THE teen-movie...

Rating: 8/10 (23 January 2006)

This is the best teen-movie of all times. Period. There have been numerous efforts to make equally good movies of this kind after this movie (most of them starring Freddie Prince Jr), but without even getting close. This is the story of a high-school girl, Katarina (Julia Stiles), who, after being let-down once decides not to date again. Ever. It is a set-up by the Casanova of the school, who wants to lay hands on Katarina's sister, that after many twists and turns allows Katarina to once again trust a guy...Only to be let-down again. Stiles' performance is great, probably her best, and Heath Ledger convinces in the part of the bad-boy. Larisa Oleynik is perfectly sweet and naive as the sister. As in every American teen movie, everything is a bit too cute, but still it's not too much. The ending is predictable, but not in any way bad. The Shakespearean undertone is also very typical. Most of you will still love the very slimy, though quite smart, ending where Stiles reads her poem about hatred... :) Teenmovies are not meant to be perfect in anyway, but the the minor flaws in this movie are outnumbered by the many great moments. The AP-movies were great, but this is as close to perfection it gets as far as teen-movie-making goes. 8+/10