10 Things I Hate About You (1999)

My housemate and I have recently admitted our deep-seated guilty love of all things romantic comedy. I am well aware of their many stereotypical and often sexist problems, but I can't it: sometimes I just really like to stop thinking for two hours while I watch a light-hearted romance with good-looking people. So, we've composed a list of guilty pleasure rom-coms to work our way through this semester, and 10 Things I Hate About You is the first we tackled. Adapted from Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, the story is moved to a Seattle high school, to which the naive but good-hearted Cameron (Joseph-Gordon Levitt) has just transferred. He's instantly smitten by beautiful sophomore Bianca (Larisa Oleynik), but is crushed when his new friend Michael (David Krumholz) reveals that she's not allowed to date until after graduation.

When Bianca starts receiving the attentions of senior hotshot Joey (Andrew Keegan), her paranoid father (Larry Miller) makes a new rule: she can date, when her socially avoidant, brashly progressive older sister Kat (Julia Stiles) does. Bianca, Cameron, and Michael hatch a scheme to pay Patrick (Heath Ledger), the most badass guy in school, to date Kat, letting Joey be the backer as he assumes he'll be the one to end up with Bianca. Kat is initially antagonistic towards Patrick's advances, but eventually the two soften up around one another and it seems they're actually a perfect match. Of course, there's always a fear she'll find out about the arrangement. Meanwhile, Bianca must choose between Joey and Cameron.

I've never read the play (I've just seen its musical counterpart Kiss Me, Kate), but from what I gather from the basic premise of "man subjugates rebellious lady through psychological torment until she becomes a good wife", it sounds pretty awful. However, I think 10 Things I Hate About You did a fairly nice job bringing the characters and basic concepts of the play into a more egalitarian, modern setting. Kat isn't some unlikable, unpredictable or violent "shrew". I think she is pretty awesome. She listens to underground lady music (Bikini Kill and The Raincoats, hello?) and speaks up for her beliefs and likes feminism, and despite her tough, know-it-all outer shell she is shown to be a complex, emotionally fragile young woman. In turn, Patrick is charming and generally respectful, even if he comes on too strong sometimes. And even if he thinks he can buy his way to forgiveness.

The Bianca-Cameron storyline is weaker, mainly because Bianca is not given much character development. She's not very intelligent, and she's not very interesting. I want to like Cameron because he's adorable, but then I keep questioning just what he sees in Bianca. There's an excellent supporting cast though, from Allison Janney's erotic-fiction-author guidance counselor to Larry Miller's high-strung single father, the "sarcastic best friend" figures portrayed by Susan May Pratt and David Krumholz.

The music is excellent, the fashions are egregiously 90's (belly shirts! platform sandals! GLORY BE!), and the script is generally pretty darned sharp. There are a lot of teen-comedy cliches, but they're handled well; the funny dialogue and respect for the characters elevates the film from its more stereotypical cousins, and I liked the frequent Shakespeare references. It's sad that the writing team of Kirsten Smith and Karen McCullah Lutz have gone on to make The House Bunny and The Ugly Truth in more recent years. Also, I dig the appearances from Letters to Cleo and Save Ferris (one of my favorite bands in high school). All in all, an enjoyable movie.

4/5

"Cruel to be Kind"- Letters to Cleo
"I Know"- Save Ferris