Whatever It Takes (2000 film)
| Whatever It Takes | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Directed by | David Raynr |
| Produced by |
Matt Berenson Bill Brown Victoria Dee Paul Schiff Mark Schwahn |
| Written by | Mark Schwahn |
| Starring |
Shane West Marla Sokoloff Jodi Lyn O'Keefe James Franco Aaron Paul Julia Sweeney Colin Hanks Kip Pardue |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release dates | March 31, 2000 |
Running time | 94 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $32 million |
| Box office | $9,902,115 |
Whatever It Takes is a teen comedy starring Shane West, Marla Sokoloff, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe, and James Franco. It was first released in America on 31 March 2000. The film is based on the play Cyrano de Bergerac.
Plot
Ryan (Shane West) is a bit of a geek with eyes for the school sex bomb, Ashley (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe), which induces cringing in his neighbor and best friend, Maggie (Marla Sokoloff), a cute intellectual girl. But popular jock Chris (James Franco) has his eye on Maggie, and he offers to help Ryan win Ashley if Ryan will help Chris with Maggie. So begins a two-headed variation on Cyrano de Bergerac; Ryan composes soulful e-mails for Chris, and Chris advises Ryan to treat Ashley like dirt, which seems to be the only way to get her attention. At first, neither finds it easy to change their ways; Chris comes on too strong, and Ryan is too nervous to be a jerk. But as they start to succeed, Ryan begins to see Maggie in a new light and wonders if he's pursuing the right girl. He realizes Ashley is not meant for him, and tries to convince Maggie about Chris's affection for her. Maggie is reluctant to take him "back" at first, but then realizes Ryan has a change of heart.
Cast
- Shane West as Ryan Woodman
- James Franco as Chris Campbell
- Jodi Lyn O'Keefe as Ashley Grant
- Marla Sokoloff as Maggie Carter
- Julia Sweeney as Kate Woodman
- Aaron Paul as Floyd
- Colin Hanks as Cosmo
- Kip Pardue as Harris
- Manu Intiraymi as Dunleavy
- Richard Schiff as P.E Teacher
- Scott Vickaryous as Stu
- Nick Cannon as Chess Club Kid
Reception
Whatever It Takes was panned by critics and currently holds a 16% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 67 reviews.
Box office
The film entered the North American box office at #6, making approximately US$4.1 million in its opening weekend.
DVD
Whatever It Takes was first released on DVD in North America in August 2000. It was released in Australia later that year, then released in the UK in 2001.
External links
- Whatever It Takes at the Internet Movie Database
- Whatever It Takes at Box Office Mojo
- New York Times review