Transplanted from England to the not-so-mean streets of Chicago, the screen adaptation of Nick Hornby's cult-classic novel High Fidelity emerges unscathed from its Americanisation, idiosyncrasies intact, thanks to John Cusack's inimitable charm and a nimble, nifty screenplay (co-written by Cusack). Early-thirtysomething Rob .. Read more
| Starring | John Cusack, Jack Black, Lisa Bonet, Joelle Carter |
|---|---|
| Director | Stephen Frears |
| Genres | Comedy |
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Transplanted from England to the not-so-mean streets of Chicago, the screen adaptation of Nick Hornby's cult-classic novel High Fidelity emerges unscathed from its Americanisation, idiosyncrasies intact, thanks to John Cusack's inimitable charm and a nimble, nifty screenplay (co-written by Cusack). Early-thirtysomething Rob Gordon (Cusack) is a slacker who owns a vintage record shop, a massive collection of LPs, and innumerable top-five lists in his head. At the opening of the film, Rob recounts directly to the audience his all-time top-five breakups-- which doesn't include his recent falling out with his girlfriend Laura (Iben Hjejle), who has just moved out of their apartment. Thunderstruck and obsessed with Laura's desertion (but loath to admit it), Rob begins a quest to confront the women who instigated the aforementioned top-five breakups to find out just what he did wrong.
Low on plot and high on self-discovery, High Fidelity takes a good 30 minutes or so to find its groove (not unlike Cusack's Grosse Pointe Blank), but once it does, it settles into it comfortably and builds a surprisingly touching momentum. Rob is basically a grown-up version of Cusack's character in Say Anything (who was told "Don't be a guy--be a man!"), and if you like Cusack's brand of smart-alecky romanticism, you'll automatically be won over (if you can handle Cusack's almost non-stop talking to the camera). Still, it's hard not to be moved by Rob's plight. At the beginning of the film he and his coworkers at the record store (played hilariously by Jack Black and Todd Louiso) seem like overgrown boys in their secret clubhouse; by the end, they've grown up considerably, with a clear-eyed view of life. Ably directed by Stephen Frears (Dangerous Liaisons), High Fidelity features a notable supporting cast of the women in Rob's life, including the striking, Danish-born Hjejle, Lisa Bonet as a sultry singer/songwriter, and the triumphant triumvirate of Lili Taylor, Joelle Carter, and Catherine Zeta Jones as Rob's ex-girlfriends. With brief cameos by Tim Robbins as Laura's new, New Age boyfriend and Bruce Springsteen as himself. --Mark Englehart, Amazon.com
| Starring | John Cusack, Jack Black, Lisa Bonet, Joelle Carter, Joan Cusack, Sara Gilbert |
|---|---|
| Director | Stephen Frears |
| Studio | TOUCHSTONE HOME VIDEO |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 49 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Comedy |
| Language | English |
| Hearing-impaired | English |
| Subtitles | Danish, English, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, Icelandic, Norwegian, Swedish |
| Released | DVD: 07 May 2001 Production year: 2000 |
| Format | DVD |
Don't fret about the fact that Stephen Frears has transposed Nick Hornby's novel from north London to downtown Chicago. This slickly scripted, knowingly played and cameo-strewn comedy stands, on its merits, as an Alfie for the millennial generation. As the owner of a failing vinyl emporium, John Cusack combines reluctant self-awareness with genuine delusion as he attempts to reconcile the loss of girlfriend Iben Hjejle to lusty neighbour Tim Robbins by dating singer Lisa Bonet. However, it's when directly addressing the viewer or compulsively compiling Top Five lists with co-workers Jack Black and Todd Louiso that Cusack, and the picture, really come alive.
"...A ruthlessly truthful and deviously smart comedy....Black's hilariously vitriolic rock snob Barry is especially impressive -- a long overdue breakthrough role for a very deserving talent..."
Inner workings of mans attitude towards women? Confused meanderings of a misguided loser more like. Boring at best.
I would guess Im of Nick Hornbys generation (maybe a little younger), so as one similarly obsessed by indie music from the early Eighties, I would have assumed this was a film for me.
But I must say that most of this film just left me cold. I struggled manfully to keep watching to the end and admittedly it did perk up a bit for the last 15 mins. Ive not read the book, and I dont think Ill be rushing out to buy it on the evidence of the film. Apart from there being too much use of the F-word, what depresses me more is the lack of variety of swear words. Do the Yanks have no other rude/abusive words?
The music was mostly good. Im not sure how successful shoe-gazer bands like Belle and Sebastian are/were in the States and frustratingly, I note Elvis Costellos Shipbuilding was credited, but did not notice it played in the film must be a first for such a depressing song!
At the end of the film, I was still wondering what type of film this was. Some of the reviews here seem to suggest it was a comedy. There were a few humorous moments, but I just cringed at most of what Jack Black did (apart from his singing). I guess the sort of people who think this film funny are the sort wholl be cracking up at the Vicar of Dibley Christmas special. [I won't be joining them]