| From Justin to Kelly | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Robert Iscove |
| Produced by | Robert Engelman |
| Written by | Kim Fuller |
| Starring | Justin Guarini Kelly Clarkson |
| Music by | Greg Siff Michael Wandmacher |
| Cinematography | Francis Kenny |
| Editing by | Tirsa Hackshaw Casey O. Rohrs |
| Studio | 19 Entertainment |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | June 20, 2003 |
| Running time | 81 minutes 90 minutes (Extended cut) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $12 million |
| Box office | $4,928,883 |
From Justin to Kelly is a 2003 American romantic comedy musical film starring Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini, the winner and runner-up, respectively, of the first season of American Idol. It is considered to be one of the worst films ever made, winning the Golden Raspberry Award for "Worst 'Musical' of Our First 25 Years" in 2005.
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The film is set during spring break in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Texan singing waitress Kelly Taylor (Kelly Clarkson) meets Pennsylvanian college student Justin Bell (Justin Guarini), and they fall for each other, and various romantic complications ensue. Kelly's friend Kaya (Anika Noni Rose) falls in love with charming busboy Carlos (Jason Yribar); Kelly's other friend, Alexa (Katherine Bailess), schemes to keep Justin and Kelly from meeting; Justin's friend Brandon (Greg Siff) is always getting on the wrong side of a sexy beach patrolwoman (Theresa San-Nicholas); and Justin's other friend, Eddie (Brian Dietzen), tries to hook up with a cyberpal.[1]
From Justin to Kelly was a box office bomb, grossing only $5 million, and received a 8% rating out of 59 reviews at Rotten Tomatoes. Entertainment Weekly film critic Owen Gleiberman wrote in his review, "How bad is From Justin to Kelly? Set in Miami during spring break, it's like Grease: The Next Generation acted out by the food-court staff at SeaWorld."[2]
Some theater chains threatened not to screen the movie at all when distributor 20th Century Fox announced plans to rush it to VHS and DVD a mere six weeks after its opening weekend, but Fox ultimately relented and pushed the release date back a number of months. After the opening-weekend flop, Fox reinstated the original release schedule.
The choreography was considered so bad that a special Golden Raspberry "Governor's Award" was created as an excuse to present the film with a Razzie. However, the movie was better received by the Teen Choice Awards, as it was nominated for two Choice Movie Breakout Stars (for Guarini and Clarkson) and Choice Chemistry.
| Year | Result | Award | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Nomination | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Movie Breakout Star (Female), Kelly Clarkson |
| Choice Movie Breakout Star (Male), Justin Guarini | |||
| Choice Movie Chemistry, Kelly Clarkson & Justin Guarini | |||
| 2004 | Won | Governor's Award | Distinguished Under-Achievement in Choreography |
| Nomination | Razzie Awards | Worst Actor, Justin Guarini | |
| Worst Actress, Kelly Clarkson | |||
| Worst Picture | |||
| Worst Director, Robert Iscove | |||
| Worst Screenplay, Kim Fuller | |||
| Worst Remake or Sequel (remake of both Where the Boys Are and Where the Boys Are '84) | |||
| Worst Screen Couple (Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini) | |||
| 2005 | Won | Worst Musical of Our First 25 Years |
When From Justin to Kelly was released on DVD, an extended version of 90 minutes was released as well. This extended version includes two new musical numbers "From Me to You" and "Brighter Star", additional lyrics and more sensual choreography to "Wish Upon a Star", and a scene involving a "Dare to Be Bare" contest.[3]
A commercial soundtrack was created with studio tracks but never released, due to the poor reception and income of the film. However, a version of the song "Timeless", sung by Clarkson and Guarini, and recorded prior to the film, was included on Guarini's self-titled debut album. The tracks of the unreleased studio soundtrack can be found on various Clarkson fansites. Two songs, "From Me to You" and "Brighter Star", did not appear in the theatrical release, but were added to the extended version DVD release. Clarkson also performed "The Bounce (The Luv)", and "Timeless" during her shared (with Clay Aiken) "Independent Tour" in 2003 with her male backup singer performing the male vocals on "Timeless".
Songs used in the film and soundtrack (in order of appearance):
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