2022 film by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
Do Revenge
|
---|
Official release poster
|
Directed by
| Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
|
---|
Written by
|
- Celeste Ballard
- Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
|
---|
Produced by
|
- Anthony Bregman
- Peter Cron
- Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
|
---|
Starring
| |
---|
Cinematography
| Brian Burgoyne
|
---|
Edited by
| |
---|
Music by
| |
---|
Production
companies
| |
---|
Distributed by
| Netflix
|
---|
Release date
|
- September 16, 2022
(
2022-09-16
)
|
---|
Running time
| 119 minutes
|
---|
Country
| United States
|
---|
Language
| English
|
---|
Budget
| $10 million
[1]
|
---|
Do Revenge
is a 2022 American
teen
black comedy
film directed by
Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
, who co-wrote the screenplay with Celeste Ballard. It stars
Camila Mendes
,
Maya Hawke
,
Austin Abrams
,
Rish Shah
, and
Sarah Michelle Gellar
, and it is loosely inspired by
Alfred Hitchcock
's
Strangers on a Train
(1951) and
Patricia Highsmith
's novel
Strangers on a Train
, which Hitchcock's film was based on. It was released on
Netflix
on September 16, 2022, and received generally positive reviews from critics.
Robinson pays homage to several
1990s
high school films and other teen classics such as
Heathers
(1989) and
Mean Girls
(2004).
[2]
[3]
Plot
[
edit
]
Drea is a popular student attending Rosehill Country Day High School, an elite private school in Miami, on a scholarship. A "conniving, selfish sociopath" who uses people to get what she wants, Drea becomes a social outcast after an
intimate video
she sent to her equally popular boyfriend, Max, is leaked online. Max claims he was hacked, but Drea blames Max for the
video's release
and they break up.
That summer, Drea works at a tennis camp where she meets Eleanor, a shy girl from a wealthy background who is transferring to Rosehill in September. Eleanor tells Drea about also becoming an outcast when a false rumor spread that she forcibly kissed Carissa, another Rosehill student, at a summer camp years earlier.
Realizing they will not get justice on their own, the two plan to exact revenge on each other's enemy: Drea on Carissa and Eleanor on Max. Following a makeover, Eleanor slowly infiltrates Drea's old clique of popular students, while Drea tries to get close to Carissa by working at the school farm, also befriending Russ, an unpopular student and Carissa's friend.
Eleanor is invited to a party thrown by Max, where she discovers he is cheating on his new girlfriend, Tara – Drea's former best friend. Drea steals Carissa's keys to the farm's locked greenhouse, finding the
marijuana
and
magic mushrooms
that Carissa is storing.
At the school's Senior Ring Ceremony, Drea places the drugs from the greenhouse in their classmates' dinner so she can steal Max's phone to obtain evidence of his wrongdoings. She anonymously tips off the headmaster about the greenhouse, getting Carissa expelled and sent to rehab. While searching through Max's texts messages, Drea and Eleanor find photos and messages from other girls at school stretching back years.
At a school assembly, Eleanor shares Max's texts to the entire student body, but Max and Tara then pretend to be a
polyamorous
couple, which in turn becomes the school's latest trend. Drea spirals after getting rejected from her dream school,
Yale
, and concocts a new plan to destroy all her popular former friends at the upcoming Admissions Party, which can only be attended by those accepted by
Ivy League
schools.
Eleanor enjoys her new popularity and Drea's old friends, beginning a relationship with Max's twin sister Gabbi. When Max and his friends surprise Eleanor for her birthday, Drea crashes the party and nearly jeopardizes their revenge scheme. They fight, going their separate ways after Eleanor asserts that there is no evidence that Max leaked Drea's video. Gabbi overhears this and breaks up with Eleanor for taking Max's side.
Drea, seeking dirt on Eleanor, visits Carissa at the rehab facility. Carissa reveals Eleanor is actually "Nosey" Nora Cutler, a girl they went to summer camp with. It was Drea who
outed
Nora and spread the rumor, an event she had selfishly forgotten, which prompted Eleanor to change her name and undergo a
rhinoplasty
. Drea confronts Eleanor, who reveals she had been playing her all along, aiming to cause the same pain she endured from the rumor. Eleanor threatens to frame Drea's mother, a nurse, for drug possession if she refuses to expose her old friends at the Admissions Party. Eleanor
T-bones
Drea's car, sending her to the hospital, to create a sob story that earns Drea access to the Admissions Party.
During the party, Drea reveals Eleanor to be "Nosey Nora" to Max and friends, but immediately regrets it and apologizes to Eleanor for being a sociopath. Their emotional reconciliation is interrupted when Max confesses to releasing Drea's video, as he found her selfish behavior a risk to his own sociopathy. Eleanor secretly films the confession, quickly sharing the video at the party, turning everyone against Max.
As a result, Max is expelled from Rosehill and his spot at Yale is offered to Drea, who rejects it. Drea apologizes to Russ and they kiss, Eleanor reconciles with Gabbi, and Max joins a support group to address his
toxic masculinity
.
Cast
[
edit
]
Production
[
edit
]
Development and casting
[
edit
]
On October 14, 2020, it was reported that Netflix was developing the film, then titled
Strangers
.
Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
co-wrote and directed the film, citing inspiration from
Alfred Hitchcock
's film
Strangers on a Train
(1951) and
Taylor Swift
's album
Reputation
(2017).
[5]
[6]
In November 2020,
Camila Mendes
and
Maya Hawke
were reported to star.
[7]
Additional cast members were announced in early 2021.
[8]
[9]
[10]
Filming
[
edit
]
Principal photography
was scheduled to take place in Los Angeles in early 2021,
[11]
[12]
but was changed to Atlanta, Georgia, with the story taking place in Miami following a rewrite in order to accommodate Hawke's schedule, who was shooting
Stranger Things
, as director Robinson did not want to lose either of the main actresses.
[13]
Filming initially wrapped on August 7, 2021,
[14]
with later stages of production occurring in August 2022 in Miami, Florida.
[15]
Much of the filming took place at
Oglethorpe University
in suburban Atlanta.
Release
[
edit
]
The film was released on Netflix on September 16, 2022.
[16]
Reception
[
edit
]
On the
review aggregator
website
Rotten Tomatoes
, 84% of 83 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The website's consensus reads: "
Do Revenge
could have used a bit more bite, but Maya Hawke and Camila Mendes make this a sweet dish best served to viewers who understand that high school can be hell."
[17]
Metacritic
, which uses a
weighted average
, assigned the film a score of 66 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
[18]
Coleman Spilde of
The Daily Beast
called the film a "generation defining masterpiece", saying that "once a decade, there comes a high school comedy so stylish, so witty, and so instantly influential that it cannot be topped. Netflix's colorful new romp is that movie."; Spilde subtitled his review "Cruel Intentions", acknowledging the relationship to the
1999 film of that name
and the presence of actress
Sarah Michelle Gellar
– who played the teen antagonist in that earlier film, tormenting the daughter of her school's headmaster, and appears as the headmaster in
Do Revenge
.
[19]
Amy Nicholson of
The New York Times
gave the film a B and described it as "a playful, sharp-fanged satire that feels like the '90s teen comedy hammered into modern emojis: crown, knife, fire, winky face."
[20]
Matt Zoller Seitz
of
RogerEbert.com
gave the film 3 out of 4 stars and said, "The film manages to blend all of its influences into a distinctive movie that is fully committed to its vision of high school as a handsomely costumed, art-directed snake pit filled with sadists who get off on other people's pain and embarrassment."
[21]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Robinson, Jacob (August 9, 2022).
"
'Do Revenge' Netflix Movie: Release Date, Cast, Trailer and Everything We Know"
.
What's On Netflix
. Retrieved
August 9,
2022
.
- ^
Sylph, Francesca (September 26, 2022).
"From 'Mean Girls' to 'Heathers': 9 Iconic Movies (And 1 Iconic Album) That Influenced 'Do Revenge'
"
.
Collider
. Retrieved
September 26,
2022
.
- ^
Spencer, Ashley (September 14, 2022).
"
Do Revenge
: Paying Homage to Teen Classics by Way of Hitchcock"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
September 14,
2022
.
- ^
Bitran, Tara (September 14, 2022).
"Wait, Was That Sarah Michelle Gellar as the 'Do Revenge' Headmaster?"
.
Netflix Tudum
. Retrieved
September 14,
2022
.
- ^
Donnely, Matt (October 14, 2020).
"Jennifer Kaytin Robinson Reunites With Netflix for Hitchcock-Inspired
Strangers
(Exclusive)"
.
Variety
.
Archived
from the original on November 10, 2020
. Retrieved
October 14,
2020
.
- ^
Gilmore, Kelly (September 21, 2022).
"How Taylor Swift Influenced Camila Mendes and Maya Hawke's Netflix Movie
Do Revenge
"
.
Yahoo!
.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2023
. Retrieved
October 29,
2023
.
- ^
N'Duka, Amanda; D'Alessandro, Anthony (November 10, 2020).
"Camila Mendes & Maya Hawke To Star In Netflix Movie
Strangers
From
Someone Great
Helmer Jennifer Kaytin Robinson"
.
Deadline Hollywood
.
Archived
from the original on November 10, 2020
. Retrieved
November 10,
2020
.
- ^
Kroll, Justin (April 28, 2021).
"Rish Shah To Co-Star In The Netflix Pic
Strangers
From
Someone Great
Director"
.
Deadline Hollywood
.
Archived
from the original on April 28, 2021
. Retrieved
April 28,
2021
.
- ^
Kanter, Jake (June 24, 2021).
"Sophie Turner Joins Jennifer Kaytin Robinson's Netflix Feature
Strangers
"
.
Deadline Hollywood
.
Archived
from the original on June 24, 2021
. Retrieved
June 24,
2021
.
- ^
Kroll, Justin (June 24, 2021).
"Netflix Dark Comedy
Strangers
Sets Cast With
Dash & Lily
'
s Austin Abrams And
13 Reasons Why
Star Alisha Boe Among Those Joining Ensemble"
.
Deadline Hollywood
.
Archived
from the original on June 24, 2021
. Retrieved
June 24,
2021
.
- ^
Larasati, Dyah (August 10, 2022).
"
'Do Revenge': Release Date, Cast, Trailer, and Everything We Know So Far"
.
Collider
. Retrieved
August 10,
2022
.
- ^
Gillespie, Katherine (April 7, 2021).
"Camila Mendes Always Keeps Her Cool"
.
Paper
.
Archived
from the original on April 7, 2021
. Retrieved
April 7,
2021
.
- ^
George, Crystal (September 16, 2022).
"Where does Do Revenge take place? (Where was Do Revenge filmed?)"
.
NetflixLife
. Retrieved
September 16,
2022
.
- ^
Robinson, Jennifer Kaytin [@jennkaytin] (August 7, 2021).
"a summer full of laughing, crying, screaming, hugging, crying again, laughing some more, flooded sets, lightning strikes, epic costumes, gorgeous production design, snatched hmu, cranes, another lightning strike, rain, HEAT, the best times, the worst times, and most importantly- a cast and crew so special i can't believe i was lucky enough to work with them all. to everyone who worked on this film- thank you! and to everyone who is gonna get to watch this batshit masterpiece when it drops on @netflix - you're fucking welcome. that's a wrap, baby. we did revenge"
. Retrieved
August 7,
2021
– via
Instagram
.
- ^
Shrestha, Naman (September 14, 2022).
"Where Was Netflix's Do Revenge Filmed?"
.
The Cinemaholic
. Retrieved
September 14,
2022
.
- ^
Jones, Tamera (July 20, 2022).
"Maya Hawke & Camila Mendes Shine in First Images From Netflix's
Do Revenge
"
.
Collider
. Retrieved
July 20,
2022
.
- ^
"
Do Revenge
"
.
Rotten Tomatoes
.
Fandango Media
. Retrieved
January 24,
2024
.
- ^
"
Do Revenge
"
.
Metacritic
.
Fandom, Inc.
Retrieved
January 24,
2024
.
- ^
Spilde, Coleman (September 16, 2022) [2022-09-15].
"
'Do Revenge' Is a Generation-Defining Teen Masterpiece | Cruel Intentions"
.
The Daily Beast
.
Archived
from the original on September 26, 2023
. Retrieved
January 24,
2024
.
- ^
Nicholson, Amy (September 15, 2022).
"
'Do Revenge' Review: Strangers on a Text Chain"
.
The New York Times
.
Archived
from the original on October 19, 2022
. Retrieved
September 15,
2022
.
- ^
Seitz, Matt Zoller
(September 16, 2022).
"Do Revenge movie review & film summary (2022)"
.
RogerEbert.com
.
Archived
from the original on September 26, 2023
. Retrieved
September 16,
2022
.
External links
[
edit
]