in a crop top with billowy sleeves and low-rise jeans. She looks like a pop star. I’d sign her. We never know if she did land that deal—but we’re gonna go ahead and say yes.
• ES: I mean, obvi, right? She’s Britney !

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Go Back in Time with Britney Spears in Trailer for Theatrical Re-Release of Crossroads (Exclusive)

'Crossroads,' starring Spears, Zoe Saldaña and Taryn Manning, is returning to theaters to coincide with the release of Spears' memoir 'The Woman in Me'

Crossroads is less than a month away from coming back to theaters!

The 2002 Britney Spears -led coming-of-age road-trip dramedy is returning to the big screen for two nights only, Oct. 23 and 25, to coincide with the release of Spears' memoir The Woman in Me .

PEOPLE has an exclusive first look at the trailer for the global fan event, which features scenes of Spears' character Lucy bonding with her dad (played by Dan Aykroyd ), reuniting with her mom ( Kim Cattrall ) and kicking off an unforgettable cross-country journey with her childhood best friends Kit ( Zoe Saldaña ) and Mimi ( Taryn Manning ).

Opening with Lucy singing in her room to "Open Your Heart" by Madonna , the trailer briefly summarizes the plot of Crossroads before ending with Spears singing "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" near the end of the film.

Never miss a story — sign up for  PEOPLE's free daily newsletter  to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.

Filmco Enterprises, Inc. 2001

Directed by Tamra Davis and written by Shonda Rhimes , Crossroads  follows childhood best friends Lucy, Mimi and Kitt as they road trip across the U.S. on a journey to discover more about themselves and their friendship after drifting apart over the course of eight years.

"With barely a plan, practically no money but plenty of dreams, the girls catch a lift with Mimi's handsome friend Ben ( Anson Mount ) in his convertible," an official synopsis reads. "Along the way they not only gather experiences that will change their lives, but they also discover how important it is to hold onto their hearts' desires."

Aside from Spears, 41, Saldaña, 45, Manning, 44, Aykroyd, 71, Cattrall, 67, and Mount, 50, the movie also features Jamie Lynn Spears as young Lucy and Justin Long as Henry, one of Lucy's friends with whom she went to prom and had a brief fling.

In a 2022 interview with Entertainment Tonight , Long, 45, recalled how "normal and easygoing" Spears was while filming her big-screen debut, adding that she was "disarmingly down-to-earth."

Crossroads will play across 875 movie theaters in 24 countries, and feature a bonus singalong of Spears' two songs from the film.

Just ahead of its theatrical re-release, the movie’s soundtrack,  Crossroads: Special Edition , will be shared to streaming services on Oct. 20. The soundtrack will contain the classic songs that viewers know and love, plus the addition of three new Spears remixes: "Overprotected (Richi Lopez Remix)," "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman (Snakehips Remix)" and "I Love Rock ‘N Roll (Frank Walker Remix)."

"AMC Theatres in 20 cities will also offer a special VIP screening of the film the evening of Oct. 23 only that includes a special edition of The Woman in Me book with event ticket purchase," according to an official release.

Tickets for Crossroads ' theatrical re-release — a collaboration between Trafalgar Releasing, Sony Music Entertainment and RCA Records — are available now at CrossroadsFanEvent.com .

Spears' memoir The Woman in Me is out Oct. 24, and available for preorder now on amazon.com .

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Britney Spears Is Always Dancing With Herself

Britney Spears is gonna let us watch Crossroads again. The nearly unstreamable dramedy and the pop superstar’s debut film role will head back to theaters in October to accompany the release of her tell-all memoir, The Woman in Me . A new trailer specially cut for the rerelease gives us a 30-second glimpse of Spears sneaking away in the night to rendezvous with her friends and performing the hit song the movie spawned. Though the Shonda Rhimes–written film premiered to so-so reviews back in 2002, it gave us the aforementioned power ballad, “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman”; a financially successful box office (grossing $61.1 million against a $12 million budget); and critical praise for Spears, who was at the height of her career at the time. It tells the story of three childhood friends who rekindle their friendship on a cross-country road trip.

Fans can look forward to a bonus sing-along of two Spears tracks played on the big screen, plus a new release of the Crossroads soundtrack, including remixes of “Overprotected” (Richi Lopez Remix), “I Love Rock ‘N Roll” (Frank Walker Remix), and “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman” (Snakeships Remix). The film hits theaters on October 23, a day before the memoir arrives on bookshelves and gives everyone tea about the conservatorship Spears escaped and other decades-simmering mess . Crossroads will go up against Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concert film, making October 23 a national holiday for pop stans everywhere.

This post has been updated.

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2002, Comedy/Drama, 1h 34m

What to know

Critics Consensus

A cliched and silly pop star vanity project, Crossroads is strictly for Britney fans only. Read critic reviews

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Crossroads videos, crossroads   photos.

The story of three childhood friends, Lucy (Britney Spears), Kit (Zoe Saldana) and Mimi (Taryn Manning), who, after eight years apart, rediscover their friendship on a cross-country trip. With barely a plan, practically no money but plenty of dreams, the girls catch a lift with Mimi's handsome friend Ben (Anson Mount) in his convertible. Along the way they not only gather experiences that will change their lives, but they also discover how important it is to hold onto their hearts' desires.

Rating: PG-13 (Sexual Content|Brief Teen Drinking)

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Original Language: English

Director: Tamra Davis

Producer: Ann Carli

Writer: Shonda Rhimes

Release Date (Theaters): Feb 15, 2002  wide

Rerelease Date (Theaters): Oct 23, 2023

Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2017

Box Office (Gross USA): $37.2M

Runtime: 1h 34m

Distributor: Paramount Pictures

Production Co: MTV Films, Zomba Films

Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby SR

Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

Cast & Crew

Britney Spears

Anson Mount

Zoe Saldana

Taryn Manning

Kim Cattrall

Dan Aykroyd

Justin Long

Beverly Johnson

Kit's Mother

Bahni Turpin

Kool Moe Dee

Tamra Davis

Shonda Rhimes

Clive Calder

Executive Producer

Larry Rudolph

Johnny Wright

Van Toffler

Co-Producer

Jonathan McHugh

Eric Alan Edwards

Cinematographer

Waldemar Kalinowski

Production Design

Wendy Schecter

Costume Design

Michael Carlin

Music Supervisor

Trevor Jones

Original Music

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Critic Reviews for Crossroads

Audience reviews for crossroads.

I really loved this film! One of my all time favourite films. A must see!

The story of 3 best friends (Lucy, Kit, Mimi) and a complete stranger (who just happens to be an ex-convict but what the hell, he's sexy) taking a trip across the country where they discover the meaning of the life and real friendship! Not having enough money to repair their car Lucy (Britney Spears) sings at a nightclub. The whole "teen coming of age" movie theme has been done so many times before and here Britney and her pals get bombarded with some pretty heavy issues to deal with which have little or no impact on them. ~Spoiler~ Lucy meets her deadbeat mother (Kim Cattrall from Sex in the City) who tells her that she regretted having her, she loses her virginity to a guy she barely knows, Kit (Zoe Saldana) learns that her boyfriend is a cheat and a rapist and Mimi suffers a miscarriage. Things have happened, yet no lessons have been learned, and no apparent changes have been made. The funniest part in the whole movie was when Lucy's dad (Dan Aykroyd) asked her who the guy was and she said that he was just giving her a "ride."

Sorry, I'm one of the biggest Britney fans out there, but even she couldn't save this terrible film of how bad it was. This film just gathers all the biggest cliches ever seen & then pastes them altogether. The worst part to that is, it does nothing to improve on it. I really should have walked out on it through the first 20 minutes (& I rented it). Plot/Story: Predictable, & (again) cliche. Three girls start out as the best of friends at their childhood, but then later on end up losing their friendship years later over nothing. Later on they wish to go out into the world & chase their dreams. We've seen it before, & it does nothing special. Acting/Performances: Well done. Britney Spears actually gives a good performance despite this being her first ever big role in a film. However, Britney is just not meant to be in movies. She's not a bad actress, she's not cut out to be one. Script/Dialogue: Once again, it's all cliche, & not to mention really corny. The dialogue in here is like they were given to them by some guy who enjoys writing the same stuff over & over again in a drama film. It was horrible, & laughable. Characters: Britney is just Britney. No way in hell will anyone see her as "Lucy" in this film. The characters are the most uncreative & unoriginal people you'll see in a film (hell even their names are uncreative). Britney's character may as well just have jumped off a cliff, while the other two (excluding the guy) should have just joined her. But other than that, the main focus of the film was Britney herself, the other 2 characters may as well not have been even added. They were useless & pointless. Final summation, this film grabs all the most obvious & biggest cliches, & then pastes them all together to make a film mainly focused on Britney.

What was the point with this movie? I learned one thing from this movie and that's the fact that Britney isn't fit to be an actress. I felt like she made this movie only to show off her singing and cuteness, so this movie would only be good entertainment for those who worship Britney.

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Britney Spears Opens Her Heart in New Trailer For ‘Crossroads’ Movie Re-Release

In addition to singing the Madonna song, Brit croons "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" in the new preview.

By Gil Kaufman

Gil Kaufman

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In advance of Britney Spears coming back to the big screen in next month’s re-release of the singer’s movie debut in 2002’s coming-of-age road-trip dramedy Crossroads , a new trailer is getting fans hyped for the special event.

Britney Spears’ ‘Crossroads’ Headed Back to Movie Theaters For…

The 30-second trailer for the global fan event on Oct. 23 and 25 opens with Spears’ Lucy enthusiastically singing Madonna’s “Open Your Heart” into a spoon in her teenage bedroom, which just happens to have a poster of Madge’s debut album cover in plain view on the wall.

Trending on Billboard

“So I’m going all the way to California,” Mimi says, as Spears’ Lucy counsels, “you can’t go by yourself with some guy.” We also see Akroyd berating Lucy for sneaking away in the middle of the night and ordering her to return right away. The clip ends with Spears crooning “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman,” one of the hits from the singer’s 2001 Britney album.

The two-night event from Trafalgar Releasing, Sony Music Entertainment and RCA Records will support Spears’ upcoming tell-all memoir,  The Woman in Me  (Oct. 24). The movie written by Shonda Rhimes ( Scandal ,  Grey’s Anatomy ) and directed by Tamra Davis ( CB4 ,  13 ) will include bonus features never before seen in theaters — including a sing-along to two of Spears’ songs from the film.

“I recently rewatched  Crossroads  and was so enthralled with the time capsule of nostalgia that this incredible ensemble cast brings to the screen,” director Davis said in a statement when the re-release was announced last week. “Britney is absolutely breathtaking to watch, and Shonda is showing us her early expertise in writing complicated female characters.”

Watch the new Crossroads trailer below.

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Movie Reviews

Tv/streaming, collections, great movies, chaz's journal, contributors, our opinion of crossroads hasn’t changed, our feelings about britney spears have.

A few months ago, Britney Spears went viral. That’s not new for the pop star, who’s been famous since 1998, when her first single “...Baby One More Time” went to No. 1. But this time, it wasn’t because of her music or a public appearance. It was because she was acting.

Although the part eventually went to Rachel McAdams , Spears auditioned to play Allie in “The Notebook.” Every successful movie has plenty of stories of the people who didn’t get cast, creating a nearly endless permutation of “What if?” scenarios of how the film might have been with other actors, but when I watched Spears’ tape, two thoughts flew through my head simultaneously: (1) She’s not bad, but not that great; and (2) I’m so glad this video wasn’t all over the internet in 2004 when the film came out. Everyone would have been a lot meaner about it back then. If you have any doubt, look at how the world treated the actual movie she made during the time.

Musicians do not have a great track record of acting in films. For every David Bowie in “ The Man Who Fell to Earth ,” you’ve also got a ton of underwhelming Elvis Presley pictures. Björk stunned in “Dancer in the Dark,” but Mariah Carey was horribly awkward in “Glitter.” Pop stars are especially roasted when they try to show off their thespian chops. Nobody wants to revisit Taylor Swift in “Valentine’s Day.” Madonna’s stumbles in “Shanghai Surprise” and “ Evita ” are well documented. You may not remember, but there was a Hannah Montana movie. Especially in the early 2000s, critics viewed these films with disdain: Who did these singers think they are trying to pretend to be serious actors? The knives were out before the opening credits.

At the epicenter of this period is “ Crossroads .” A teen road film about buddies who used to be BFFs when they were girls, the movie got snotty reviews and a plethora of Golden Raspberry nominations. (Spears “won” Worst Actress.) In the ensuing 22 years, the conversation around the film has shifted. “Crossroads” was hard to find for a while, but it’s now available for rental, and it arrives on Netflix today, February 15th, marking the first time it has been available on a subscription streaming service. Aging millennials will be interested in it for nostalgic reasons, while younger viewers may be curious to discover what all the fuss was about back in 2002. The latter group may be astonished by what they find: A totally disposable, utterly harmless comedy-drama meant to be a star vehicle. It’s been a long journey, but “Crossroads” may finally be on its way to being properly judged instead of roundly mocked.

The Britney Spears of the early aughts was at the zenith of her celebrity. On the heels of two blockbuster albums, she returned in 2001 with Britney , which wasn’t quite as white-hot but showed Spears, as she was nearing 20, attempting to amplify her sexuality on its slinky, provocative first single “I’m a Slave 4U.” (Key lyrics: “All you people look at me like I’m a little girl / Well, did you ever think it’d be okay for me to step into this world?”) This was also the year she performed with a snake on the MTV Video Music Awards and was deep into a relationship with fellow rising pop star Justin Timberlake . It was clear she was going to be around for a while.

What was also apparent was that she wanted to expand her empire beyond music. With MTV excited about being in the Spears business, she met with a pre-“Grey's Anatomy” Shonda Rhimes , pitching the writer an idea for a film. “I talked to [Rhimes] and told her what I wanted the movie to be about, and she elaborated on it,” Spears said in 2001 . “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.”

The film, which was originally going to be called “What Are Friends For,” starred Spears as Lucy, the sweetheart valedictorian of her high school who loves Madonna and hasn’t had sex yet. Her pals Kit ( Zoe Saldana ) and Mimi ( Taryn Manning ) accompany her on a road trip to dig up a time capsule they buried when they were kids. (Lucy is also in search of her estranged mother.) Along the way, there are cute boys, impromptu musical numbers and other sorts of escapades you’d expect from a movie like this. 

Years later, the film’s director, Tamra Davis (who had previously made “ Happy Gilmore ”), would take aim at the male critics who dismissed “Crossroads.” “Bedroom culture exists in there because you can dance to your favorite songs on your bed and you can go on the internet and talk about your loves, and that door is usually closed to men,” she said last year . “And we let you in to see our personal lives. For you to come in there and criticize us, I just think, shame on you to criticize girl culture.”

To be sure, some of the male reviewers adopted a paternal, tsk-tsk tone in their negative reviews. (The Baltimore Sun ’s Chris Kaltenbach opened with “‘Crossroads’ wastes no time before establishing its credibility as a serious artistic endeavor. The first time we see star Britney Spears, she’s singing. Alone. In her underwear.”) But plenty of female critics also took the film to task, with USA Today ’s Claudia Puig calling “Crossroads” “mindless drivel.” Davis has a point about how male critics sounded in their disapproval, but it wasn’t as if any gender was really coming to the movie’s defense.

A modest hit when it opened on February 15, 2002, “Crossroads” wasn’t “Purple Rain,” but it also wasn’t “Under the Cherry Moon.” But the movie’s perceived lack of artistry, coupled with Spears’ general overexposure, quickly had a domino effect. That year also saw her and Timberlake split up, with Timberlake turning that heartbreak into “Cry Me a River,” the dynamic single off his acclaimed first solo album, whose video featured a Spears lookalike who’s apparently cheating on him. Simultaneously, Timberlake bragged about taking Spears’ virginity in interviews, although when he sat down with Barbara Walters , he worked hard to make himself seem like the victim in their relationship. In the court of public opinion, Spears was definitely seen as the villain.

As for Spears herself, she spiraled, impulsively marrying her childhood friend Jason Alexander in Vegas. The marriage only lasted 55 hours, but that didn’t stop Alexander from going around blabbing about what the sex was like after the nuptials were annulled. Soon, Spears became a tabloid fixture, marrying Kevin Federline, divorcing Kevin Federline, behaving erratically — who could forget the shaved-head incident ? — and seemingly becoming one more star who got devoured by celebrity. Her dad Jamie put her in a conservatorship, signaling to the world that his daughter was out of control. By the end of the decade, she was treated in the media as a joke, with the cheesy “Crossroads” suddenly the setup to a long, sad punchline.

As Spears’ hold on the zeitgeist faded, becoming more renowned for her chaotic, sometimes worrying Instagram posts than her music, her one and only film disappeared. Still, there were those beating the drum for “Crossroads.” In 2022, as part of a 20th-anniversary piece about the film, Davis said, “I’m still trying to get to the bottom of why” the movie wasn’t available on streaming or Blu-ray. “I rewatched it again recently in a theater in London, and it went over unbelievable. It still played so well. … I’d love people to see it now because you can see what an incredible talent [Spears] was.” 

The use of “was” is notable, suggesting that even Davis wondered if Spears’ best days were behind her. And indeed, to watch “Crossroads” now is to see a young star who hasn’t yet been beset with challenges both personally and professionally. Lucy is presented as someone so excited to go out there and see the world. The character is hungry for experience. In that same interview, Davis indicated it was a reflection of where Spears was at that moment. “Britney wanted to [re]shape her image,” Davis said. “She didn’t want the virgin image anymore, or [to be looked at as a] good girl. She really wanted to do a movie where she dealt with what it is to be a woman, and to go from this little girl to being a woman.”

But if all megawatt stars face a backlash, if they wait long enough, a backlash to the backlash will eventually emerge. And in recent years, a whole new way of looking at Britney Spears has come about. Between a growing anger from Spears’ fans about her cruel conservatorship — highlighted by The New York Times ’ 2021 documentary “Framing Britney Spears” — and a cultural awakening to how terribly Timberlake treated her in public , she has gone from being harshly judged to being afforded a sympathy she was rarely granted in the past. With more societal awareness around addiction and mental illness, Spears has stopped being a laughingstock and become a cautionary tale — not to mention a reminder that people are going through all kinds of things of which we’re not aware. 

Last year, Spears came back in a major way. She published her memoir, The Woman in Me , which was a frank, honest account of her life, including discussing the abortion she’d had while dating Timberlake . The grown-up she’d longed to be while making “Crossroads” was evident on the page. (Speaking of the film, in the book, Spears admits that she tried Method acting to play Lucy, writing , “Some people do Method acting, but they’re usually aware of the fact that they’re doing it . But I didn’t have any separation at all. … That was pretty much the beginning and end of my acting career, and I was relieved. I imagine there are people in the acting field who have dealt with something like that, where they had trouble separating themselves from a character.”)

As part of the memoir’s release, fans were treated to a surprise: After being hard to track down for years, “Crossroads” was released in select theaters for a two-day special event that October . Davis had fruitlessly attempted to bring the film back to the world, but as she explained in a Q&A after one of the 2023 screenings, all it took “was one call from Britney. She wanted it re-released to promote her new book.” Why did Spears care so much about a movie that had left her disenfranchised about acting? “Clearly, this means something to her because she wanted this to be released with her book,” Davis offered. “I think she wants people to look back at her work and see it in a different way.”

I can’t in good conscience recommend you check out “Crossroads” on Netflix — although, at 94 minutes, it’s far shorter than far worse films such as “ Argylle ” — but although the movie hasn’t changed, it’s significantly different in 2024 than it was in 2002. Watching it now, we see a Britney Spears who’s so fresh-faced and hopeful, not aware of the sadness that’s coming. What is indisputably hokey or corny about her performance is, in light of her later travails, touched with a bit of poignance. She doesn’t seem so much like a bad actress as just someone who’s young and naive. There are worse things in the world.

The vitriol Spears and her movie inspired in 2002 was no doubt partly a byproduct of sexism — although it’s also worth pointing out that “Crossroads” opened a few years before poptimism began taking hold in music criticism, challenging the rigid notion that rock musicians were inherently more artistic than those shallow, pretty pop stars. But even a fair-minded person can acknowledge that the film is mediocre. Don’t seek out “Crossroads” to discover a misunderstood masterpiece — you’ll only be disappointed. 

But just like the time capsule Lucy and her friends seek, the movie now stands as an artifact of the past, a glimpse of how things once were for Spears. The film featured her big ballad “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman.” Like “Crossroads,” it’s not her finest moment, but it’s a sentiment she felt deeply. That may not make it great art, but as an expression of her true self, it’s hard not to be affected.

Tim Grierson

Tim Grierson is the Senior U.S. Critic for  Screen International . 

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Britney Spears 2002 Film ‘Crossroads’ Returning to Theaters for Global Fan Event

By Rebecca Rubin

Rebecca Rubin

Film and Media Reporter

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Cinemas are looking to pop stars to save the box office this October.

Weeks after the debut of Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” concert film, the 2002 coming-of-age movie “ Crossroads ” — the first feature to star  Britney Spears — will return to theaters. It’s playing for just two nights, on Oct. 23 and 25, as part of fan event from Trafalgar Releasing, Sony Music Entertainment and RCA Records. The theatrical re-release is tied to Spears’ upcoming memoir, “The Woman in Me,” which drops on Oct. 24.

“We are excited to […] create an opportunity for fans to enjoy this highly sought after film in cinemas, and to rally in support of Britney telling her story in her upcoming memoir release,” said Marc Allenby, CEO of Trafalgar Releasing.

Shonda Rhimes, who went on to create “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal,” wrote “Crossroads” which was directed by Tamra Davis. The   story follows three childhood friends, Lucy (Spears), Kit (Zoë Saldana) and Mimi (Taryn Manning), who, after eight years apart, rediscover their friendship on a cross-country trip. “Crossroads” originally premiered in 2002 and, despite negative reviews, grossed $61 million globally.

“I recently rewatched ‘Crossroads’ and was so enthralled with the time capsule of nostalgia that this incredible ensemble cast brings to the screen,” Davis said. “Britney is absolutely breathtaking to watch, and Shonda is showing us her early expertise in writing complicated female characters. We had the best time in the world making this picture and the connection the actresses bring to their performances shows in every frame. I’m so grateful that ‘Crossroads’ will be available so people can see Britney shine again.”

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Crossroads starring Britney Spears gets exciting and promising streaming update

By reed gaudens | oct 19, 2023.

Over 20 years after its release in theaters in February 2002, the cult favorite Britney Spears movie Crossroads returns to theaters in celebration of the pop icon’s memoir The Woman in Me . The underrated movie hits the big screen again on Oct. 23 and 25 with Spears’ highly anticipated book releasing on Oct. 24.

For years, Crossroads has been incredibly hard for fans to come by. The movie hasn’t streamed anywhere and the DVDs are long out of print, which should come as odd considering not only does it star Britney Spears but two popular stars in their own right, Zoe Saldaña and Taryn Manning. It really shouldn’t be as impossible as it is to watch a beloved movie.

Well, according to director Tamra Davis, her attempts via her lawyers to bring the film back into the pop culture sphere were nothing compared to Spears’ idea and request to re-release her one and only starring role in theaters in conjunction with her memoir hitting shelves.

Davis revealed that the star’s initiative prompted Sony to purchase the film’s rights from original distributor Paramount, all leading to the current limited engagement in theaters. Following the theatrical re-release, Davis teases that a streaming deal is next on the agenda. Finally, at long last, the movie will seemingly be accessible to stream very soon!

Why Netflix should stream Crossroads

While a streaming home hasn’t been named quite yet (as of Oct. 19), it’s worth noting that Sony has a solid relationship with Netflix. The studio and the streamer currently have a five-year deal in place for Netflix to receive its latest theatrical movies — such as Where the Crawdads Sing, Uncharted, Love Again, No Hard Feelings, and more — for a period of time.

Netflix also boasts a number of its original series that hail from Sony, including The Night Agent, Cobra Kai, The Crown, and others, and has acquired Sony-produced shows like Outlander, The Blacklist, and S.W.A.T . Apart from its Sony deal, originals, and TV acquisitions, plenty of Sony movies arrive each month. For example, The Amazing Spider-Man and The House Bunny came in October.

It’s such a no brainer for Netflix to nab the streaming rights to Crossroads, given its time-tested and constantly proven agility and reach. This past summer, the streamer became a secondary home to Suits, and we all know how unexpectedly huge that became . Older movies, too, have the ability to catch a second wind on Netflix that other streamers can’t offer in the same way.

As someone who watched the movie in theaters back in 2002 and has held tightly to their DVD copy for the last 20 years, I’m celebrating the fact that Crossroads has a newfound path to streaming services, but I’m holding out hope and really manifesting that it will drop on Netflix. It’s the streamer that offers the movie the best chance at being viewed by the most people and becoming positively reevaluated by the public.

When it was released, Spears was at one of the biggest peaks of her career, having made records with her first two albums and releasing her third months prior to the movie. The biggest pop star in the world making her theatrical debut in a starring role in teen dramedy full of friendship, romance, music, and road trip shenanigans? It was a must-watch!

However, critics didn’t agree. The movie holds a far too low 15% rating on Rotten Tomatoes , and I remember at the time people harshly judging Spears’ acting. What we know now is that the movie was written by Shonda Rhimes, the television producer extraordinaire, and Spears had a difficult time stepping out of Lucy’s shoes after filming . She was dedicated, and she was great .

No matter where it ends up (though I hope it will be Netflix), we will all surely be watching through a different lens being a couple decades removed from 2002 and on the other side of an unfairly tumultuous and abusive time for Spears. When it begins streaming, wherever it may stream, I hope people will be kinder and celebrate the charismatic talent she brought to the big screen.

Next. Best Netflix shows to watch (and shows you should skip). dark

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“You’re No Longer Britney Spears”: How Crossroads Captured the Girl Beyond the Pop Star

By Savannah Walsh

It’s astoundingly difficult to watch 2002’s Crossroads, a coming-of-age movie that centers on three best friends ( Britney Spears, Zoe Saldana, and Taryn Manning ) taking a road trip. The film isn’t streaming either for free or purchase. If you really want, you can buy a DVD of it on Amazon—or pursue more, shall we say, questionably legal means.

That changes October 23 and 25, when Crossroads will return to theaters for a two-day global fan event that coincides with the release of The Woman in Me, Spears’s highly anticipated memoir . The rerelease—which Spears herself has signed off on—is a truly rare chance to see the pop star’s first and only big-screen outing in all its crimped-hair, crop-topped glory. And for director Tamra Davis, it’s also a chance to reclaim the film’s legacy.

The story of three estranged childhood friends who reconnect after digging up a wish box they buried as kids and deciding to enter a music competition in Los Angeles, was decimated by critics upon release. “It made me so mad when I rewatched it, because who are you to criticize girl culture?” Davis tells Vanity Fair over Zoom. “This movie wasn’t for you, so don’t talk about it. I’m not going to give you a whole thing about Fast and Furious or something. This really was a film made for girls, by girls.”

An era when Barbie and the Taylor Swift concert film have reinvigorated the box office is an especially apt time to reevaluate Crossroads, which was directed, produced, and written by women—the script’s by a pre– Grey’s Anatomy Shonda Rhimes —and centered on female friendship. It was also the last of several star-making films from Davis, now 61. Her résumé also includes the first major movies for Chris Rock (1993’s CB4 ), Adam Sandler (1995’s Billy Madison ), and Dave Chappelle (1998’s Half Baked ).

“These are films that I made with them for their fans, and we loved them. If I made a film that Adam loved and his fans loved it, that’s all we wanted,” says Davis. “It was like punk-rock music. If the parents didn’t like it, we won…. Having Crossroads come back, it’s the validation that you can’t listen to those critics. You just have to believe that the thing that you made…stands the test of time…. We were right—you were wrong.”

In honor of the film’s rerelease, Davis dishes on all things Crossroads, including her unorthodox first meeting with her leading lady, Kim Cattrall ’s “super harsh” performance as the mother of Spears’s character, and her reaction to Spears saying now that the production “wasn’t easy for me.”

Vanity Fair: As I was trying to rewatch the film for our conversation, I learned just how impossible it is to find —on streaming or otherwise. Is that part of why the rerelease is happening?

Tamra Davis : Yes. Because people would be like, “Hey, how do I watch?” I’m like, “I know it’s not available. You can’t stream it. It’s nowhere to be found.” I tried to have my lawyers call. And then out of nowhere, I get a call from Sony that after all these years of me trying, and my lawyer, it was Britney that called to get it rereleased because she wanted it to accompany her launch of the book. So, Sony came in and picked up the film from its original distributor, Paramount, and bought the rights. It’s going to be available for this event, but then they’re going to do a streaming deal.

By Julie Miller

By Chris Murphy

By Joy Press

Do you feel like the movie will be received differently now?

For sure. I just rewatched it myself, and I hadn’t seen it in, God, I don’t know, 10, 15, years. It was all us women making it—myself and Shonda and [producer] Ann Carli behind the camera, and Britney. But yes, I feel like it’s going to be received differently because at that point, she was such a gigantic pop star that people wanted to comment on that [instead of the movie]. Now, I feel like you can see it as this incredible friendship film. I just was really blown away by the feeling that I got watching it—how important female friendships are.

I read that you initially turned down the film and were reticent about making a Britney Spears vehicle. What changed your mind about her and the project itself?

My agents were like, “Oh, we don’t think you should do it.” I was friends with Ann Carli, I knew her from Jive Records, and she said, “Why don’t you just go and meet her?” So I was like, “Okay, that sounds fun. A free ticket to Las Vegas and get to meet Britney Spears? Yeah, that’s cool.” So she opened the door at 10 in the morning wearing underwear and a T-shirt, and was just like, “Man, I was hammered last night.” And I was like, “What? Who’s this ? You’re Britney Spears?”

I spent the whole day with her and watched her go from this girl that’s from the South, and I knew who that girl was, to Britney Spears. She had to get dressed for some big event that night, the VMA Awards or something. And I fell in love with her. She told me that she really wanted to control her image, she wanted to do the rehearsals. She said, “I’ll do anything you say.” She really made a gigantic commitment [that] she would let all of this go and just focus on the movie.

The film reflects a lot of Britney’s personal life at the time, from singing an ’NSync song in the convertible to having her sister, Jamie Lynn, play the younger version of her character. Were those elements woven in to make Britney feel more comfortable in her first film?

I think so. She was really close with her sister and her mom during the film. I respected and loved that, of course, and her sister looked exactly like her. And the thing with Justin [Timberlake] , that was super fun. They were dating at the time, and I loved their relationship. But also, it’s so interesting that at that time with music, it really was this huge debate between end of the ’90s rock music, which then goes into all the girls were like, “We want to hear ’NSync and have fun.” So, it really was a battle of the airwaves. It was like Blink 182 versus Backstreet Boys.

You once said that nothing happened on the film “without making sure Brit was happy with it.” What element of production did you differ the most on?

It had to do with her record [“I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman”]. This was a record specifically about going from this teen to a woman. And so that’s what the film was about. That was what she had told Shonda. So most of those discussions happened before me. The things that I struggled with the most was—Shonda, this was her first film. She was on path to be a director. Ann was going to work with her and she was going to direct a movie starring Jada [Pinkett Smith] . So she really had a lot of strong ideas, and she and I come from very different places. I’m very visual and street, and I’ve worked my way up to get to where I was. And she was this incredibly educated, smart woman that was really strong and had a very specific viewpoint even at that time and age. So it was just more trying to make sure that Shonda and I were on the same page and everything that happened, she and I had to agree with.

Britney really wanted to be part of the ensemble. I think that she wanted to let go of all the power and just be part of this group and really work on that craft. So she didn’t really come on as like, “Well, I see it this way.” This was all new to her, so she was incredibly wonderful and open to direction.

I’m not sure if you’ve seen it yet, but in a newly released excerpt from her book, Britney writes about going Method for the movie and says that she felt so immersed in the process that it made her wary about putting herself through that again for another role. Did you get a sense of this feeling while working with her?

Yes, and I can’t wait to hear what she says because for me, I didn’t want her to act. Acting was what she learned on The Mickey Mouse Club. So when I hung out with her and Taryn and Zoe, it was [like] playing with better tennis players. Let’s put you around people that are really good actors like Taryn and Zoe and Anson [Mount] . It would’ve been weird to have somebody fake acting with Taryn Manning, who I almost said no to because I was like, “She’s amazing, but I need an actor. I don’t need a girl that’s really the girl.” And my sister’s like, “She’s acting right now.” I was like, “Oh, my God.”

So I felt like the more I got to know Britney, the more I got to put her on the camera. I wanted to get the authentic version of her. And so when I rewatched it in the last couple weeks, I was so moved because I knew that’s what I was doing. But it was really intense when she’s sitting on the bed talking to her father about how she missed out on being a teenager. That’s her crying, telling us that longing that she missed out on everything. That’s really her. When she’s crying on the bathroom floor of that rejection [by her mother], we had to get to her, really her. She’s not acting in the movie. So it’s so curious to hear that she saw that too, that I was really making her feel and be that character. Because she couldn’t be Britney.

She was at such a professional peak. Did you find it difficult to pierce the wall of people that helped control her image, to build trust with her?

I’m so grateful for somebody like Ann, because right in the very beginning she put her foot down and was like, “The moment I have you on this set, you’re no longer Britney Spears.” I had the support of the producers, and the film had Britney and [record executive] Clive Davis behind it. They supported those decisions so that we really could shut out the world of Britney. It really made it a big difference.

I remember watching the Madonna documentary, and you see that when you are the top banana, everybody does everything you want to do. And that’s not what it’s like on a movie. So we needed to get her to the place where when she came on set, she was just like all of us. I love set life, because you feel like you’re at a giant summer camp most of the time. There shouldn’t be one top person that runs it, because it just wrecks it. And I just love after the film, when they’re doing the B-roll of “Overprotected” and you cut away and see who she was at that time—how relaxed and fun. I just love seeing that part of her.

Kim Cattrall is so delicious as Britney’s mother in the film. But is it true that Madonna was floated for that role ?

It’s probably internet lore. We talked about who we love. We love Britney, and I love Madonna. So to open the film with her dancing in her bedroom [to Madonna’s “Open Your Heart”], and just the celebration of girl culture, that’s what we do—we close our bedroom door, we play around. I love that. To me, it’s my female gaze saying, this is what girls are like. I love that. And of course, Britney was super into that.

With Kim Cattrall, we all loved Sex and the City. That’s legendary. So we asked Kim if she could be in the film, but it was also a real risk for her. And I think that’s also what Kim liked, is she’s not playing a good character. It’s super harsh. You’re playing a mom who rejects somebody, and it’s really intense. So I really liked the bravery that she had to do a role like that. Not all mothers are…Sometimes you don’t want your past to come back to you, and it’s threatening.

Another thing I was struck by is that the film’s main twist is identical to the one at the center of Big Little Lies season one . Has anyone ever brought that up to you?

No! Maybe [ Big Little Lies ] author Liane Moriarty is a Crossroads fan [ laughs ]. But that’s freaking Shonda Rhimes, she’s brilliant. Look at her career afterwards. She is incredible. I was so struck when I watched it, about how you start to unfold these secrets that these girls hold. But that takes time. It doesn’t just happen immediately. So by the end of the film, how the friendship really builds and comes back together, I just was really impressed with that. That’s Shonda showing us her complexity of female characters and that it takes time to unfold.

And you had to fight for the scene where Lucy loses her virginity to Ben, right?

Me and Sherry Lansing [then Paramount chairman], we did a screening, she said, “I have a suggestion. Let’s look at the movie if we take out that scene.” And I was like,  “ What ? The whole reason Britney made this movie is because of that scene.” And it’s done so tastefully that if you’re a child, you almost have no idea what’s going on. I did it super choreographed. I knew that I would have backup from Britney, everybody would back me up. I fought for that scene. It would’ve been so silly to take it out. We screened the film with the female audience after [our conversation] with that scene. And my scores were so high that Sherry let me keep it in.

As fun as the film is, there’s also a sadness in knowing what Britney would experience in the years after. In the past, you believed that Britney’s conservatorship prevented the two of you from reconnecting in a real way. Now that it’s over , have you been in contact?

No. We’ve been in contact with her new manager, and I think she knows that I’m there for her. I totally respect however she wants to communicate. I knew that she couldn’t speak because of the SAG contract, but I just wanted to let her know that no matter what happened, I would be next to her so she wouldn’t have to do anything alone. And even knowing that she trusts me to go out and speak…I’d love to talk to her whenever she’s ready. But I totally respect wherever she is right now, and love her dearly.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

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Britney Spears’  Crossroads  is coming to streaming for the first time

Not a girl, not yet a woman...

Crossroads is finally hitting streaming.

The 2002 film, which marked Britney Spears ’ first starring role, will hit Netflix on Feb. 15. The movie hasn’t been accessible on streaming platforms or digital retailers since its release.

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Crossroads sees Spears’ character Lucy reunite with her childhood best friends Kit ( Zoë Saldana ) and Mimi ( Taryn Manning ). The trio embarks on a cross-country road trip with Mimi’s friend Ben ( Anson Mount ) that takes them in unexpected — and sometimes dark — directions. 

The film, which was written by future mogul Shonda Rhimes , returned to theaters last year for two nights in October to coincide with the release of Spears’ memoir, The Woman in Me . When the rerelease was announced, director Tamra Davis said, “I recently rewatched Crossroads and was so enthralled with the time capsule of nostalgia that this incredible ensemble cast brings to the screen. Britney is absolutely breathtaking to watch, and Shonda is showing us her early expertise in writing complicated female characters."

Netflix announced the news on social media. “The first movie to ever star the one and only Britney Spears has never been available on streaming... but that's about to change!” the streamer wrote . “We're thrilled to announce that Crossroads will finally be available on Netflix — GLOBALLY — starting February 15.”

Crossroads also stars Kim Cattrall , Justin Long , Dan Aykroyd , and Jamie Lynn Spears , who plays the younger version of her sister Britney’s character.

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Let's Go Girls: Celebrating the Girls' (Road) Trip Movie

The best part about being a woman is the prerogative to have a little fun..

Drive-Away Dolls is directed by Ethan Coen, who co-wrote the film with his partner and the film’s editor, Tricia Cooke, and stars Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan as two lesbian friends on a road trip who unwittingly get caught up in some mobster deal. It’s a love letter to vintage sexploitation films like Russ Meyer’s Motorpsycho and Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! , Doris Wishman’s Bad Girls Go to Hell, and Robert Aldrich’s Kiss Me Deadly, while also inspired by directors John Waters and Pedro Almodóvar.

However, underneath it all lies a girls’ road trip movie which is empowering, enlightening, a little dangerous, and of course, a little fun.

The Road Map

The girls' road trip movie (GRTM) is about women who just ~need to get away~ from the monotony of their everyday lives. Abandoning their at-home responsibilities for even a weekend, everything is about being present in the moment with each other, the car, and the road. They meet colorful characters within the Americana melting pot and rebel against the patriarchy through their renewed sense of freedom that comes with connecting to the nature of sisterhood. There might even be car singalongs, a get-rich-quick scheme, and a little bit of crime! (Your mileage may vary.)

Compared to other forms of travel, a girls’ road trip movie is a pressure cooker. The car is an unsung and unofficial character and the almost always present race against some clock is the antagonist. Compared to planes, trains, and charter buses, a car is usually the most accessible and convenient (also the slowest) way to travel, especially if you’re a teenager – as we see in many modern versions of this genre. If you have a license, a dream, and the will to drive for hours on end in a metal box while at the mercy of the elements, the world is yours! Trapped in a car together, you become the captain and the crewmembers, you spend every moment together, share lodging and secrets, and are essentially each other’s lifelines out in the expanse of lands with spotty Wi-Fi and sketchy characters.

Drive-Away Dolls is a lesbian spin on this genre, yet it drives down the same road as many previous girls’ road trip players have – one that ultimately transforms its travelers. The boisterous Jamie (Qualley) is caught cheating and is kicked out of her shared apartment, so she joins the buttoned-up and touch-starved Marian (Viswanathan) on a trip down to Tallahassee. In the titular drive-away Dodge Aries, they head out with a destination, some unplanned detours, dildos, and multiple dalliances ahead of them.

There are a few different dynamics that can come into play in girls' road trip movies: adult best friends (Thelma & Louise, The Sweetest Thing, Joy Ride) or former childhood friends (Unpregnant, Crossroads). Sometimes they’re coworkers or acquaintances (Zola, Death Proof). And while the odd-couple pairing is not required, it’s always more entertaining to have opposing personalities. Women are socialized at a young age to present and act in certain ways that serve the patriarchy and fit within a structure that keeps women in restrictive roles but are at odds with the carefree and curious childlike ways we first experience the world and each other. Remove the constraints of society and we revert to our natures to commune with each other. Consider it the inverse of Lord of the Flies. Women thrive outside of the restrictions of a society constructed by and for men. Take men out of the society that was built for them and they devolve into chaos.

Not-So-United States

Most GRTMs, however, tend to exaggerate the “othering” feeling of visiting a new place with fundamentally different perspectives or customs. It’s a shorthand for how far they’ve traveled, and as always, it’s never a road trip movie without meeting some colorful characters! Sexy strangers, pervy truck drivers, unfazed diner waitresses, unaccommodating motel clerks, and wary gas station attendants all tinge our travelers’ journey with some interesting color. Ideologically different humans show how the United States is not so united in some of its views, forcing women to contextualize their existence in different parts of the country. Unpregnant had fundamental Christians trying to sabotage the girls' trip to the abortion appointment, while a libertarian prepper suited up and drove them there! Balance?

So yes, solo road trips are a thing, but sociologically it’s always better and safer when girls go at it together, like going to the restroom! Move in packs. I’m very serious in claiming Mad Max: Fury Road as a GRTM for the example of the dangers to women on the road, effectively leaving them exposed to their natural predators – men.

What’s a Nice Girl Like You Doing in a Place Like This?

Often, our heroines end up running away from society and its constructs, roles, and expectations, whichever form that may take. In Thelma & Louise, Thelma’s first act of rebellion is forsaking her shitty husband and running off to a fun girls’ weekend. And while she has a flirty dance with a bar hound, it’s the pervasive rape culture and the realization that the court of public opinion will never take their side that drives Thelma and Louise off a cliff. In Death Proof, Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell) gets his kicks off stalking women, taunting them, and running them off the road. He insinuates violence unless he gets the lap dance Julia (Sydney Poitier) promised Arlene (Vanessa Ferlito) would do. The women Stuntman Mike runs into a year later happen to also have stunt women who fight back with a muscle car of their own and kick the shit out of him at the end. In Zola, X (Colman Domingo) is a threatening pimp who uses Stefani (Riley Keough) in an attempt to trap Taylour Paige’s title character into prostitution. Still, the two women form a tenuous partnership to make it through the all-night ordeal. The analogy of restricting and oppressive culture patriarchy is taken to its logical conclusion in Mad Max: Fury Road – women are seen as property and used as breeders and milk harvesters. So for these women, taking to the road is the way to go.

The rapidly expanding collection of road trip movies has also lately become a vehicle (pun intended) for stories of strapped young women with unplanned pregnancies (Unpregnant, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Grandma, Crossroads). Young women on the precipice of adulthood are making a huge personal decision that will change their young lives. In Unpregnant, Veronica (Haley Lu Richardson) is ostensibly trapped by her ignorant, self-serving boyfriend who wants to keep her from going off to college. Taryn Manning’s Mimi in Crossroads is pursuing her pop singer dreams while pregnant and decides that she’s giving her baby conceived from rape up for adoption.

On the flip side, however, the road trip encourages a type of sexual freedom; bless these horny tumbleweeds blowing through small towns. Thelma is so satisfied by peak Brad Pitt that she doesn’t realize that he’s robbing them. The women in Joy Ride engage in truly raunchy activities with a basketball team that benched a few of them. Back to Drive-Away Dolls, Jamie and Marian join a basement makeout party. Britney Spears’ entire arc of losing her virginity in Crossroads is iconically captured by “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman”! On the road, these women belong to no one but themselves and it’s so freeing!

To quote Ralph Waldo Emerson, “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.” Sometimes the destination is only the beginning of the real adventure, where hardships can arise and force these women to scramble. In that process, they learn more about themselves and the world around them while also deepening their friendships. Long live the girls’ road trip movie: the great celebration of the resiliency of being a woman breaking free from a patriarchal society… and a reminder that we can always take a little break now and then to be present with ourselves and our surroundings. In the words of Jack Kerouac, “Nothing behind me, everything ahead of me, as is ever on the road.”

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Screen Rant

Britney spears' critically panned 2003 movie climbs into netflix's global chart.

A poorly reviewed two-decade-old Britney Spears movie is now a streaming hit on Netflix's global Top 10 chart for English-language features.

• Netflix's new chart of top English-language movies lists Crossroads at No. 10 with 3.7 million viewers.
• The 2002 Britney Spears movie is poorly reviewed on Rotten Tomatoes.
• The movie's newfound popularity may be due to it being prominently featured in Spears' memoir.

Crossroads has become a global streaming hit. The 2002 coming-of-age dramedy starred Britney Spears opposite a star-studded ensemble cast that included Zoe Saldaña, Taryn Manning, Anson Mount, Kim Cattrall, and Dan Aykroyd. It was not well-received critically and at the time of writing holds a 15% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes alongside a similarly rotten 40% score from audiences.

Netflix has now calculated their global chart of the Top 10 most-watched English-language movies for the week of February 19 through February 25. Britney Spears' Crossroads has landed at No. 10 on the chart thanks to 3.7 million viewers streaming the movie for a total of 5.5 million hours. The rest of the list includes recent Netflix original hits such as Orion and the Dark and Tyler Perry's Mea Culpa .

The Crossroads Renaissance Explained

Despite its poor reviews, Crossroads was a commercial success during its 2002 release. It made $61.1 million against its budget, which is estimated somewhere between $10 and $12 million, meaning it made a substantial profit . It was the 73rd highest-grossing movie of the year, as it was still outperformed by blockbusters including the horror hit 28 Days Later ($82.7 million), the Silence of the Lambs prequel Red Dragon ($209.1 million), and the trilogy-connecting The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers ($936.7 million).

2002 movies that were outgrossed by Crossroads include The Wild Thornberrys ($60.7 million), Analyze That ($55 million), and A Walk to Remember ($47.5 million).

The Crossroads soundtrack was also a success, helping launch the Britney Spears single "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" to No. 21 on the Billboard Top 40 chart. However, the movie's newfound popularity online likely comes from another source altogether. Spears recently released her memoir The Woman in Me , the title of which is a reference to the aforementioned single, in which she spends some time detailing the making of the movie and her challenges with the acting process .

Why Britney Spears Never Made Another Movie After Crossroads

The hubbub around Spears' raw, confessional book is likely what has spurred this resurgence in interest in the movie after so many years.

To tie in with the release of Spears' memoir, Crossroads was also re-released into theaters in 2023. The hubbub around Spears' raw, confessional book is likely what has spurred this resurgence in interest in the movie after so many years. Netflix's acquisition of the title was especially well-timed to take advantage of the movie's newfound status in the public eye, which likely helped boost its prominence in spite of the fact that it has long been considered a cult classic.

Click here to watch Crossroads on Netflix

Source: Netflix

Crossroads (2002)

Crossroads is a comedy-drama film by director Tamra Davis that was released in 2002. Three close friends, Lucy, Kit, and Mimi, bury a box, promising to revisit it on their graduation night, but as time passes, the trio grows distant. Deciding to honor their hopes and wishes and looking to reconnect, the girls embark on a road trip to do the things they always wanted to do - together.

Britney Spears Is The Patron Saint Of Spring Break

It’s beach time, b*tch.

Spring break isn’t just an annual vacay; it’s a whole state of mind. It immediately conjures up visions of beach days, r oad trips , day-drinking, and most importantly, a carefree, unscheduled vibe of doing whatever you feel like in the moment. If the essence of spring break could manifest into a person, she’d be your fun-loving bestie who’s always up for a dance party — whether you’re at a club or just chilling at home. She’d be that silly friend who always makes you laugh at the most random things. She’d be Britney Spears.

It’s my deeply held belief that Britney Spears is the physical embodiment of spring break. No matter what season it is, Spears has never wavered when it comes to emanating all-rules-are-off, no-effs-given party vibes. It could be the middle of winter, but Spears’ commitment to bikinis and eagerness to dance through any situation will transport you to a sunny beach party every time. Each new emoji-filled selfie embodies the fun-loving chaos that is spring break.

It’s not just the pop star’s attitude that makes her the Spearit of the season. Though she’s mostly partying in her living room these days, Spears was once the face of the biggest vacation celebration around. Back in 1999, when MTV Spring Break was at its peak, Spears was prominently featured throughout the weekslong party coverage . It was the first sign that her music had become mandatory for any partier’s spring break soundtrack.

It’s impossible to imagine a beach trip with your best friends without blaring at least one of Spears’ songs. Whether you’re scream-singing “... Baby One More Time” with your girls in the car or learning the “Toxic” dance routine in your Airbnb while you pregame before your night out, no spring break trip is complete without Spears.

But as true fans know, Spears’ most evident odes to the spring break lifestyle are actually her deeper cuts. Her “Sometimes” music video epitomizes a beachy love affair, as Spears dances on a pier and muses about her fickle tendencies around her crush. Later in her career, Spears experimented with spicier Latin pop sounds perfectly suited to blasting at beach parties, including “Ooh Ooh Baby” and “Mmm Papi.”

And even though her 2002 movie Crossroads was technically set in the summer, it’s become the ultimate spring break movie. After all, there’s nothing as free-spirited as a road trip, so watching Spears, Zoe Saldaña, and Taryn Manning bond while crossing the country on their adventure to California is just the right vibe to inspire your own long drive with your besties.

Finally, we come to Spears’ most salient contribution to spring break culture: “ Everytime .” When Spears’ breakup ballad surprisingly played in full in the climactic scene of 2013’s Spring Breakers , it took on a whole new life as the undisputed anthem of the season. Now, even if your spring break doesn’t involve armed robbery in hot-pink ski masks, it’s still a requirement to have an “Everytime” moment with your girls.

I guess spring Break needs you, Britney.