Say Anything (1989)

I seriously haven’t seen Say Anything, ok? I’m righting a wrong as quickly as I could! Austin over at The Return of the Modern Philosopher recommended this to me after my review of Serendipity (HERE) during last year’s Christmas Marathon! Austin probably doesn’t need any help from me to showcase his blog since I did find him on Freshly Pressed (if I remember correctly) and he deserves every bit of that because he writes fun and witty posts everyday! Plus, he has written screenplays that were produced.  Seeing as I’ve been unsuccessful at finding it, the search continues! 😉 For now, lets check this one out!

Director: Cameron Crowe

Cast: John Cusack, Ione Skye, Jack Mahoney, Lili Taylor, Amy Brooks, Jeremy Pivens

Lloyd Dobler (John Cusack) may be graduating from high school but he has no idea what he wants to do with his life except for knowing his school’s valedictorian beauty Diane Court.  After he knows that she received a scholarship to go to England to pursue further studies after the summer, he decides to call her and ask her out on a date.  As the summer continues, they see each other more and eventually grow closer.  However, things get complicated at home with Diane’s father (John Mahoney) with life and his father’s disapproval of the relationship and Diane has to make a choice.

 

As I’m sure most of you know already, Say Anything is a romantic comedy.  It is possibly one of the most authentic takes on the romantic comedy with just a hint of the drama.  Its fun to watch the love between Diane and Lloyd grow and in many ways, its defying a “perfection” and making different choices than expected or breaking out of a norm.  The characters are heartfelt and just so charming.  Whats nice is that there is a good balance of romantic moments that make me swoon and others that just make me laugh.  A true romantic comedy, right?

Our main character here is John Cusack as Lloyd Dobler! This is a story about a boy falling head over heels for a girl he only just saw at the mall and who has different goals and dreams from him.  Not only is the story so cute and refreshing, especially since most romantic comedies nowadays is about a crazy girl that tries everything to get the guy including embarrass themselves.  Don’t get me wrong, that type of comedy still makes me laugh, but this is a breathe of fresh air. John Cusack plays it so well.  They gave him a great script with just the most unexpected moments.  Now I know all about the boombox over his head and what happened! I have to give that originality points.  He did just the perfect lovestruck guy portrayal that just pulled me in.

The chemistry he had with his female costar Ione Skye, that I’ve never seen anywhere else, was just so sweet. Diane and Lloyd have to be one of the cutest couples.  They are different but it also shows the wonder of being in love and how it opens your eyes to other things.  People don’t just jump into bed when they are attracted, they date and talk and teach each other stuff.  I really connected with her character.

Plus, John Mahoney plays the role of Diane’s father.  I remember talking about how I liked him a lot in Flipped a few months ago and in this one, he picked another really good one again.  I’m pretty sure not many father’s would sit around to listen to dating stuff from their daughters but he was looking out for her in his own way and as her best friend, not just a protective parent.  I think its a great character.

I’m sure you don’t need me overanalyzing this flick.  This flick was simple, sweet and the perfect balance of love and laughs.  It was filled with heartfelt and authentic characters and just so awesome! If you haven’t seen it, I’m highly recommending it! Now its your turn to right that wrong!

Thanks to Austin for recommending it to me! I love the movie and even though it took me 8 months to get around to it and it was not as immediate as he had told me to, I did watch it and loved every minute of it. Please drop by and get a few laughs at his blog and show him some love and support 🙂