Cruel Intentions

Dangerous Liaisons for the under-20s is the basic premise of this sexed-up, revved-up teen picture. Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe star as the contemporary Merteuil and Valmont, circulating round the upper echelons of New York society and laying their bet as to whether or not Phillippe can bed Reese Witherspoon. You can understand why writer/director Roger Kumble saw the classic novel as an apt metaphor for burgeoning sexuality and exploration, but the crucial distinction is that Merteuil and Valmont, when played as middle-aged, have the motive of bitter life experience to fuel their dangerous games. With teenagers at its centre, the same plot seems to reverberate with unprovoked spite. The depth gone, this is simply an entertaining romp that's easily surpassed by Stephen Frears's earlier adaptation of the tale.