1999’s cult classic rom-com 10 Things I Hate About You remains a pinnacle of the genre since its initial release. Directed by Gil Junger, this modernization of William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew is hilarious and heartfelt, with the perfect balance between cheesy tropes and well-written dialogue. 26 years later, 10 Things I Hate About You remains a relevant and beloved film with kitschy charm.
Set in Seattle during the 90s, 10 Things I Hate About You follows the high school experience of antisocial, feminist soccer player Kat Stratford (Julia Stiles). Kat prefers to mind her own business and embraces her unpopularity and label as “scary.” To say the least, she is not a people pleaser. Kat’s younger sister Bianca Stratford (Larisa Olyenik) is her polar opposite. Bianca is Ms. Popular and lives for the ups and downs of the high school experience.
True to her character, Bianca is adamant about dating popular wannabe actor Joey Donner (Andrew Keegan). Still, her father’s rules hold her back when he reveals that Bianca is only allowed to date when Kat does. In other words, he may as well have just told her never. But there’s a twist: a new guy, Cameron (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), has entered the fray at Padua High School and has fallen in love at first sight with Bianca.
When Cameron catches wind of Bianca’s father’s new rule, he plots to convince Joey to pay rebellious Patrick (Heath Ledger) to date Kat so Joey can go out with Bianca, when in reality, Cameron plans on stealing Bianca away. It’s a true recipe for disaster from the very start, but it makes for dramatic love confessions and cheesy scenes that are part of what makes the movie still so iconic today.
Aside from Kat, Patrick is one of the most iconic characters in the movie; he smokes, plays paintball, and plays guitar. He’s antisocial and, after a bit of light stalking, secures a date with Kat to a high school party where things go quickly awry, leading to the classic scene where Kat gets up on a table and starts dancing to the Notorious B.I.G.’s “Hypnotize.” At this same party, Cameron realizes Bianca is choosing Joey over him and feels dejected, but drives her home anyway and ends up confessing he learned French for her. While Patrick may be the movie’s standout, dream guy Cameron is a close second.
One of the most entertaining elements of the movie is the set. The lakes surrounding Seattle can be seen out of classroom windows, and its skyline is often featured, adding a cozy and scenic element to the movie. The set is greatly highlighted during one specific scene where Patrick wins back Kat’s affection after swerving her kiss by publicly serenading her from the bleachers, endearingly belting out the lyrics to Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes off You” while evading campus security.
Patrick is starting to have real feelings for Kat, but Joey is still paying him to take her out. At prom, Kat learns Patrick was being paid to take her out, leaving her heartbroken. While on behalf of Bianca, the situation is less than ideal, Patrick’s unkind act leads to Kat’s dramatic reading of her poem, which is often still quoted today, in which she lists 10 things she hates about Patrick, inspiring the movie’s title and, in turn, a sonnet by Shakespeare.
While Kat and Patrick reconcile and Cameron ends up winning Bianca over at prom, the journey to get these meant-to-be-couples together is unexpected, funny, and has powerful messaging hidden underneath stereotypical rom-com tropes. In true 90s fashion, the movie’s soundtrack and set make it a comforting watch for a sleepover or an uplifting watch alone. Ultimately, 10 Things I Hate About You is an existential high school movie any teenager should consider a must-watch, earning five out of five feathers.
