Review of 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) by Callum H — 16 Sep 2014

"10 Things I Hate About You" was part of an interesting and often-criticized trend in 90's American cinema: Take a popular work of classic literature and place it in a modern teenage world. The high point of the sub-genre was no doubt Amy Heckerling's ultra-hip "Clueless", based on Jane Austen's classic novel "Emma". That film had a story that was not afraid to break free of its source material and provided audiences with a memorable new heroine and Alicia Silverstone with a sparkling screen debut. By comparison, "10 Things I Hate About You" only works about half the time .

For all its hip dialogue and contemporary sensibility, it uses plot conventions and cliches so ancient that the very thought of it conjures up images of studio executives passing out scripts made of papyrus scrolls, and more often than not the story in which it is based, Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew", is used as a springboard for a series of not-so-subtle winks at the camera. The story lacks inspiration in a lot of other key areas as well. It painfully sticks to the traditional boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl formula and for reasons unknown to me, the screenwriters found it necessary to incorporate an assembly line of scenes found in almost ever other run-of-the-mill high school comedy including an obligatory party scene and an emotional climax at the prom.

Despite these flaws, the film maintains an air of freshness and undeniable charm thanks to a competent cast and the occasional sprinkling of wit. At Padua High School (wink), Julia Stiles plays Katrina "Kat" Stratford, a smart but angst-ridden social outcast. When her more popular and gleefully shallow younger sister, Bianca, wants to date a self-absorbed underwear model, their overbearing father states that Bianca can date, but only if Kat does too. Upon hearing this, Cameron James (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a shy transfer student who secretly idolizes Bianca, bribes the school bad boy, Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger), into courting the tempestuous Kat who, in spite of herself, is won over by Patrick's wily charm.

The scene that is most remembered is in fact the one scene of pure joy and originality. In it we see Ledger's character singing and dancing across the bleachers of the school's football stadium whilst professing his love for Kat and for a moment, it is clear that the film indeed has a heartbeat. The chemistry between Stiles and Ledger is the highlight of the film. Their romance is genuine and effective and at times I wished that their characters could have abandoned the script and start fresh with a new plot.

Complimenting their performances is a breezy soundtrack and a few praiseworthy supporting players including the always reliable Allison Janney as a horny high school counselor and Daryl "Chill" Mitchell as a passionate English teacher who raps the words of Shakespeare to glorious effect. Imagine if the writers had taken a cue from the Mitchell character and turned the project into a Shakespeare-inspired rap musical. That would have been interesting!