Sister, Oh Sister: Cruel Gossip Girl Intentions for Sarah Michelle Gellar and Michelle Trachtenberg
At a glance: The very last scene with Georgina on Gossip Girl’s season finale reminded me of the last scene with Kathryn in Cruel Intentions.
Sarah Michelle Gellar (SMG) played Buffy Summers for seven years on The WB Network. That’s not new news. Fans know that for three of those years, Michelle Trachtenberg played Dawn Summers, Buffy’s little and peskily annoying sister. By the time Trachtenberg joined, SMG had already played her role in the 1999 hit Blockbuster Cruel Intentions.
I still remember going to the theater to see it, it was never just ‘another movie’ for my generation, it was an experience. We love this movie and we’ll watch it over and over, and it’s not because it’s Oscar-worthy. It’s just so fun and wonderful. At least that’s how I see it. Because, male or female, people in my age bracket (20’s) adore this film (at least more often than not).
Gellar had dark hair (close to her natural color) for the role of the rich bitch, Kathryn Merteuil. Her step-brother was Sebastian Valmont, played by a very crush-worthy Ryan Phillipe. Kathryn and Sebastian had a bet, and eager plans to destroy the new girl who was the innocent and blonde Annette Hargrove (played by Reese Witherspoon - Phillipe’s real wife at the time). Anyway. ‘Twas a great movie. They’ve tried to make sequels but they always fail miserably, just like the Bring it On sequel’s do. Not that I, uh, watched any of them. Erm. Moving on! (Did you know they also made another IKWYDLS - I Know What You Did Last Summer - movie after the second one? SO. BAD. But I felt compelled to watch!)
Something I found eerie was that Trachtenberg recently played a character very similar to Gellar’s Merteuil, on The CW’s Gossip Girl. Trachtenberg was Georgina Sparks, with dark hair, clothes, and fingernails. Sparks was even more evil than the ‘resident bad girl’ Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester).
The very last scene with Georgina on Gossip Girl’s season finale reminded me of the last scene with Kathryn in Cruel Intentions.
Here are screencaps from Gossip Girl, with commentary about how Cruel Intentions follows a distinctly similar sequence.
Kathryn starts out on the top of the world. She thinks she’s gotten away with everything. (Note that she is wearing a long cross, just like how Kathryn wore a rosary at all times.)
Kathryn is confronted at first by Annette in the bathroom. But Kathryn thinks everything is still fine… Annette acts polite.
When Kathryn is giving her eulogy for Sebastian, people have been being passed something through the church. She gets so angry that no one is paying attention (they’re laughing) so she storms down, through the crowd.
Cecile is out there, and hands her a copy of something. Meanwhile, other kids are standing around, mocking and pointing.
Kathryn realizes what has happened…tears forming…(wah, wah!)
Two of the faculty approach Kathryn. She is looking at the diary that Sebastian wrote and Cecile has photocopied and passed out. It includes Kathryn’s dirty secret about her drug habit. She’s in major trouble, to say the least.
For more Sirlinksalot: Gossip Girl
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - The Complete Fifth Season (Slim Set) $16.99
Cruel Intentions: Music From The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack $2.97-$8.99
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About the Author: Your above-average sweet, smart, and snarky Girl Friday. Impeccable taste. Analytical. Liberal. Friend to animals. Always found in cute shoes.
Brittany | Jun 30, 2008 | Reply
You know I despised Dawn, which in turn made me not like Michelle. Come on she was a slap in the face to us kids who had been with Buffy since the beginning and KNEW that Buffy didn’t have a sister! Hmm, I don’t think there’s a point to this except that I wanted Kathryn to get away with everything in the end.
Jessica Rae | Jun 30, 2008 | Reply
LoL. Somehow Dawn was ruining the magic of the Scoobies! But I did grow to like her. That movie is great. I only have it on VHS though, I need it on DVD. Lmao. Or I need to figure out how to hook up that VHS player in here so I can watch while I do important SC writing!