It's a Jungle Out There 

Recently, the Princess of Pop confirmed her fans worst fears during a trial regarding her conservatorship. The iconic Britney Spears spoke about the abuse she has endured to due to the constraints on her personal life and her finances. Ms. Spears has been in a conservatorship since 2008 in which her father, Jamie Spears, has had control over every aspect of her life including her money, her time with her children, her career, and even what color to paint her kitchen cabinets. Her recent court testimony confirmed her dad has manipulated his power and made her a cash cow of sorts, making him rich off of her misfortunes. She also has alleged medical abuse against her father, stating her father forced her to take new medication when she didn't cooperate with him.

As a lifelong Britney fan I found myself crying and distraught. On top of being one of the most influential pop singers of all time, Britney is also a gay icon. For many gay people, Britney has been our form of expression, a symbol that united all of us. For her to be hurting feels personal.

I decided to break out my DVD copy of her only feature film performance, 2002's Crossroads. The film follows Spears and two friends (played by Zoe Saldana and Taryn Manning) as they journey across the country to visit Spears' character's estranged mother and make some dreams along the way.

The film was a box office success, grossing over $61 million. However, critical response was not good. The film had been trashed for being purely a vehicle for Spears to tryout acting. This was in a Pre-Lady Gaga/A Star is Born era in which a pop star turned film actress caused several eye rolls. Every pop star tried it, from Madonna to Cher and Mariah Carey. Most caused critics to turn their noses up, even when the outcome turned out to be good, such as several of Cher's acclaimed performances.

Spears' film has been largely forgotten except to those of us that are ride or die Britney fans. But was the film really as bad as critics said? Should Britney have done more films?