High Fidelity [DVD] [2000] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

I had decided to read the book Hi-Fidelity written by Nick Hornby before watching the film, and other than a few scenes that they had missed including the ex husbands record collection and the wine tasting at Laura's parents house, everything else I could have thought of was in the film!I loved how most of the lines are very similar if not identically copied from the transcript of the book into the film as lines read by the characters and it was so exiting seeing them act out the scenes and flashbacks from the beginning as well.Highly recommended from a book to screen adaptation and one of the best I've seen so far.

This definitely makes the Top 5 John Cusack films and here's why:It's very much a dark comedy, as it features tragedy used for comedy at the expense of Rob, played by Cusack.Rob has been dumped by his girlfriends and in true emo-style he blames himself and looks back at his top 5 break ups, along with other top 5's in-between, as he tries to come to terms with it.He is a very likeable-loser but you can't fault him for all the relationship faults in his life and as he looks back he has been very much a victim of circumstance and having the wrong girlfriends. Here lies the tragedy.The comedy is shown through his anal ways of organising things, such as the genre cataloguing of his LPs etc, and his 'chalk and cheese' shop assistants.I liked this film because on the surface it's a conventional trashy one-dimensional American comedy like so many others...but, thankfully, Cusack delivers enough depth in his geeky character to make up for this and all in all a film that should be in everyone's collection, even if it's just for a one time viewing.Language aid:Dark Comedy - comedy characterized by grim or satiric humour, the satire lies in Rob's way of looking at his break-upsTragedy - character(s) are subject to dramatic treatment of misfortunes (such as Rob's break-ups) because of the character(s) flaws.Emo - abbreviation of an: emotionally driven hardcore punk, or one who over uses their emotions as an instable source of stability. Rob is emotionally unstable as he focuses on the emotional events of his break-ups to try and stable himself and accept the break ups but in doing so becomes unstable.Likeable-Loser - a loser (someone who is a failure largely to the fault of his own doings) who in being a loser evokes empathic or sympathetic feelings.Trashy - something (in terms of a film) offering no more entertainment value than to endure the audience to it's cheap and inferior quality and lacking substance.One-Dimensional - something lacking and sort of death depth or any real, meaningful, development.Geeky - A geek is a person who is fascinated, perhaps obsessively, with an object of compulsion, (typically technology) in regards to the film - records.

All too often, big screen adaptations of cult classic books leave you wondering why the hell they changed so much between the printed page and the celluloid. Thankfully, this film is not one of them!When I first heard that the film was to be set in Chicago, rather than London, my heart sank. It seemed to me, having read the book, that being set in London was an integral part of the plot, and moving it "x" thousand miles away, and to a different culture, would simply not work.When I saw the film, pay it the highest honour by saying that, after a few minutes of watching, I forgot all about where it was set, and I even forgot that this was based on the Nick Hornby book (there are many changes, but the film works equally as well as the book), and just enjoyed a really good film.John Cusack is excellent as Rob Gordon, the morose record shop owner, who lives for his music, and sometimes fails to grasp the effect that this passion has on his every day life. The supporting cast, including Jack Black, are also excellent, and you really get a feel for the struggle that each of the characters have to come to terms with their lives at that awkward "30 something" age.I don't give five stars to many films (very few can compare with The Shawshank Redemption, which is the benchmark 5 star film!), but this does get a four, largely due to the excellent casting, wonderful acting, and outstanding soundtrack (see my review of that for more details). The only real disappointment for me is that the scene where Rob gets a call to buy a record collection from the estranged wife of a music fan like himself is left to the "bonus material" section - how this scene was not included in the final cut defies belief!Buy the film, enjoy the film, then read the book!

I always avoided watching this film as something told me I would hate it. When I saw that Zoe Kravitz did a remake of this film and I noticed Lisa Bonet was in it (nepotism is real), I thought okay let me give this a go before I watch Zoe's version. I have to say I absolutely enjoyed this film, this is my type of film, a sort of Romcom with some depth with that 80's vibe.

Great film with a great cast.

arrived a day early, now I'm going to watch it tonight!

Seen it a dozen times. Enough said

Watched this after I’d watched the High Fidelity series on StarzPlay. Have to say, time hasn’t been kind to John Cusack’s character. His world view and manchild sensibilities seem very dated. Especially when compared with the more contemporary television version. Amused to see Zoe Kravitz’s mum in the movie. Nice connection.