Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3336 in VHS
• Released on: 2000-06-12
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Dolby, PAL, Surround Sound
• Original language: English
• Number of tapes: 1
• Running time: 93 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
It's, like, Shakespeare, man! This good-natured and likeable update of The Taming of the Shrew takes the basics of Shakespeare's farce about a surly wench and the man who tries to win her and transfers it to modern-day Padua High School. Kat Stratford (Julia Stiles) is a sullen, forbidding riot girl who has a blistering word for everyone; her sunny younger sister Bianca (Larisa Oleynik) is poised for high school stardom. The problem: overprotective and paranoid Papa Stratford (a dryly funny Larry Miller) won't let Bianca date until boy-hating Kat does, which is to say never. When Bianca's pining suitor Cameron (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) gets wind of this, he hires the mysterious, brooding Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger) to loosen Kat up. Of course, what starts out as a paying gig turns to true love as Patrick discovers that underneath her brittle exterior, Kat is a regular babe. The script, by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith, is sitcom-funny with peppy one-liners and lots of smart teenspeak; however, its cleverness and imagination doesn't really extend beyond its characters' Renaissance names and occasional snippets of real Shakespearean dialogue. What makes the movie energetic and winning is the formula that helped make She's All That such a big hit: two high-wattage stars who look great and can really act. Ledger is a hunk of promise with a quick grin and charming Aussie accent and Stiles mines Kat's bitterness and anger to depths usually unknown in teen films; her recitation of her English class sonnet (from which the film takes its title) is funny, heartbreaking and hopelessly romantic. The imperious Allison Janney (Primary Colors) nearly steals the film as a no-nonsense guidance counsellor secretly writing a trashy romance novel. --Mark Englehart

Synopsis
Cameron falls for Bianca on the first day at his new school but she is forbidden to date - that is until her undateable sister, Kat, goes out too... Modern remake of William Shakespeare's 'The Taming Of The Shrew'.

Customer Reviews

The Teen Flick of My Generation
I'm 19 now (so was only 9 when '10 Things I Hate About You' came out) and I have seen this film way too many times to count. There have been countless sleep-overs, film days, random get-togthers and quite evenings alone that have all featured this film, so much so that I can now pretty much recite the entire script off by heart. Yet it is a mark of just how great this film is that, despite knowing it inside out I can still sit down and watch it and thoroughly enjoy doing so - it is and always will remain one of my favourite films.

When I was younger I never questioned anything in the films I watched - it is only as I have grown up that I have learnt to be critical of films, books and music, and even now, I can't fault any of the acting in '10 Things I hate About You'. Heath Ledger gives a dazzling performance as usual (which is surprising considering how reluctant Ledger was to take the part incase he became typecast) but the real breath-taking perfomance for me was by Julia Stiles - it is only now I am older that I can appreciate just how believably she managed to pull off her character that you do not for an instance question whether she is the 'rude, aggressive, bitter older sister of the most popular girl at school who only behaves in this way as a defense mechanism'. The remainder of the cast, Jospeh Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik, David Krumholtz etc all play their parts perfectly, and with a true 90's script and killer soundtrack this film couldn't fail to be anything but a success.

I guess that part of the appeal of this film for me is the fact that I grew up through my teenage years constantly watching it. If I was to be introduced to this film for the first time today, I am not sure whether I would like it anywhere near as much as I do now, but it has a certain sentimental value for me, and brings back many, many memories. And I have to say, in this genre of film, '10 Things I hate About You' will always come out on top. I guess that this film is my generations High School Musical, however, there is one key difference in my opinion - although this may be a teen chick flick it is in a class of it's own quality wise, and definatley should not be disregarded as anything less. Love it!!

The best teen comedy-romance movie ever!
Everything everyone says about this delightful movie is true.

Great witty and intelligent script, good use of Shakespeare, great acting from everyone, seriously funny and funnily serious, even the adults (particularly the student counsellor writing erotica for women and the overprotective single father who knows he's loosing his kids but trying to hang on to them for as long as possible and who demonstrates exactly why adults should never attempt to use teen slang)are treated sympathetically, attractive cast, packed with incident and detail (the scene setting opening tour of the various cliques is hilarious and just one of many highlights).

In short, this is a teenage movie that can be enjoyed by everyone, not just teens because, for once, it doesn't insult or patronise its audience. The best 90 minutes entertainment you're likely to find on dvd.

I loved this film!
very funny film and all the parts are played well by the cast. One of my favourite films!
and heath ledger is great in it too!