High Fidelity (2000) or, Record Store Romance

5/17/2022

High Fidelity (2000) or, Record Store Romance

♥♥♥

Different hairstyles on an vinyl record cover adorn this poster for Stephen Frears' High Fidelity

Record store owner Robert is left by his blond girlfriend Laura, and in the process of reassessing his own break-up story realizes that he has to win her back.

High Fidelity is written by D.V. DeVincentis, Steve Pink (Grosse Point Blank (1997), both), Scott Rosenberg (Happy Town (2010, TV-series)) and co-writer/star John Cusack (War, Inc. (2008)), adapting the same-titled 1995 novel by Nick Hornby (Slam (2007)), and directed by English master filmmaker Stephen Frears (Gumshoe (1971)), whose 12th feature it is.

The story is related mainly through Cusack's Robert's narration directly to the camera, and Cusack and Frears get this to work at times. But the technique is overused and also get annoying at other times.

A side note: If you are not convinced that the 1990s was the ugliest decade fashion-wise in modern history, I'll recommend you to look at the dubious robes in High Fidelity.

The film seems to come to its conclusion, - but then it actually has a good 10 minutes more of babble in store for us. What makes High Fidelity worthwhile nonetheless are the good performances from Cusack and Iben Hjejle (Klovn (2005-09)) as Laura, along with Jack Black (Jesus' Son (1999)), who is allowed to give a lovely musical number in the end, and Joan Cusack (Freaks of Nature (2015)). The latter two are both funny here.

Stephen Frears: Top 10: Best dramedies reviewed by Film Excess to date

Top 10: The best biopic movies reviewed by Film Excess to date

2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

2016 in films - according to Film Excess

Florence Foster Jenkins (2016) - Streep, Frears and Co. drop us a delightful present

Top 10: Best UK movies reviewed by Film Excess to date

2013 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED V]

2013 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED IV]

2013 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]

Philomena (2013) - Dench astounds in Frears' powerful true-story drama

Mrs Henderson Presents (2005) or, Wartime Swinging London

Dirty Pretty Things (2002) - Good performances anchor Frears' flawed, overrated illegal immigrant drama

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 30 mil. $

Box office: 47.1 mil. $

= Big flop (returned 1.57 times its cost)

[High Fidelity premiered 17 March (South by Southwest Film Festival) and runs 113 minutes. Black was paid 250k $ for his performance. Shooting took place from April - July 1999 in California, New York and in Chicago, Illinois. The film opened #5, behind holdover hit Erin Brockovich, fellow new releases The Road to El Dorado and The Skulls and holdover hit Romeo Must Die, to a 6.4 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it left the top 5 in its 2nd weekend and grossed 27.2 mil. $ (57.7 % of the total gross). The film was nominated for a BAFTA, won an AFI award, and was nominated for a Golden Globe and a Grammy, among other honors. Roger Ebert gave it a 4/4 star review, translating to 3 notches over this one. A same-titled TV-series version was made with Zoe Kravitz in the gender-swapped lead and canceled after 1 season in 2020. Frears returned with Fail-Safe (2000, TV movie) and theatrically with Liam (2000). Cusack returned in America's Sweethearts (2001). High Fidelity is certified fresh at 91 % with a 7.60/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of High Fidelity?

No comments:

William Friedkin has died

Born in Chicago, Friedkin accrued TV credits prior to his advance to the big screen as the director of Good TImes (1967), The Birthday Party (1968), The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968) and The Boys in the Band (1970) before his major breakthrough, The French Connection (1971), for which he won his only Oscar. He followed it up with the even bigger smash, The Exorcist (1973), arguably the best horror film of all time, for which he was Oscar-nominated. Later credits include Sorcerer (1977), Cruising (1980), To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), Rampage (1987), Rules of Engagement (2000), Killer Joe (2011) and The Devil and Father Amorth (2017, documentary). Friedkin passed away at age 87. R.I.P.

Louise Fletcher has passed away

Born in Alabama to deaf parents, Fletcher got her first credits in late-1950s TV-series.She took a 10 year-long sabbatical to devote her time to motherhood after the release of A Gathering of Eagles, but then came back and soon saw her career's most important part, as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which she won her sole Oscar. Later credits include Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), The Lucky Star (1980), Brainstorm (1983), Two Moon Junction (1988), Cruel Intentions (1999), A Perfect Man (2013) and many more. Fletcher passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Jean-Luc Godard has passed away

Born in Paris, France, Godard lived much of his life in Switzerland. He wrote for French film criticism magazine Cahiers du Cinema and became foundational for the New French Wave that inspired new waves in scores of other countries across the world with his Breathless (1960). Later credits include A Woman Is A Woman (1961), Vivre Sa Vie (1962), Le Petit Soldat (1962), Contempt (1963), Alphaville (1965), Pierrot le Fou (1965), 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her (1967), Weekend (1967), Every Man for Himself (1980), King Lear (1987), Century of Cinema (1995, documentary), Goodbye to Language (2014) and many more. Godard died of assisted suicide at age 91. R.I.P.

Wolfgang Petersen has died

James Caan has died

Caan was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany in New York. He got his start on TV in the early 1960s. His credits include El Dorado (1966), The Rain People (1969), Brian's Song (1971, TV movie), The Godfather (1972), - for which he earned his only Oscar nomination, - Slither (1973), The Gambler (1974), Funny Lady (1975), Rollerball (1975), Silent Movie (1976), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), - the only film he also directed, - Thief (1981), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Bottle Rocket (1996), Eraser (1996), Dogville (2003), Elf (2003), Las Vegas (2003-07), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and many more. Caan passed away at age 82. R.I.P.

Jean-Louis Trintignant has died

Born in Vaucluse, France, Trintignant's theatrical debut as an actor was in If All the Guys in the World... (1955). Later credits include ...And God Created Woman (1956), The Seven Deadly Sins (1961), Inferno (1964), A Man and A Woman (1966), My Love, My Love (1967), A Man to Kill (1967), The Great Silence (1968), Z (1969), The Assassination (1972), Three Colors: Red (1994), Amour (2012), Happy End (2017) and many more. He also wrote and directed two films in the 1970s. Trintignant passed away at age 91. R.I.P.

Ray Liotta has died

Adopted from an orphenage at a young age, Liotta got hooked on acting in high school. He had various TV credits in the late 1970s and early 80s, with his film debut in The Lonely Lady (1983). Later credits include Something Wild (1986), Field of Dreams (1989), Goodfellas (1990), Cop Land (1997), Hannibal (2001), Blow (2001), Narc (2002), John Q (2002), Identity (2003), Observe and Report (2009), Youth in Revolt (2009), The Details (2011), Killing THem Softly (2012), The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), Shades of Blue (2016-18), The Simpsons (2018, TV-series), Marriage Story (2019), The Many Saints of Newark (2021), Black Bird (2022, TV-series) and many more. Liotta passed away at age 67 in his sleep while on production in the Dominican Republic. R.I.P.

Philip Baker Hall has died

Born in Ohio, Hall didn't start acting until he was 30. His long list of credits include Zabriskie Point (1970), Miami Vice (1987, TV-series), Midnight Run (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Cheers (1993, TV-series), Hard Eight (1996), The Rock (1996), Air Force One (1997), Boogie Nights (1997), Seinfeld (1991-98), Rush Hour (1998), The Insider (1999), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Bruce Almighty (2003), Dogville (2003), The Zodiac (2005), Zodiac (2007), Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004-09), Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011), Modern Family (2011-12) and many more. Hall passed away at age 90. R.I.P.

William Hurt has passed away

Born in Washington D.C., Hurt's first film role was the lead in Altered States (1980). Later credits include Body Heat (1981), The Big Chill (1983), Gorky Park (1983), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), for which he earned his only Oscar as Best Actor; Chilrdren of a Lesser God (1986), for which he was also Oscar-nominated; Broadcast News (1987), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; Smoke (1995), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), A History of Violence (2005), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; The Good Shepherd (2006), Into the Wild (2007), Robin Hood (2010) and many more. Hurt passed away at age 71. R.I.P.

Ivan Reitman has passed away

Born in Chechoslovakia, now Slovakia, Reitman's family fled the Soviet regime to Austria, then Toronto, when he was 4 years old. Reitman broke into movies as a director with Foxy Lady (1971). Later credits include Cannibal Girls (1973), Meatballs (1979), Stripes (1981), Ghostbusters (1984), Twins (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Kindergarten Cop (1990), Junior (1994), Father's Day (1997), Evolution (1998), No Strings Attached (2011), Draft Day (2014) and more. Reitman's son Jason Reitman is also a great filmmaker. Reitman passed away at age 75. R.I.P.

Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!

Eagerly anticipating this week ... (6-24)

5/17/2022