You won't be disappointed!

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Before I get to my review, I'd like to respond to the wet-blanket elitist, who wanted to diagram this film like a term paper. 'Say Anything' is a teen film from the '80s. It was made about young people in the 1980s, for young people in the 1980s and deals with the issues of young people in the 1980s. If this means the film is 'dated' then every movie that has ever been made is 'dated'. To some extent, all movies are time-capsules of the period in which they were created. It isn't 'Hamlet' or 'Othello' nor is trying to be and if you are going to view a movie aimed at young people, you shouldn't be surprised by what you get. Primarily, that it will depict the world as it appears and is understood to be, by adolescents and that the storyline will revolve around the things that are important to them. These may seem naive, trivial or idealistic by adult standards but this is not the adult world. That being said, 'Say Anything' does not connect with me, personally. It is a well written, well acted and well directed film in it's own right. My issue is with the version of the world and characters it depicts. You see, I was a teenager in the late '80s and in lived in that world. In fact, remember when the movie came out. I watched it in the theater and had the same problem with it then as I do now. That being, it doesn't get it right.The '80s I knew was a combination of 'The Breakfast Club', 'Sixteen Candles' and 'Some Kind of Wonderful'. Those were the people who inhabited the high school I attended and that was the culture I saw and lived in. Cameron Crowe's version, while interesting, misses the mark by this much.I have a theory for this however, and that is Crowe was not a teenager in the '80s. The movies he made about his own adolescence and undercover work at a local high school, 'Almost Famous' and 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High' capture their time and people wonderfully. And they should because he was there. But he wasn't there in the '80s and so he's having to guess.Does it matter? Probably not. 'Grease' isn't an accurate representation of the 1950s and 'That 70s Show' is not an accurate representation of the 1970s. This is a film that is beloved by legions of people and the fact that it doesn't connect with me doesn't diminish it's quality or validity. It just means that I saw things differently than the filmmaker. For those of you who were not there and plan to view 'Say Anything' for the first time though, I would suggest you watch 'Some Kind of Wonderful' afterwards as a comparison. You may find it interesting.

Cameron Crowe is one of those directors that is incredibly gifted at writing great characters that feel like they are having real relationships. Whether it be parents to children, unlikely friendships, or just great romance, Crowe always finds a way to get the best out of actors and that always starts with his scripts. Say Anything tells the story of Lloyd, a well mannered 19 year old who lives in the now, and Diane, a valedictorian with everything good coming her way, and how a relationship like that may blossom over the course of the summer before college.Some may shrug at the fact that Lloyd may have no business in being with a girl of her stature, but the film does a nice job of making the romance believable. Having not known each other in high school, Lloyd decides to take his chances and just call and ask her on a date. Of course, she's very hesitant at first but by simply saying "he made me laugh" was enough for me. It's true, a laugh can go a long way in getting to know something in whatever aspect possible. Now 26 years later you can definitely feel the influence that this film had on coming of age films even to this day. The Spectacular Now takes a similar premise and also was very successful. It's hard to nail a high school film, but Say Anything did a pretty good job. I also appreciated the way they portrayed Diane's relationship with her father. It was clearly a close bond they had, and for 3/4 of the movie I felt like it wasn't clichéd at all. There wasn't the typical Disney moments of "it's my dream dad, not yours". Now, towards the end of the film I think that same relationship was sacrificed for certain plot points. Knowing that the film isn't all that unpredictable, I should have guessed certain things would happen, but I felt like the last third of the movie felt too much like all the other Hollywood films.There are a lot of classic Crowe moments like when Lloyd is constantly getting advice from his close girlfriends or even his guy friends, so there's no shortage of laughs or fun moments. The film also contains a fantastic score and soundtrack, which are also Crowe trademarks. The famous boombox scene is shorter than I thought and doesn't hold as much of a bearing on the film's outcome as I had heard. But Say Anything is still a well done coming of age film with real characters with real moments.+Soundtrack/score +Real romance +Everyone is well written +Felt like I was living it with them -3rd acts left turn 7.7/10

Most of us know about that scene, that famous scene where the guy is standing in the front yard outside the house of his girlfriend (or ex-girlfriend, I should say), after she just broke up with him the day before. It's early in the morning when he's decided to pull off this little stunt, and, standing next to his car, he's holding up a huge boom-box over his head blaring Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes."This is the most iconic and famous scene in Cameron Crowe's "Say Anything...", his 1989 debut which he both wrote and directed. This is a movie I've seen in clips over the years but have never actually sat down and watched the whole thing in its entirety. I've read the critical praise (the most significant coming from the late film critic Roger Ebert), "Entertainment Weekly" naming it the greatest modern romance AND ranking it at #11 on their list of 50 best high school movies, and a Valentine's Day article in "The Washington Post" from 2006 titled "What I Did For Lloyd." Now I've finally sat down and watched the movie and understood where it's all coming from.The 1980s were a wasteland of teen comedies. John Hughes (1950-2009) was behind the best of them ("The Breakfast Club," "Sixteen Candles"). At the tail end of the decade, came Cameron Crowe and his "Say Anything...". This film is much like any teen comedy/romance to come out at that time (and ever since) and begins as such, with a "noble underachiever" who falls for an ultra-intelligent, if socially unskilled, beauty who seems way out of his league. The movie also seems to at least partially pre-figure the Seattle "grunge" era of the early '90s (which was spear-headed by the legendary grunge band Nirvana), but the exact details of this implication are part of another discussion entirely.Lloyd Dobler (John Cusack) is the noble underachiever who dares to ask out the beautiful high school valedictorian Diane Court (Ione Skye) the day after their graduation. Lloyd's ambitions are pretty slim, since the only thing he can really see himself doing in the immediate future is Kick-boxing (which at that time was still a relatively new thing). So at least he's honest about his life's aspirations: he knows what he wants to do, and he especially knows what he DOESN'T want to do - which does shock some people and makes him the most truthful character in the entire film. But it's an even bigger shock when he decides that he wants to go out with the lovely Diane Court.Diane, on the other hand, has her whole life set out before her. She's worked hard her entire life to work her way up to the top of her high school graduating class. And all that hard work pays off when she learns she's been granted a fellowship to further her studies overseas in England. And she'll be leaving at the end of the summer. And then there's Lloyd, who impulsively asks her out on a date and much to his surprise, she accepts his invitation. They do go out, they enjoy one another's company, they connect, and their feelings of just being "friends with potential" do gradually deepen into love. While Diane's over-protective father James Court (John Mahoney) seems to like Lloyd, he mostly sees him as a distraction and someone who's going to steer her away from the future she's worked so hard to achieve.We like Lloyd and Diane both, and we want them to be together. But like any good love story, there has to be roadblocks, and these roadblocks hurt...In a major subplot, however, James, owner of an elderly-care facility, is also being investigated by the IRS for tax fraud. This subplot would be a most unnecessary distraction from an otherwise touching teen romance, but the way everything turns out and why it's even happened in the first place is just one of the many unique charms of "Say Anything..." and why it stands out amongst most teen romance films made before and since. A less ambitious movie would JUST be about Lloyd & Diane's relationship and nothing else, but "Say Anything..." has other things on its mind beside those two - even though it still hurts us when outside forces cause them to separate for a time. "Say Anything..." wants to show us how their relationship is affecting everyone around them, and how everyone around them is affecting them, as well."Say Anything..." is a wondrously scripted, acted, and directed film; it's definitely an early indication of the skill of a writer and director with huge ideas, huge potential. Crowe knew his characters well and chose his performers even better. John Cusack and Ione Skye are the dynamic young stars playing Lloyd and Diane. Like John Hughes before him and who dominated the early portion of the 1980s teen scene, Cameron Crowe knew how to make a "smart" teen film: one that is not filled with stupid sex jokes and even stupider characters - teens and adults alike.With that in mind, I can see how an audience so cynical in 1989 after being bombarded with teen comedy after teen comedy throughout the earlier portion of the decade can very easily write off "Say Anything..." as just Another Teen Movie. It's a teen film, yes, and an occasionally very funny one, too, but it's also an extraordinarily moving and compelling one, as well. So I can also see how that cynicism would wear off once the movie really begins to reveal itself to the audience - especially with its emotional honesty and maturity, and the fact that it's actually a very well-written and acted little piece of cinema.So it's really no wonder why you can Say Anything you want about "Say Anything..." but you cannot deny that it is not a great movie!10/10

"Say Anything..." is a teen romantic comedy-drama that follows the relationship between Lloyd Dobler,an average student, and Diane Court,the class valedictorian, after their graduation from high school.It stars John Cusack and Ione Skye together with John Mahoney,Lily Taylor and Joan Cusack.This serves as the directorial debut of Cameron Crowe,who also wrote the film's screenplay.The story was set in Seattle,Washington. Lloyd Dobler, an average student and aspiring kickboxer, who attempts a relationship with the lovely valedictorian Diane Court immediately after their graduation from the same high school. Intrigued by Lloyd's endearing manner and willingness to take a chance at someone,they began seeing each other regularly.But when the father interfered,they have to end their relationship.In the end,Diane began to realize that there is just more to life than just good grades and perfection.This is definitely one of the best high school films ever released.Cameron Crowe definitely made a classic film that remains memorable after it has been released more than 25 years ago.The jokes maybe dated and the story of two different people falling in love maybe old-fashioned,the leads - Cusack and Skye - have authentic feelings and emotions that they become more than just stereotypes that viewers normally see just any other movie.Aside from well-developed characters,we also get to witness two great young thespians that exhibited real and authentic feelings.