A lot of movies have changed the way society acts, but one movie that changed the way I looked at everything was a movie called “10 Things I Hate About You,” directed by Gil Junger.

I first watched this movie as a freshman in high school, which was important, given that it changed the way I looked at fashion, love and life in general.

This movie, staring Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles and Joeseph Gordon-Levitt, was made in 1999 and has become a movie that many people are familiar with. The film takes place in California at a high school, and it is based around a girl, Kat, who is very standoffish to boys and most of what the culture around her is used to. Her sister, Bianca, however, fits right in, which means she likes talking to boys and dressing in cute summer dresses, whereas Kat tends to lead to the more “angry indie girl” aesthetic.

This leads us to the plot, which given that it is a rom com, it is in fact based around love. And, just like other rom coms, there is something that goes wrong with the love story. With Kat being the way she is, boys usually do not talk to her as much, but once Bianca starts wanting to talk to boys, she needs Kat to get a boyfriend or else their father will not let her go on a date. This then leads to where Cameron and Patrick, the two love interests, and how they try to get Kat to go on different dates.

The film is based on a play by William Shakespeare, called “The Taming of the Shrew.” They make multiple references to it throughout the movie, such as calling Kat the “shrew” and their school being called Pauda High School, which is a reference to the town they lived in in “The Taming of the Shrew.” Taking a work of art, like one of Shakespeare’s plays and turning it into a movie that corresponds with a more modern-day theme is something that is very cool to me, as it shows that a lot of art can be timeless.

With the plot being so amazing, the jokes and lines becoming popular in our society and a love story that takes so many twists and turns, this movie is one of the best movies I have ever seen. It is perfect for watching with friends and family, or even just by yourself on a night in. I give this movie a 9/10, especially because of how ahead of its time it was.

24jwente@usd489.com