(June 20, 2023, Hollywood, Ca.) 20th Century Fox this morning did not issue a press release announcing the studio’s plans to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first American Idol movie, From Justin to Kelly. These plans, which the studio never released, include a theatrical rerelease of the film on 35MM, an hour-long cable television special hosted by the original Justin (Justin Guarini) and Kelly (Kelly Clarkson), a return to Fort Lauderdale for a flash mob recreation of the film’s most memorable dance number, Madness (click here to see the original) and, in a studio first, a countrywide Whipped Cream Bikini contest.
And if you believe any of that, you needed to read more closely.
For a more honest reminiscence of From Justin to Kelly, visit the IMDb.com Trivia Page for the film, where you will find fun facts like:
- The film set a record for the shortest gap between theatrical premiere and home video/DVD release: 29 days.
- The film’s second-week box office take was down 77% on its first, one of the biggest drops in film history.
- (It) was the first in a planned franchise by 20th Century Fox of films that starred the winner of each season of American Idol. A sequel would have starred season 2 winner Ruben Studdard. The film’s failure at the box office and being panned by critics as one of the worst films ever made caused any follow-up films to be abandoned immediately.
The competition for audience dollars was pretty stiff in 2003. From Justin to Kelly opened the same day as Ang Lee’s The Hulk, the same month as 28 Days Later, and the same year as Kill Bill Vol. 1, Lost in Translation, and Finding Nemo. What chance did the story of “A waitress from Texas and a college student from Pennsylvania (who) meet during spring break in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and come together through their shared love of singing” have?
Full disclosure: I did not see From Justin to Kelly when it played in theaters, not just because it wasn’t screened for critics. And I can’t say I have anything against beach movies since I’m a big fan of the genre classics: Beach Blanket Bingo, Muscle Beach Party, and How to Stuff a Wild Bikini. Maybe I was more of a movie snob back then who poo-pooed From Justin to Kelly without ever giving it a chance.
Or it was clairvoyance because I watched From Kelly to Justin to prepare to write this and can report in no uncertain terms that it is a total stinker. The music is forgettable except for the big closing number, a terrible reworking of the KC and the Sunshine Banks disco classic That’s the Way (I Like It) which was a hit almost a decade before Kelly Clarkson was born. Dumb as it was, the original song is at least fun to listen to; the remake is soulless/joyless.
And maybe that’s the problem with From Justin to Kelly: there’s no joy to the film, no sense that the movie is anything but a contractual obligation for Clarkson and Guarini and a quick cash-in for 20th Century Fox and American Idol. And there is certainly no pleasure, guilty or otherwise, to be had in watching it 20 years on.
