Finally available for streaming, “Crossroads” remains the major film of Britney Spears’ career. And one sequence from the film in particular tells the story of the star’s life and the music industry of the time.
Unavailable in streaming in France, Crossroads has finally landed on a platform. Available on Netflix, Britney Spears’ one and only film acting experience allows fans past and present to reunite with the pop star in this romantic road movie.
Nanar for some, cult film for others, this film, which did not leave the star with very good memories, earned more than $61 million at the box office upon its release in 2002 but garnered rating of 1.5 out of 5, awarded by members of the AlloCiné community.
The qualities of Crossroads are questionable, despite the presence of stars and future stars in the cast and a script by a future prodigy showrunner, namely Shonda Rhimes, who subsequently became the showrunner of Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal and Murder and producer from Bridgerton!
When Britney Spears sang “Bye, bye, bye”
But this film represents the 2000s well and reeks of nostalgia, more than twenty years after its release. It is especially essential in the career of Britney Spears, scrutinized throughout her life by the public and the media and it bears witness to a certain era, as defended by its director Tamra Davis.
It is in particular a particular scene which perfectly crystallizes the era of Crossroads and the life of Britney Spears: the one where Lucy (Britney Spears), Kit (Zoe Saldana) and Mimi (Taryn Manning) sing “Bye bye bye” by the group * NSYNC, which was none other than the boy band of Justin Timberlake, at the time Britney Spears’ boyfriend.
But the driver Ben (Anson Mount) of the car taking them all on the road trip wasn’t too happy about listening to this music during his drive. And Tamra Davis explained to Entertainment Weekly that this sequence is important:
“The scene on [*NSYNC] summed up what was happening in the music scene at that time. It was this mixture of music that [Ben] wanted to listen to, which was Nirvana and alt-grunge, and what the girls wanted to listen to, which was *NSYNC, the Backstreet Boys and boy bands. We loved this contrast of radio.”
The director doesn’t remember if this specific music was already present in the script, but she did her best to make the scene what it was: “I think until the last minute we didn’t know if we would get the rights because it was a gigantic song.”
It’s unclear whether Britney Spears had a hand in having her then-boyfriend’s goodbye song (with whom she split shortly after) be in the film, but it takes on a special meaning, the light of what the singer was able to say about their relationship in her memoirs The Woman in Me or what may have been revealed in the documentary Framing Britney Spears.
The Crossroads movie is available on Netflix.