In the late ’90s and early ’00s, cinemas were flooded with teen and high school movies. A contribution to the genre was released in 1999, which bitterly settles accounts with all other strips of this kind. What is meant is Eiskalte Engel by Roger Kumble, who adapts the classic novel Dangerous Liaisons and transfers it to the modern age.
The result is a thriller-drama masterpiece with a brilliant cast and iconic soundtrack, which rips the superficially flawless and jaded New York high society to pieces. Eiskalte Engel runs on sixx on Sunday evening at 8:15 p.m.
Eiskalte Engel tears down the ideal facade of teen films in a grandiose manner
The film’s story follows step-siblings Kathryn (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Sebastian (Ryan Phillippe) who make a bet. If the attractive heartthrob succeeds in seducing the virgin daughter of the new school principal, Sebastian may in turn sleep with his coveted stepsister.
This perfidious pact results in a mix of trendy RomCom clichés and a glamorous surface, which the director repeatedly breaks up with cynically entertaining tips.
Drawing from then-hot stars like Ryan Phillippe, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Reese Witherspoon, Cruel Intentions weaves together characters that constantly abuse emotions, pose bodies as seductive lures, and dialogue veers from feigned honesty to genuine malevolence. There are also unforgettable details such as one of the most legendary kissing scenes in film history.
In Roger Kumble’s film adaptation, the cool nonchalance of the facade increasingly turns into a bitter tragedy. And after the harrowing finale, the teen and high school genre finally shattered.
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