10 Things I Hate About You
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10 Things I Hate About You
Some elements of the stills that tell us that 10 Things I Hate About You is a teen movie are:
Kat and Pat staring at each other – angry confrontations between two (moody) teens
Ms Perky – disapproving or disappointed adults, most likely teachers and parents
Cameron and Bianca together – young love
Teenagers are predominant in all stills
Grungy rock bands and emphasis on music – rebellion and hobbies
The prom – stereotypical of films involving teens and high school
Fights – both between friends, siblings and people of the opposite sex
Top left – We know that the setting is the high school prom, after watching the movie. There are bright lights and other people (probably dancing – look at the limbs in the picture) in the background.
Middle left – This stills setting is also the prom. There are bright disco lights at the back (where the rock band is). Apart from the rock band on the stage, there are other teens (who most are dressed up formally) in the background. They are dancing in couples and with friends and generally just enjoying themselves.
Bottom left – This still is set either on the balcony or in a sun room. There are large white columns (that hold up the ceiling, roof etc.), and you can see the garden. It seems to be quite a messy garden, but we cant be sure, as the background isnt in sharp focus. There are also potted plants.
Right – This still is obviously set in a school hall or office. This is obvious as there are quite dull and boring colours that most schools incorporate into their buildings and the lockers (or cupboards if this was in an office of the principal, student counselor etc.). There are a few windows and potted plants. You can also see a few items (probably personal items) on the top of the lockers/cupboards.
Serious (between Pat and Kat in their confrontation, kind of serious in the conversation between Kat, Cameron and Bianca and quite a serious scene between Pat, Kat and Joey), humorous (Ms Perky looks quite amusing and adds humour to the still to the right), playful (the still where Bianca and Cameron are together), light hearted (the whole movie is in a light hearted sense, as it is a romantic comedy) and action packed (a bit action packed in the middle left still where Kat finds out about the deal) are some of the impressions that you get about the mood of the film from these stills.
Other genres that might be included in this film are romance and comedy. This film is therefore a teen romantic comedy.
Kat Stratford – Kat is a teenage girl that chooses to be quite different from everyone else, and shes happy being like that. She doesnt dress in girly clothes, wears her blondish brown hair long and doesnt pay much attention to her appearance. In this film, she plays a main role, as the whole, story is based around her. Kat would alienate any guy who showed any interest in her, and this is a problem, as her overly protective father has made a rule about dating for Kat and her younger sibling, Bianca – Bianca is only allowed to date when Kat dates. Therefore, Bianca and a few males that fancy her set up a plan to get her (Kat) to date. Kat is very witty, determined, hostile, assertive, feminist, intelligent, cynical and basically, very opinionated. She doesnt care what other people think and doesnt do things just to go with the flow. But later in the film, we see that there is a nice and warm side of Kat.
Bianca Stratford – Bianca is the complete opposite of her older sister Kat. She is popular, shallow, daddys girl, wants to be seen with the right people (e.g. by dating Joey, which would elevate her to an even more popular position) and does things just to fit in. She dresses fashionably, acts like a lady and pays attention to her appearance (her blond hair is always perfect). Bianca is of average height and build and has warm, brown eyes. She is basically the stereotypical blonde bimbo type of girl that attracts many guys. Biancas actions were quite self-centered, immature and popularity-based in the first half of the film (or before she ends up with Cameron).She also plays quite a major part in the film, as if she didnt want to date, there would be no storyline. She despises her sister for being weird. In the end, she goes out with Cameron instead of Joey. This also kind of conveys the message (see question 5), as she chose to be happy instead of being popular and normal.
Patrick Verona- Patrick is misunderstood, just like Kat, and he is often seen as the male equivalent of Kat. He is a typical bad boy (he smokes etc.) and he is seen as a mysterious, dangerous and sullen young man. He plays a major part, as he is the person who has been bribed by Joey to date Kat and take her out to the prom. At first, he is unable to woo her, but later on, he discovers that he has feelings for her, and vice versa. But the fact that he was paid to take Kat separates them (although he later convinces her that by the end, he wasnt doing it for the money). He also takes on a different appearance from everybody else, with shoulder length hair and slightly unfashionable clothes. He also has brown eyes, is quite tall and has an average build. He is seen as a dangerous and cold person, but he slowly opens up (as does Kat) when dating Kat. We can see that he does have a warm and playful side and that he is a nice guy at heart. His actions