Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #766 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-01-08
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Finnish
• Number of discs: 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 grrrl 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

Special Features
English
Region 2

Synopsis
In 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, Bianca Stratford (Larisa Oleynik) is a tenth grader who has never gone on a date, as her parents have a little rule where Bianca isn't allowed to go out with boys until her older sister gets a boyfriend. The problem is, while her older sister Kat (Julia Stiles) is attractive and intelligent, she's also a mean-spirited misanthrope who rubs nearly everyone the wrong way -- especially boys. But Bianca and the guy she has her eye on, Joey Donner (Andrew Keegan), are eager to get their romance on the road, so Joey fixes Kat up with Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger), a new kid in town who may be just bitter and mysterious enough to suit her. All the while high school newcomer Cameron James (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) desperately tries to win Biana for himeslf. 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU was the first feature film for director Gil Junger, and is a clever reworking of Shakespeare's TAMING OF THE SHREW.

Customer Reviews

10 things I love about 10 things I hate about you.
1. Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The most adorable guy on the planet. If there was only one reason to watch '10 things', this awesome 3rd rock star would be it.
2.The fantastic cast. Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger work perfectly together, Larisa Oleynik is Stunning, David Krumholtz has the geeky best friend to a tee and Andrew Keegan shines as the guy we love to hate. Extra credit to Daryl Mitchell as the coolest teacher ever.
3.The fab soundtrack. Letters To Cleo are brilliant, and the entire songlist is hip and cool. I personally can't stop playing the CD!
4.The brilliant script. I love all the subtle hints to shakespeare, and I reckon this film holds the greatest one liners in hollywood!
5.The setting. The backdrop of seattle if gorgeous, and what wouldn't I give to go to school at Padua?
6.The bloopers. I don't think I've ever seen actors be so cool (and so funny) about messing up!
7.The storyline. I love the way everything is changed ever so slightly, and how shakespeare transfers so neatly into a teen scene.
8.The singing scene on the quad. What wouldn't I give to have Joseph G-L sing to me like Patrick sings to Kat? You're just to good to be true.....
9.The director. Some of the stuff is shot perfectly, e.g the "invitations down the stairs" scene. Congrats to Gil Junger.
10. The bit where Bianca kicks the crap out of Joey. Difinative Girl Power moment.
WATCH IT.

5 Stars aren't enough!!!!!! I give it 10 out of 5 !!!!!!
10 Things I Hate About You is a fairly basic teen love story, but with the added twist of Shakespeare and very good comedic acting.

The story is based on Shakespeare's Taiming of the Shrew. It is about two sisters, one very popular, Bianca Stratford(sexy: Larisa Oleynik) and the other, Katrina or "Kat"(superb: Julia Stiles) hated because of her gruff character. Their overbearing father(hilarious: Larry Miller), devises a scheme whereby Bianca cannot date until rebellious Kat does, which seems an impossibility. Thereby is set up a scheme to pair Kat off with the roguish Patrick Verona(outstanding: Heath Ledger). One of the masterminds of this plot is Cameron James(cute: Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a newcomer to Padua high, where the movie takes place. The other is his assistant of sorts, Michael Eckman(David Khyumoltz).

Though somewhat predictable, especially if you have read Taming of the Shrew, it is an interesting light diversion. The dialogue is quite well done, interwining a word or phrase from Shakespeares with modern teen slang. Other does to Shakespeare are seen in Kat's friend who idolizes him as if he is a teen heartthrob, plus reading of his works in one Kat's classes. The timing in the dialogue is also very Shakespearean. It's very rapid fire. I think both David Khumoltz and Larry Miller are amazingly funny!

Overall, this is not your typical shallow teen romance movie, but can appeal to anyone who enjoys witty dialogue, and many literary references.

The DVD is unremarkable. It has a good DD 5.1 soundtrack driven by a nice selection of alternative rock - Letters from Clio had several cameos, but I believe they mainly played cover tunes, not their own stuff. The DVD does not contain any special features.

It's not Shakespeare, but it's close
Bored? Nothing to do? Have a few hours to spend? Then I highly recommend a movie I've watched this past weekend, 10 Things I Hate About You.

It's loosely based on Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, but it's set in a high school in modern day. The premise of the movie is as follows:

Popular, beautiful teenager cannot date due to paranoid father. Father lays down the rule that she can only date when her older sister starts to do so, older sister being a mean, foul-mouthed girl. Boy who is crazily in love with popular, beautiful teenager hatches a plan to get the older sister dating.

Nowe I know what you guys are thinking- it's the same 'ol same 'ol, an average mindless teen flick. But it's not. It's much better than that. Sure it's not a terribly deep film with a fairly predictable sotry-line. But this movie has many witty lines and very watchable characters- even the minor characters are very well-developed, especially the paranoid father. Furthermore, the lead actress is extremely watchable- Julia Stiles- with her sassy attitude and warped outlook on life. Watch it, I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

I liked it so much when I watched it for the first time on video that I rewound to my favourite parts and watched it again twice. It is so much better than the vaguely similar She's All That, which is dead boring.

Trust me. Watch it. But remember, it's not Shakespeare. It's not violent, mindless action. It's a gentle romantic comedy with a really good lead actress, many funny lines and a rocking soundtrack.