“Say Anything” is not your typical boy meets girl story, where the girl falls madly in love with the boy almost immediately in the movie.
This is more of a “Lloyd meets girl story.” Lloyd Dobler is a guy who has just graduated from high school who is not attending college or has a future job in mind. Instead he is training in kickboxing, or “the sport of the future,” as he refers to. On the other hand, Diane Court is the school valedictorian, the brain at school who does not really socialize with anyone and keeps her nose in books. She lives with her father who owns a senior home, and has just received a scholarship to study at a prestigious school in England. On the day of their high school graduation, Lloyd, who has always admired Diane from afar, decides to ask her to go to a graduation party with him. Diane does not really know who he is, but chooses to go to the party with him anyways. After the party, Diane starts to fall for Lloyd, not only because he treats her well, but also because he makes her laugh. Diane realizes that she will be leaving for England soon, so she decides not to get into anything serious, so they become “friends with potential.” Soon though, they realize that it will not be the case.
The movie may be considered a “chick flick”, but with scenes such as the graduation party, there are some jokes guys will appreciate greatly. When Lloyd becomes key master, the scenes where he is interacting with his drunk classmates are classic. Another scene is when Lloyd meets Diane’s father, something that most of us has experienced or must face later in life. You see him, scared and nervous, and when asked what his plan is for after high school, he replies, “Well, I’m going to train in kickboxing, you know, the sport of the future?” The most iconic scene, of course, is when Lloyd is trying to win Diane back. He stands outside her window holding up a boom box, while she lies in her bed. It is the scene that all girls wish would happen to them and we all in some way wish to have a boy such as Lloyd, in our life.
Rated: PG-13
Running time: 100 minutes
My rating: 4.0 / 5.0
by Alanna Keefe
