"10 Things I Hate About You" is a slick update of Shakespeare's "The Taming of The Shrew". Directed by relative unknown Gil Junger "10 Things" was surprisingly, one of the most successful teen films to come out at cinemas in 1999. An extremely entertaining comedy that is full of sweet moments & star making performances. Heath Ledger is excellent in the lead as the cool, romantic Patrick Verona.
The story centres around two sisters Katarina & Bianca Stratford who are delightfully played by newcomers Julia Stiles & Larisa Oleynik. Bianca is the younger outgoing one who has been asked to go the prom by 2 guys. On the other hand Katarina is the class brain who never dates. Bianca has been forbidden to date by her father until her older sister starts doing so. Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger) accepts a bribe to take Katarina to the school prom but as the plot develops he actually falls madly in love with her. When Katarina finds out about the bribe she turns against him. Patrick is now confronted with the task of having to win her over again.
The most memorable scene in the film & certainly one of the funniest, would have to be the moment, when Heath Ledger decides to sing to Julia Stiles at the school football stadium via the PA system. It is both delightfully funny & romantically offbeat. Heath & Julia have some wonderful chemistry together.
I saw this film at a special charity screening in a packed cinema. The audience loved it, they went wild, hysterical with laughter & I am sure that they weren't expecting the film to be as entertaining as it was. The film certainly had its heart in the right place. All performances from the young cast were first rate, utterly believable & not one character was miscast.
"10 Things" is a cute high school film for all ages. It Is well-paced, has a wonderfully clever story to tell & the out-takes at the end are a hoot. The icing on the cake is that the film also has a great soundtrack, which adds to the fun.