Gossip Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES PLOT SUMMARY
For a class project, three self absorbed college students decide to do their project on gossip to track it's growth. But, first they need some gossip so one night at a nightclub, they spot a guy (Jackson) and a girl (Hudson) making out before the girl passes out. Around the campus the girl is known for not giving out. The three decide to use that as their base and mix it into her boyfriend raping her when she was passed out. The gossip gets spread to the girl who only remembers passing out at the club. One of her friends suggest that maybe her boyfriend raped her.
| Norman Reedus | Travis |
| Lena Headey | Cathy Jones |
| Kate Hudson | Naomi Preston |
| James Marsden | Derrick Webb |
| Marisa Coughlan | Sheila |
| Sharon Lawrence | Detective Kelly |
| Eric Bogosian | Professor Goodwin |
| Edward James Olmos | Detective Curtis |
| Joshua Jackson | Beau Edson |
| Kwok-Wing Leung | Chinese Man |
| Mif | Doorman |
| Poe | Female Singer |
| Kenya Massey | Club Dancer |
| Noam Jenkins | Bartender |
| Davis Guggenheim |
5.00 out of 10 (303 votes)
Visitor Reviews
The first hour is good...
posted on 17 Jul 2009Based on R2 DVD 87 min.Gossip starts off well, an interesting premise, pretty people a suggestion of a good thriller to come. Alas somewhere around the 60 minute mark the script writer must have run out of pencils. The story takes a witless fantasy turn that left me feeling cheated.The so called alternate ending is just a longer and more unrealistic one.5/10 catch it on TV
Nice Idea, but predicable
posted on 15 Jul 2009The movie premise for this film is a neat one, but looses its way in the final 1/3 of the film. Acting is good, the only problem is that near the end of the film you kinder figured it out yourself anyway.So hears the set up. Three College students decide to make up a completely untrue rumour about a fellow student to see how it changes as it is passed on via word of mouth around the campus, just like Chinese whispers. Things get out of hand though when the rumour spreads and changes into something more serious and the police become involved and arrests are made. Issues with the film are one unbelievable scene and a continuity issue, otherwise worth a watch.
Gossip Gone Too Far: A Caution Film/Drama
posted on 05 Jul 2009Gossip (2000): Starring James Marsden, Kate Hudson, Joshua Jackson, Lena Headey, Norman Reedus, Edward James Olmos, Eric Bogosian, Sharown Lawrence, Mif, Marissa Coughlan, Kwok-Wing Leung, Poe, Vicky Lambert, Noam Jenkins, Kenya Massey, Stephanie Mills, Raven Dauda, Kristin Booth, Novie Edwards, Shanly Trinidad, Samantha Espie, Christopher Ralph, Kristen Holdenried, Robin Brule, Debora Pollitt, Sadie LeBlanc, Elisabeth Guber, Balazs Koos, Roman Podhora, Marc Hickox, Bill Lake, Jessica Greco, Aleksia Landeau, David Nichols, Marc Cohen, Sanjay Talwar, Norma Dell'Agnese, Charles Guggenheim, Marion Guggenheim, John Wills Martin, Meeka Schiro...Director Davis Googenheim, Screenplay Gregory Poirier, Theresa Rebeck.Director Davis Googenheim and screenwriters Gregory Poirier and Theresa Rebeck released "Gossip" in the spring of 2000, but this film was not a big hit at the box office and consequently went straight to video, cable and standard TV. The premise ? In an unidentified major Univeristy, presumably in the US, a group of college classmates, who are also roommates, take on a human/social experiment about the nature of gossip. They spread a rumor about the richest girl on campus, pretty, blonde Naomi Preston (Kate Hudson) who was once the girlfriend of the guy who is now exploiting her, Derrick Webb (James Marsden). Derrick and his wickedly careless and insensitive, cruel friends/roommates Cathy and Travis (Lena Headey and Norman Reedus) begin to spread the gossip concerning Naomi's date rape experience as well as other vicious and damaging lies. Before long, the entire school believes the lie and Naomi finds herself in the middle of a media circus and a public courthouse trial case. But she is determined to expose her colleagues and their malicious experiment and scheme. She consults investigators, among them Detective Curtis (portrayed by Latino actor Edward James Olmos) to seek out those who wronged her. Before long, Derrik, Cathy and Travis find themselves in big trouble and attempt to cover up their evil deed. This may not be a very powerful film or even a very great one, but it has a truthfulness and realism, played out with a "what if" kind of scenario that really carries the film, not to mention the great cast of actors giving it their all, despite being very young and good looking actors. As such, this film is for a young audience. At times, it appears as if it's an intensely dark soap opera intense and dark soap opera in which good looking people set out to harm others. In this case, it's a lot like "Cruel Intentions" ,which had been in theaters only a year earlier in 1999 (it had also starred Joshua Jackson and other hot young stars)which was in itself a modern take on the French novel and film "Dangerous Liasions". Clearly, the success of that film made this film possible. This is a very disturbing film and it's not suitable for even pre-adolescents, despite the young cast. It's really a dark drama about young adults but it's adult nonetheless. There is enough R rated material here to indicate that is intended to be viewed by a mature audience- violence, graphic sex (including rape) and profane language. Even with all this, the college classroom scenes are by far what provides the film with meaning. The professor and his student's conversations and eventual reactions to the rumor experiment is proof that people do indeed love gossip, but it's harmful and it dehumanizes and corrupts our society. The battle of the sexes discussion is also quite interesting and very well-handled. But the movie's heart lies in the fact that Derek Webb is the type of corrupt young man that actually exists out there and may be getting away with crimes, and all the more so because he looks harmless and is an attractive white male. Thus, this film is a caution tale, though this film is hardly Lifetime material, possibly because it has the independent Hollywood film signature all over it. I hope this movie opens people's eyes about gossip and about lies and how to value the truth which is the greatest human gift of all.
A pull-the-rug-from-under-your-feet thriller.
posted on 28 May 2009Why people on this message board are comparing this movie to Cruel Intentions, Scream, and even Pulp Fiction for crying out loud, is beyond me.
This picture is much more along the lines of The Usual Suspects and Snake Eyes. Not as far as the plot goes, but concerning the excellent, intriguing storyline with a horrible ending.Sometimes I just wish movies were bad all the way through, that way you wouldn't be expecting much of anything for the finale. But movies like Gossip might be the worst kind of movie. This film has absolutely impeccable acting, with the performance of Edward James Olmos as the no B.S. cop coming first to mind. Eric Bogosian's role is the only questionable one, his class is more like a Jerry Springer show than a learning environment.Next to the acting, the film's best trait is its high style (almost too much style, how many college students can afford to live in a pad like that?).
Coupled with a tightly-wound storyline everything seems promising. But then somebody pushes the self-destruct button and everything explodes into utter nonsense. I should've known something like that was going to happen while I was watching it, otherwise I'm sure I would've heard many praises prior to seeing it.** (out of 4)
Insultingly stupid.
posted on 18 May 2009Outrageous. It seems as if all of the dim, untalented people of Hollywood got together and put Dargis GooGooHimer in charge and then spent a lot of money making something that looks like every single lame commercial or music video.
Destined to be forgotten, but not forgiven.,
Plot holes but still a tightly fast-paced entertaining film.
posted on 02 May 2009I was 21 when this film came out. I automatically dismissed it thinking it was "just another dumb teen movie" and I was wrong. It is not a "teen movie" since it takes place at a university therefore centering on mostly twenty somethings. The production values are pretty slick, which was my start into falling into it, hook line and sinker. At the time when this was released it was unlike the numerous films targeting a similar young audience so it was a different offering towards my age group. It was a pretty original storyline: Three college students Derrick Webb, Cathy Jones and Travis choose a class project on how gossip starts and how fast it spreads. The three are at this hip downtown club and Cathy notices Naomi Preston whom she is objectionable towards her social status, which does not help when she finds out Naomi told rumors of her and her professor. Later on Derrick sees an intoxicated Naomi seemingly be taken advantage of by the man whom she was with, Beau Edson. Derrick is looking through the slightly opened door of the bathroom while his girl is also passed out drunk. Things begin looking suspicious when Beau is conversing with his friends about it on the way out. This triggers Derrick's idea of starting this particular rumor therefore having it escalate. It is decent as far as it moves along into a quickly fast-paced film. It becomes a little boggling how it escalates. It starts out as only Naomi's reputation is ruined all over campus but then as it gets deeper into the story as certain people's lives unfold, the pieces don't quite come together.Such as when Beau is arrested. It still is considered a rumor at that point since it was not even mentioned on local news. The place where the encounter happened does not even become a crime scene. All the people just happen to believe it is true? When Naomi is questioned, at first she thinks it happened, then she says it did happen. Apparently, since word travels fast on campus, how was Derrick unable to be recognized for his troubled past? Wouldn't it have surfaced earlier? How were people not to recognize this but at the same time believe a rumor? Although as slightly charismatic as he is, Derrick does not make the situation any better when he begins his part of the investigation.The ending does not quite come together well. It is revealed that Naomi's apparent suicide in an earlier scene is really a hoax. How did she manage to fake her own death? Her dorm even became a crime scene after-wards. I think it helps that Derrick finally does get his just desserts after-wards. It is a compelling film and much of the flaws can be forgiven by someone of a younger crowd but for an older audience will be able to see right through.It ultimately does not feel realistic but it is an intriguing ride. The writer(s) for this film probably became so engrossed in the topic on the surface like its characters that they do not use that opportunity to go much further than that.In addition, the position overall sex/rape issue seems ambiguous. Later on in the film after Cathy accuses Derrick of raping Naomi that they begin making out but it is not known if it went any further than that. Did Cathy sleep with a man whom she was accusing?Hell it can go further noting that did Derrick even rape Naomi or has the same situation happened between them? She obviously was uncertain about their relationship so did he just make her feel at ease and she just went along with it? Naomi being presented as an unstable person anyway did she become so stressed about it that she could have possibly falsely accused him anyway and he just led her to believe what she wanted?Obviously, with all of these uncertainties the script could have used more work.
A Great Intelligent and Subtle thriller starring obsessively handsome James Marsden
posted on 29 Mar 2009The movie is about three bored college students planting a rumor and tracking how it evolves and spins out of control. This is an intelligent and subtle thriller, not the kind that has dead bodies and blood all over the place. James Marsden's heart stopping good looks and extraordinary talent are a treat to watch this film as well as all his other movies (Sugar & Spice, X-Men, Disturbing Behavior, Bella Mafia, On the Edge of Innocence, Public Enemies, Gone in a Heartbeat, Second Noah …). Look forward for his new film `Interstate 60' and `X2' coming out in Fall 2002 and May 2003, respectively.
I enjoyed this film very much
posted on 28 Jan 2009I began watching this film at a late time so I tired. Anyway, as it began and the trailers rolled, I began to wake up, waiting for this film. I had not heard much on this film so I wasn't really familiar with it. I know the plot and heard of a few actors which are in it but the rest was foreign to me. The movie is based upon a group of three college kids, a good looking, rich boy named Derrick(James Marsden), a book smart, pretty girl names Jones(Lena Heady) and last a poor, artist Travis(Norman Reedus) who, for a final paper in one of there classes, start a horrible rumor about a rich, prude girl named Namomi(Katie Hudson). At a party she gets drunk and her boyfriend, Beau(Joshua Jackson) is all ready to finally have sex. But as they go on, she says no and then passes out. He leaves her laying their sleeping. OR DID HE? Is the question that Derick says to three friends, he was in the bathroom and watched everything go on. He finally talks them into spreading the rumor, that rumor, Tell everybody that the prude girl had sex. After the words begin to changes person to person then it goes to rape and Namomi then thinks since she was passed out that maybe she was raped. She then finally files a report to police and has Beau arrested. Finally after that Jones begins to fell sorry and begain to wonder if maybe she should tell everybody they began the rumor. It keeps going from there and never stops twisting and turning till the very end of the film. I really enjoyed this film and all the different turns it took. I liked how it had you keep wanting to know what REALLY happened. I also liked the performance of James Marsden, he hasn't really been in much since the horrible movie " Disturbing Behavior" but look for him in the upcoming blockbuster " X-Men Movie" as Cyclops. Anyway I really enjoyed this film and thought it was worth my time.
It thinks it's clever... but it's not.
posted on 19 Dec 2008Seemingly a decent thriller that rattles along at a decent pace with decent performances and a good look the twist at the end totally changes your perception of it. There are a fair number of twists and turns throughout the film and it's hard (but fun) to try and keep up. It's just there's one twist too many and the ending is so rushed that questions enter your head. 15 minutes after leaving the theatre the whole film will have completely fallen apart - the plot just doesn't stand up to scrutiny. What seemed as clever just seems contrived and this is a shame because there is an energy and vibrancy to the film that really works. Sure, it's glossy and a bit silly but until the end you can overlook this. It could be that after a few viewings it really does all make sense but, frankly, I have no enthusiasm to watch it again.
Fun Way to Spend 90 Minutes
posted on 17 Dec 2008When i first heard that Gossip was being released i thought it was going to be another "Wack" Teen Murder Flick. I was surprised to find out it wasn't. Although the story line was weak and a lot of the events that transpire are somewhat predictable it was just plain out fun to watch. James Marsden is without a doubt the highlight of the film and its cool watching him lie and manouver to try and get out of every bad situation. I was a fan of the ending and the music throughout rocks especially Tonic's "Mean to Me" at the end credits. So if your looking to kill an hour and a half, check it out.
paper-thin characters are a serious flaw
posted on 09 Dec 2008The story line is not all that bad. What hurts is the superficiality of the characters played by actors whose smirking inanity remind me of nothing so much as Tom Cruise. They seem to have been chosen for good looks only, though frankly, the lines they have to deliver seem to have been written by an air-head.
Boring, stupid
posted on 01 Dec 2008"Gossip" is a pointless movie about a bunch of obnoxious characters who, for a class, start a lie to see how gossip changes and makes the lie even bigger. Of course, things get out of hand. The movie looks good but the characters say and do stupid things, the dialogue was totally unbelievable, and the cast--well, what can you say when Joshua Jackson gives the best performance? The cast is UNattractive (they always look like they've just fallen out of bed) and James Marsden as the class stud???!!!??? His acting is so-so and, frankly, the guy's ugly! No self-respecting woman would go after him! The movie does contain a nice twist at the end, but it's too little, too late. Don't waste your money--not even worth a video rental.
Ouch!
posted on 15 Nov 2008Hey did anyone hear how bad this movie is? Do not see this movie even If you look past the poor acting horrible script, awful cinematography and ludicrous
direction . well all that is really left is bad story with plot holes so unimaginable it makes it painful to watch, I know I probably sound overly harsh, so there must be something good about the film. umm.I'm thinking. the art direction was so-so, and if you want to go see a bunch of pretty faced Hollywood 'teens' I guess that's where it could be redeeming. In my opinion burning your $10 dollars would give you
more excitement though.
Pretty good
posted on 22 Sep 2008At first glance, this movie seems like any other teen movie but as you watch along, the story slowly unfolds and you get entranced just waiting to see what will happen next. James Marsden did a pretty good job as a the handsome clean cut boy who thinks it's OK to start a gossip. When the story unfolds, you find out why he thinks it's OK to start a gossip particularly on Kate Hudson. She, however, did OK OK and I thought she could do better. Lena Headey was a surprise. I had never heard of her before but she was pretty good without being really overdramatic or tragic. Joshua Jackson's part was quite short but he did pretty OK too as so did Norman Reedus who played the other housemate of James Marsden & Lena Headey. He was a quiet, weird brooding artist and fitted nicely with Lena Headey's sombre portrayal and James Marsden's cool exterior (I couldn't believe that he's with Helena Christiansen!). Towards the end, it appears as though the movie will turn into one of those stereotypical dramas where the perpetrator turns out to be the victim but I urge you to watch it to the end. Though the ending can be rather predictable to some, it's the way the movie went that was very interesting.
a student film in every sense
posted on 02 Jul 2008Thousands upon thousands of film students have great ideas for films. They soon find out a basic premise is not enough. They need a good script.Someone forgot that with Gossip. They thought if they could emulate the style of Shallow Grave, and the intergroup tensions of Flatliners, they'd pull this one off. James Marsden and Lena Headey put in strong shifts as the leads. The film is stylishly shot. After that, you are struggling to say anything positive about this infantile non-event of a film.The leads are supposed to be undergraduates, though they all look about 31 but talk like 12-year-olds. They are 'shocked' that a dating couple might have had sex. They drink hard but never touch drugs. They only seem to take one class, about 400 of them packed in one room (no empty seats?) where the professor (who wrote THIS guy's lines??) picks on them because... well, I never figured that one out. And the three flatmates who initiate proceedings just would not be friends in real life.The ending is as bad as you have heard. You see it coming, but the only surprise is that you assume they will not go down this path, it is just too absurd, too against the flow, and so you writhe in shock and embarrassment when they 'reveal' their trick. And what exactly is Kate Hudson's supercilious smile at the end supposed to convey? "I was raped, but YOU are going to be gossiped about." Some victory. This film is glib and thoughtless, and probably would be offensive if you could remember it five minutes after ejecting the DVD.
Throws it all away with that ending
posted on 20 Jun 2008"Gossip" would have made a fun teen thriller if it could have thought up a way to end itself. "Gossip" is about some rich college students who start up a rumor about how far one guy went with his drunk girlfriend . She has no recollection about what happened, but she begins to believe the rumors that she was raped. A big police investigation follows as well as many twists. Most of the twists you can believe and go on watching the film, but the last big one throws it all away. (spoiler!!! Everything towards the end of the film is a hoax to get someone to confess to all of the recent happenings). That completely ruins the mood, it seems like the screenwriter could not think of anything decent to come up with, so he slaps on this ending. In EIGHTH GRADE, I learned never to end a story with "it was all a dream; or a big practical joke", it's way too easy and gives you an excuse to do anything with the first parts of the film. Rent purely for entertainment, because that's the only level this movie really works on.
There was alot of Gossip about Gossip
posted on 06 Jun 2008The word on the town was that it was a half decent movie. Like most gossip, this was incorrect! I just saw it last night and it has to be the biggest load of crap I have ever seen. A plot that no one cares about, as movies are meant to help us escape reality, and this was an accurate, yet boring, portrayal of how college life is. The professsor should have lost his job, as harassing the student without proof of his crime, is a big no-no! Yes, the ending was a surprise, but it was not a wow, I never saw that one coming, what a great ending to a great movie, it was more like, A twist does not a good movie make.The main girl was not attractive, and I am wondering why they did not hire Katie Holmes, to make one element in this crap watchable. Then again, Holmes would never embarrass herself, by appearing in this movie!
Hey - I Heard This Wasn't A Great Movie!
posted on 21 May 2008I have to concede this much: the basic premise is interesting. Three college students decide to do a class project on gossip, by spreading a rumour and then following its course. Of course, as the rumour spreads, gossip becomes accepted as truth, those it's directed against get hurt, those who try to set the record straight by telling the truth are accused of lying, the results are tragic, and the ending - which I won't go into - is unbelievable to the extreme. Anyway, it doesn't sound too bad on paper, but when put on film it just doesn't work.Let's consider the obvious first. What kind of school project is this? How do you document your research on this? I'm a bit puzzled. But on to more serious points. The first half hour or so is a dull series of shots of college students drinking and making out. Yes, we needed a half hour to get the message that college students do this every now and then. Who would have thought? The acting in this movie struck me as second rate. There wasn't a single performer who stood out to me; who grabbed my attention. It's largely (with the exception of Edward James Olmos) a cast of young unknowns, and they're not going to grab a lot of attention with this. And the rumour that caused all the trouble struck me as less than exciting. A rumour that two college students had sex with each other is going to set this entire campus abuzz? I just don't see that as very likely. There are also too many intertwining story lines that just end up muddling everything.All in all, this movie - which had some potential - proved to be a disappointment. I would rate is as a 4/10.
Simply not appreciated
posted on 03 Feb 2008A vicious rumour is spreading like fire through the university, three journalism students planted the story, hoping to trace how it changes as it burns its path; but what goes around comes around.With a young and talented cast, including James Marsden, Lena Heady, Norman Reedus and Kate Hudson; Gossip deserves more credit than it seems to have received.The story is full of twists and is genuinely compelling to watch and easy to relate too; the direction is pretty stylish and achieves the necessary feel for the plot to play out, and the cast all contribute with solid performances.It's either been overlooked or harshly criticised by far too many people, come on! It's a good thriller. 7/10
It was good! and entertaining.
posted on 30 Aug 2009This movie was good. I liked it. Good ending. and the fact is that this movie was interesting and u would be entertained and not bored. Has some flaws but most movies have flaws. and DONT FORGET that movies are just there to entertain you and so they dont have to be logical. another movie shot at UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO, CANADA. MY UNIVERSITY.