“Rob, a record store owner and compulsive list maker, recounts his top five breakups, including the one in progress.” -IMDB
I won’t lie, the thing that is most annoying about “reWind Wednesdays” is the fact that I’ve known for so long how much I would like some of these movies, but for the fact that I’ve just never taken the time to watch them. Not that this is an original thought, but I truly hate when someone who I know doesn’t appreciate the nuances, but saw the movie before me, is able to say “I told you so.” And yes, that is where I strongly resemble John Cusack’s character…judge me as you will.
High Fidelity is by no means one of the best movies I’ve ever seen, but it is definitely right up my alley. 1. List making (I’m incredibly compulsive when it comes to list making, maybe you’ve noticed…); 2. Music snobbery (which I would have been guilty of in my teens, but no longer have any right to be); and, 3. A young John Cusack. I appreciate everything about it, but somehow the years just slipped away without my watching it.
I have to say, I appreciate how well it’s held up. At the beginning I thought it was going to be another sad boy movie with a hipster complaining about how women don’t like him; but, that is exactly the trope that gets turned on its head. Instead, the male lead is forced to look at how he’s failed within his relationships and how he has judged women too harshly. I can definitely see why it was brought back with Zoe Kravitz (and God do I love some insider-Hollywood casting since her mom was in the original) and switched to the female perspective. But more on that to come in future weeks.
Again, it’s not the greatest movie of all time and the ending is a little bit underwhelming, but it is definitely a movie that should be appreciated for being slightly ahead of its times and with an (of course) wicked soundtrack.
RATING: WORTH THE WATCH
If you like this movie, you should also watch: The series, of course!
Streaming: HBO Max
With: John Cusack, Iben Hjejle, Jack Black, Lisa Bonet
Directed By: Stephen Frears
Let Me Clarify 