I hadn't seen a movie in far too long. While he does have a penchant for the over-dramatic, he's still a pretty cool actor. I liked him in Identity and Runaway Jury. In this movie (one of his most beloved performances from what I understand), he plays Rob Gordon, a record store owner who is jaded by a recent breakup. Rob speaks to the camera almost as often as he speaks to characters in the film, and in doing so makes you (the audience) feel more involved with his character and the events on screen than you would in an average comedy. Some girl with a name I can't pronounce plays the unintentionally annoying ex-girlfriend who is still the object of Rob's desire. I don't know what it is about her character, but there's something in the way that she talks that led Branz to dub her a "man-bear-pig." Jack Black has his breakout role as Barry, the record-store-employee-snob who embodies the typical Jables character. Joan Cusack pre-unites* with her School of Rock co-star (JB) as a mutual friend of Rob and Girlfriend McCan'tPronounce. Catherine Zeta-Jones does a fair job with a small role as another of Rob's failed relationship partners.
I think my favorite aspect of High Fidelity was the constant "top 5 lists" that were presented throughout the film. These lists (favorite concoctions of the main character) are compiled for things as ridiculous as "Top 5 Most Brutal Breakups" to "Top 5 Songs About Death" when Rob's ex's father dies. 15 Original Points also go to the High Fidelity screenwriters for coming up with the band names "The Kinky Wizards," "Sonic Death Monkey," and "Kathleen Turner Overdrive."
This movie is obviously a love story at its core. Rob's character development is one of the best in recent memory, partly because his feelings are so universal, and partly because he comes full circle by the end of the movie. The reason High Fidelity is so greatly appreciated as a cult classic is not only because of Bruce Springsteen's dream sequence cameo: it's because the characters are so well conceived. If you can't relate to the jaded Rob, then there is a slew of minor characters that I'm sure you can relate to instead.
I really do see this film as the closest thing Ferris Bueller will see to a sequel. It wouldn't be that far of a stretch to imagine Rob Gordon skipping school with Ferris and Cameron. Cusack does a fantastic job of keeping a certain childish nature to his character, holding on to his past and searching for clues from his failed relationships as reasoning for the failure of his current one. This self-consciousness differs from Ferris' unwavering confidence, but retains the same spirit of being a kid as long as possible. In Cusack's case, this comes from complaining to the viewing audience for most of the film, and using us as a vehicle to work out his emotions on screen. In Ferris' case, the asides are more of an opportunity to showcase his character and present his carefree feelings toward life. Rob Gordon is WAY more emo than Ferris would ever be, as evidenced by multiple scenes in High Fidelity where he is , moping over his miserable life and his hapless streak of luck with women.
Slightly depressing but funny at the same time, this is one of those movies that you have to be in the right mood to appreciate. Give it a shot if you're looking for a hit of Jack Black and Nacho Libre just isn't cutting it, or if you're a closet Cusack fan and want to see one of his most famous performances. Until next time...
*I made up the term "pre-unites."
1. Pre-unite. v. Middle English, from Medieval Latin preunitus. The term "pre-unite" can be used to reference collaborations between actors/actresses in movies that were filmed before their most famous pairing.
2 comments:
Although you define Rob Gordon as "emo", he is no such thing. "Emo" is a fashion that teens at the mall formed from random trinkets found at the local Hot Topic, and therefore since Rob Gordon is neither a teen, nor at the mall, nor wearing anything from Hot Topic, he cannot be termed "emo". Plus, Rob was suffering from a slew of life-changing, miserable and psychological events, and I doubt the teens at the OPMall have even an iota of an idea of what real suffering is. (Because they have so much of their parents' $$$)
While that may be the case, I was using the term "emo" in its literal sense, which is merely a shortened version of the word "emotional." I couldn't agree more that the events of his life are more than kids at the "OPMall" have ever conceived, but does he have to soak himself in the rain every 20 minutes to prove that he cares about a chick? Come on, Cusack. Grow a pair.