Rewatchables Reference

• Bill: The motel threesome scene – has the reveal that they're all in cahoots, the champagne bottle fake-out, the evil Superman curl on Dillon. 'This is the scene the whole movie is building to.'
• Mallory: Same – the threesome into the champagne reveal. The moment the audience realizes the movie they've been watching is completely different from what they thought.
• Van: The pool scene with Denise Richards. Runner-up: the motel scene.

• Bill: Smash Mouth, Sugar Ray, Third Eye Blind on the soundtrack – peak late-90s radio rock. The Pacey/teacher storyline on Dawson's Creek the same year. Bacon's camcorder surveillance.
• Mallory: The cast itself screams 1998. No ballistics evidence at the murder scene – just wouldn't fly now.
• Van: Teachers and students as a plot device you could still do in 1998 without the movie becoming about that.

• Bill: The stingers – five end-credit reveals before the MCU made post-credits mandatory. Paved the way for the 'side dick' era (Affleck in 'Gone Girl'). The poster is still iconic.
• Mallory: Class warfare elements. South Florida sex scandals still happening every year. Threesomes as a legitimate plot device.
• Van: The goth aesthetic. Short shorts. The fact that this movie predicted the entire MCU post-credits structure.

• Bill: Teacher accused of sleeping with students – in 2025 he'd never get to calmly clean out his office. Not filming the Sam/Ray shower sex scene that was in the original script.
• Mallory: The unauthorized extended/unrated cut that McNaughton disowned. No-nudity clauses being treated as a problem rather than an actor's right.
• Van: The death of the erotic thriller genre itself. Internet porn killed it by making nudity too accessible.

• Van: Matt Dillon as evil Superman with the curl – 'great shot Gordo.'
• Mallory: Wet Denise Richards in the foyer after the rain. Kelly emerging from the community pool.
• Bill: Kevin Bacon's wide-eyed reaction watching the pool scene on the monitor.

• Bill: Third Eye Blind, Smash Mouth, 'Why Can't We Be Friends' – amazing pace of late 90s music that abruptly stops about 40 minutes in. Theory: they ran out of music budget.
• Van: The soundtrack goes so hard in the first act and then just disappears. It's jarring.

• Mallory: South Florida is underutilized for plot – great for atmosphere but they should've had more alligator deaths, more swamp danger.
• Bill: The original screenplay should have had Sam and Ray's gay relationship intact. Cutting it weakened the movie and removed a whole layer of the con.

• Bill: Neve Campbell should have dropped the no-nudity clause or found another movie. 'You're invited to the BBQ, we're serving ribs and meat.'
• Mallory: The scheme is unnecessarily convoluted – should have just killed Sandra Van Ryan and taken the money directly instead of all the elaborate misdirection.

• Bill: Robert Downey Jr. was originally Sam Lombardo – he would have been incredible but couldn't get insured.
• Mallory: Natasha Lyonne auditioned for Susie. Tara Reid auditioned for Kelly.

• Van: Kevin Bacon flipping on the PlayStation: 'You want to say that to my face?'
• Mallory: Theresa Russell's entire performance as Sandra Van Ryan. 'My daughter does not get raped in Blue Bay.'

• Bill: Tried Craig's stealth system – Robert Wagner, who for Craig's generation is #2 from Austin Powers.
• Mallory: Jeff Perry.
• Bill: Bill Murray is the unanimous Dion Waiters Award winner. His lawyer character is only in a few scenes but steals every one.

Van: His 'great shot Gordo' moment – pulling up the evil Superman photo printout of Matt Dillon with the curl.

Bill: Scarlett Johansson – five years too young at the time but would have been perfect for Susie. She played a similar role in The Perfect Score.

• Bill: A dead body halted filming in the swamp. Kevin Bacon's no-nudity clause story. Film retitled 'Sex Crimes' in France, Italy, and Belgium.
• Van: The Kevin Bacon shower scene editorial decision – the female editor said 'this one's for us' after a movie full of topless women.

• All: Denise Richards, 100%. This is the role she'll be remembered for.
• Bill: Neve Campbell combined with Scream. Matt Dillon combined with Something About Mary the same year.
• Van: Blue Bay, Florida. High school sailing teams. Champagne used as a fake gun.

All: Scorsese.

• Van: His flex category 'How Van Lathan Gets Out of This One' – caught at the Tropic Motel with two young white women, needs an elaborate political excuse.
• Craig: 'The Devil Wears Prada' Award – is this movie perfect for what it tried to do? Yes.

• Van: Do you stop having sex to answer the phone? His big recurring question throughout.
• Mallory: Susie's teeth are fixed despite being in hiding with no money. Where was Susie staying while supposedly dead? How did she get to the Caribbean without an ID? Cell phone technology would destroy this plot instantly – Mallory's Sarah Connor Award.
• Bill: Kelly wasn't supposed to be killed per Sam's plan, but that makes no sense given the scheme.

• Mallory: Would be a really good 6-8 episode Hulu or Apple show.
• Bill: In 2006 they developed a sequel script called 'Backstabbers' with Neve Campbell but it never got made.

Van: Wayne Jenkins as Kevin Bacon's dirty cop character.

• Mallory: The score.
• Bill: Bill Murray for Best Supporting Actor.

• Van: What sport did Sam play at Miami? (They decide baseball.)
• Mallory: Did Sandra kill the father? Who took the photos of Sam and Kelly?
• Bill: Did Susie also poison Ken Bowden's soda?

• Van: The champagne bottle.
• Mallory: Sam's educator of the year trophy. Susie's two teeth.
• Van: Susie's wig.

• All: People aren't always what they appear to be.
• Van: Offshore accounts and no loose ends.

• Mallory: 'Cruel Intentions'.
• Van: Sliver.
• Bill: Masquerade (1988) with Rob Lowe.

• Bill: Denise Richards. This is her movie.
• Van: Denise Richards, unanimous. Honorable mention: Kevin Bacon's dick.

Craig: Loved it – 'just about everything you want in a movie, checks every box.' Every twist caught him by surprise. 'Raw entertainment at its core.' Loved the Jeep. Loves famous talented people doing B movies.