This one really shocked me. I don't even like John Cusack, but I loved High Fidelity.

Rating: 9/10 (27 January 2001)

Why was High Fidelity so good? That's the question that has been going through my mind ever since I saw it. There really wasn't anyone spectacular involved with it. I mean, it's not like Tom Hanks was in it or Steven Spielberg directed it. But somehow, it ended up being just a great comedy.
High Fidelity just had a really entertaining story, and it was extremely well acted by everyone involved. This is what I have come up with in my mission to find out what it was about High Fidelity that made me like it so much. Sure, there's not a whole lot to the story  a guy gets dumped and goes back and recounts his relationships and break-ups with his top five girlfriends, but it was presented in such a clever way that it made bland material a lot of fun.
One of the things that was really good about High Fidelity was the way the `top five girlfriends' premise was complemented by Rob Gordon (Cusack) and his music geek friends coming up with countless top five lists. Top five dream jobs, top five first songs on music albums, top five this, top five that. Anyone who is into top five lists or top ten lists will probably love High Fidelity just for that small part of it. Speaking of Gordon's music geek friends, the person who really stole the show was Jack Black, as Barry, one of Gordon's employees at the record store that he owns in the film. This is particularly notable given the variety of unenviable roles that Black has played, such as those in Cable Guy and, more recently, The Jackal. The hilarious music discussion scenes that take place in the record store are probably the best scenes in the film, and Black steals nearly every one of them.
Almost as amusing as Black was Todd Louiso, playing the part of Dick, another employee at Gordon's record store. Dick is a very soft-spoken music fanatic who is probably so entertaining because we've known someone like him. In fact, that's what is so appealing about Gordon and Barry, too. They are a cross-section of music fans in the urban world and they provide many more laughs because of their familiarity.
A number of well-known actors also played relatively small roles in High Fidelity, such as Catherine Zeta-Jones, Natasha Gregson Wagner, Joan Cusack, and, of course, Tim Robbins as the antagonistic new boyfriend.' One of the really good things about High Fidelity is that it eventually delivers a good message about stepping up and actually doing something with your life. It warns of the dangers of getting too comfortable doing one thing, and of giving in to the temptation of hopping from relationship to brief relationship. At the end, Rob begins to realize the mistakes that he made in his relationship with Laura, and these are mistakes that I think a lot of people have made and continue to make.
High Fidelity is just good comedy. It's fun, it's entertaining, and above all, it's refreshing because of it's relative originality. There are plenty of memorable scenes in the film, many because of their sheer, if illogical, hilarity. Some of the customers who come into the record store are treated much worse than they would ever be treated in real life, but the laughs are delivered. Don't miss this one.