Madeline
The entire way through High Fidelity, I waited for John Cusack to stand on a lawn, in a trench coat, with a stereo over his head. It wasn’t until the credits were rolling I realized: wrong movie. THIS movie is about a music elitist record shop owner.
The Premise of High Fidelity
The entire movie is about the music shop owner, John Gordon, and his relationship with women over his lifetime. He calls this his top 5, each women being a “track”. High Fidelity starts with John Cusack has just been dumped by his girlfriend. The rest of the movie, he is determining what is wrong with him and why he ruins his relationships. The movie revolves around his past relationships and where he went wrong. Through his search he comes to a realization that it’s not really him but really the relationship that was wrong. That’s it, just a typical rom com.
Why High Fidelity Is Not A Typical Rom Com
What makes this movie different than a typical romantic comedy is the music. Like the name hints at, High Fidelity is very much about music and highbrow music snobs. The record shop scenes are full of one liners spouted out from the three men who work there. They speak about how no one else knows music like they do.
I love Jack Black
This is very much a John Cusack movie. But I am also very much a Jack Black fan, starting with my love of Tenacious D. I feel as though I would be doing a great disservice to not give a few sentences for him. Being the artist he is, Jack Black is always performing music in his movies. So guess what, in the end of the movie, he gets to sing. Jack Black’s character is portrayed as not being able to carry a tune. But if you know Jack Black, you know this is not a spoiler, he’s actually quite good.
My Final Thoughts
This is a romantic comedy for music buffs (aka music snobs) and a definite must watch for non music buff, rom com nerds. I liked this movie the first time I watched it and I liked every time I’ve seen it since. I do have to say that I prefer the new High Fidelity on Hulu with Zoe Kravitz.
