Movie: The Movie: The Series
Dangerous Liaisons, Cruel Intentions (1999), and Cruel Intentions (2024).

by Megan Bailey, Staff Writer

Dangerous Liaisons is a fascinating case of adaptation-ception. The original novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos was published in 1782. Christopher Hampton adapted it into a play in 1985 and then a screenplay for the 1988 film directed by Stephen Frears. Then in 1999, the film Cruel Intentions, itself based on the original novel, came onto the scene. So perhaps this isn’t a “Movie: The Movie: The Series” so much as a “Book: The Movie: Another Movie: The Series.” But you get the idea!

The basic plot summary goes something like this: Marquise de Merteuil (Glenn Close) and Vicomte de Valmont (John Malkovich) are scandalous schemers. Of their two main schemes, one is spearheaded by the Marquise, as a means of getting revenge on an ex, and the other is for the Vicomte to seduce a devout, chaste woman, Madame de Tourvel (Michelle Pfeiffer). If Valmont can seal the deal with Madame de Tourvel, the Marquise agrees to sleep with him, but only if he can get written proof of the affair. Over the course of the film, these liaisons prove, well, dangerous (and there is a name drop in the film, amazing). The movie kind of has everything: scandal, sex, sword duels—the list goes on.

Respectively, this main trio all have different names across the adaptations: the Marquise is named Kathryn (Sarah Michelle Gellar) in the nineties film and Caroline (Sarah Catherine Hook) in the show; Valmont is otherwise known as Sebastian (Ryan Phillippe) in the 1999 film and Lucien (Zac Burgess) in the 2024 show; and Madame de Tourvel is renamed to be Annette (Reese Witherspoon) in the later film and Annie (Savannah Lee Smith) in the show.

And while Cruel Intentions is based on the original novel, there are undeniable similarities between the films. For one, Ryan Philippe’s performance is clearly inspired by John Malkovich’s in Liaisons, down to the way his character speaks (both vocally and in the actual words he uses). It’s almost uncanny how similar his performance is, with an added bit of rich kid of the ‘90s edge. And a special shout out to Swoosie Kurts for being in both films, as Madame de Volanges in Dangerous Liaisons and Dr. Regina Greenbaum in Cruel Intentions. It’s so cool to get to be in the original adaptation and a modernized take.

The main difference, of course, is the modern setting. Instead of pre-revolution France, this film is set in what was then modern-day New York City, and the dialogue is also clearly a product of its time. The clothes, the hair, the sexual politics, everything feels so deliciously ‘90s. And I appreciate here that instead of Madame de Tourvel dying at the end, Annette gets to drive off into the sunset in Sebastian’s car. That’s a welcome change from the source material. Those with cruel intentions are punished, with Sebastian dying from being hit by a taxi in Central Park instead of a sword duel, and Annette prints copies of Sebastian’s journal, which details Kathryn’s misdeeds.

The most scandalous elements in Intentions, the queerness and the step-sibling incest, are creations of the ‘90s film. Where Sebastian catches Azolan (Peter Capaldi) in bed with Julie (Valerie Gogan) to blackmail her in Liaisons, he instead catches Blaine (Joshua Jackson) in bed with Greg (Eric Mabius) to spur the same scheme. Where Merteuil encourages Cécile (Uma Thurman) to enjoy herself in bed with Valmont, Kathryn takes it a step further and teaches Cecile (Selma Blair) how to kiss. And while the tension between Merteuil and Valmont feels somewhat forbidden in Liaisons, it’s downright taboo in the ‘90s film. The agreement to sleep together is still present and teased throughout the film.

In all honesty, I’m not objective enough to be able to say whether Cruel Intentions (1999) is a good movie. To me, it’s the scandalous romp I saw as a preteen, before my brain was fully formed. And it was part of my bisexual awakening, so who can really be sure, you know?

But what I can say is that Cruel Intentions (2024) does not do its source material justice. Originally intended as a Freevee show, it was moved to Amazon Prime proper and released in November 2024. It has similar bones to Liaisons and the film it’s adapted from, but none of the flavor. They’ve aged the characters up, making them college students rather than high schoolers. Not the worst change, but it shows a crack in the foundation: Apparently, the only one who can make a scandalous teen show anymore is Sam Levinson (ugh). But aging the characters up so they could get into more “adult” situations would have been fine, if a little bit annoying. Aging the Cruel Intentions characters up and somehow making them less interesting is truly a feat.

The show itself is centered on Caroline, Lucien, and Annie, but there’s an entire main plot about the sororities and fraternities on their campus. Caroline is the president of her sorority, and she believes getting Annie, the Vice President’s daughter, to join will smooth over the issues the university has had with Greek life on campus. To do so, she enlists Lucien’s help: If he can get Annie to pledge for her sorority, she’ll sleep with him. There’s also an extended storyline about how Lucien records a sex tape with every woman he hooks up with and shares those videos with Caroline. These, of course, are leaked over the course of the show, but it really amounts to nothing. That’s weird! There’s just not much to Cruel Intentions (2024) that feels fresh. It takes some of the ingredients from the original movie, tones them down, and stretches them out across an entire eight-episode season. It’s not that fun to watch.

The various adaptations are a testament to the enduring nature of the original Dangerous Liaisons. It’s a scandalous story, primed to make sense in any time or place, and enjoyable to watch unfold. In fact, in 2022, a Dangerous Liaisons show aired on Starz. It served as a prequel to the original plot, and though it was initially renewed for a second season ahead of its premiere, Starz canceled the show after one season. It’s not particularly relevant here, since it’s not the same plot, but it’s another sign of the source material’s enduring popularity (though its later attempts didn’t survive long).

Cruel Intentions (1999) and Dangerous Liaisons are undeniable melodramas in the best way. They are a blast to watch, even if you don’t buy in completely. The show doesn’t have that watchability. Overall, Dangerous Liaisons and the 1999 film are a really fun exploration of similar story elements in vastly different settings, and I’d recommend a double feature anytime! The show just isn’t inventive enough to stand on its own or dedicated enough to its source material to be even mildly cruel or scandalous.

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