There are several small things that go into creating chemistry between actors/characters on screen, and in Cameron Crowe's debut, it seemed he had already mastered them. "Say Anything" has a small story and a handful of perfectly cast roles that are held together by wonderful writing in a movie that could've earned its keep for another hour.
In "Say Anything" we see a couple of different, but very important, things that aren't at all standard fare. John Cusack as Lloyd Dobler, the lead, is unspeakably good. There is a nuance he brings with the character, a tick, a flinch that brings it to life. He's playing an ordinary guy, maybe a little too ordinary in some aspects, with some caveats we get reminded of a couple times throughout the picture. He wasn't one of the popular guys in school, wasn't a straight-A student, wasn't an athlete - it's the lack of titles and the usual stigmas with them that helps define this unique performance and character.
Cusack is aided by a seemingly on-the-surface quiet performance on the other end by Ione Skye's Diane Court. While Cusack's character is relatable in that something about him applies to most males and the story is really, for the most part, told through his lenses, we see a likeness in Skye's Diane, we've known someone like her before. Her character is more of the distant type, close family ties and kept her head down and focused on her grades while her peers, including Lloyd, were out socializing. When we're introduced to her in the early stages, she's almost only something to be admired, and perhaps she'd stay that way if Crowe didn't write her so many important scenes and give her so many crucial moments that craft her character.
There are a handful of moments in great movies that act as crucial moments for character without someone telling the audience how they should feel or how they should think. See Luke Skywalker looking up into the sky in "New Hope" or the look on Kay's face at the ending of "The Godfather." These moments say all about the characters that we need to know with no exposition, and there's a select few in "Say Anything." While the boombox scene is memorable, the moment that stands apart above all, and quite closely resembles the record store scene in "Before Sunrise", involves Lloyd teaching Diane how to drive her new car. In this scene, the audience catches its breath for a moment before seeing a crescendo of emotion between the characters with no words except for driving instructions. The subtle smiles on the character's faces and the culmination of the goodwill of their time spent is nothing short of infectious, and crucial.
"Say Anything" offers a lot more than its peers. While it does follow, closely, to the "boy meets girl" pattern that's tried and true, it makes enough safe, smart, and heartfelt moves and creates a few moments of great cinema along the way that it has more than stood the test of time. John Cusack portrays an earnest character that is important to show on screen because of his vulnerability and his believability, and Ione Skye acts perfectly as not only the apple of his eye, but delivers her own important messages as well through her actions and her beliefs, she's strong in a way that makes her character delightfully lovable and real in the same steps.
Cameron Crowe created a wonderful time capsule of human growth, in an important time of two different but lovable characters' lives. Assisted with a catchy and timeless soundtrack, Crowe created a crown jewel of the romance genre that has a whole lot to say, and it wouldn't without his knack for good conversations, important character choices, meaningful scenes, and a whole lot of chemistry between two wonderfully written characters.
In "Say Anything" we see a couple of different, but very important, things that aren't at all standard fare. John Cusack as Lloyd Dobler, the lead, is unspeakably good. There is a nuance he brings with the character, a tick, a flinch that brings it to life. He's playing an ordinary guy, maybe a little too ordinary in some aspects, with some caveats we get reminded of a couple times throughout the picture. He wasn't one of the popular guys in school, wasn't a straight-A student, wasn't an athlete - it's the lack of titles and the usual stigmas with them that helps define this unique performance and character.
Cusack is aided by a seemingly on-the-surface quiet performance on the other end by Ione Skye's Diane Court. While Cusack's character is relatable in that something about him applies to most males and the story is really, for the most part, told through his lenses, we see a likeness in Skye's Diane, we've known someone like her before. Her character is more of the distant type, close family ties and kept her head down and focused on her grades while her peers, including Lloyd, were out socializing. When we're introduced to her in the early stages, she's almost only something to be admired, and perhaps she'd stay that way if Crowe didn't write her so many important scenes and give her so many crucial moments that craft her character.
There are a handful of moments in great movies that act as crucial moments for character without someone telling the audience how they should feel or how they should think. See Luke Skywalker looking up into the sky in "New Hope" or the look on Kay's face at the ending of "The Godfather." These moments say all about the characters that we need to know with no exposition, and there's a select few in "Say Anything." While the boombox scene is memorable, the moment that stands apart above all, and quite closely resembles the record store scene in "Before Sunrise", involves Lloyd teaching Diane how to drive her new car. In this scene, the audience catches its breath for a moment before seeing a crescendo of emotion between the characters with no words except for driving instructions. The subtle smiles on the character's faces and the culmination of the goodwill of their time spent is nothing short of infectious, and crucial.
"Say Anything" offers a lot more than its peers. While it does follow, closely, to the "boy meets girl" pattern that's tried and true, it makes enough safe, smart, and heartfelt moves and creates a few moments of great cinema along the way that it has more than stood the test of time. John Cusack portrays an earnest character that is important to show on screen because of his vulnerability and his believability, and Ione Skye acts perfectly as not only the apple of his eye, but delivers her own important messages as well through her actions and her beliefs, she's strong in a way that makes her character delightfully lovable and real in the same steps.
Cameron Crowe created a wonderful time capsule of human growth, in an important time of two different but lovable characters' lives. Assisted with a catchy and timeless soundtrack, Crowe created a crown jewel of the romance genre that has a whole lot to say, and it wouldn't without his knack for good conversations, important character choices, meaningful scenes, and a whole lot of chemistry between two wonderfully written characters.
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