A movie that is definitely tailored for a specific audience

Rating: Null/10 (18 January 2002)

High Fidelity entertained me like no movie I have seen in a LONG time but a lot of that has to do with two things:
1) I'm male and while I certainly think that females can enjoy this film, I think it is directed in a large, large degree towards guys so that they can see themselves in certain experiences or relate to the lost loves, etc.
2) I'm interested in music beyond commercial radio, and in discussions about music. That's not meant to be an elitist statement like "I know of Belle and Sebastian and therefore I'm better than you" more so than it is "I have many friends that have these type of conversations about music so this movie is closer to my heart than hearing characters converse about Britney Spears."
The film also does a hilarious job at reassuring "musical elitists" or indy-saavy music fans but not without reminding them of how much they can ruin the day (and I'm as guilty as anyone for having those spells). The scene in which Barry wants to play 80s pop like "Walking on Sunshine" whereas Dick wants to listen to the melancholy of Belle and Sebastian is hilarious. I also especially related to Rob's tendency to rank things a la musical top fives.
It also features Cusack excelling in his speciality of the melancholy lover who floats between periods of terrible self-pity and terrible self-loathing. The classic replication of the guy that is always bitter when he doesn't have the girl yet incredibly befuddled and suspicious when he does. But the character does work through this to discover some meaning in what relationships provide beyond sex and feeling attractive so I think he emerges as a much more likable person as the film plays out.
Overall, I think "High Fidelity" is very funny especially for younger audiences but in order to consider it a classic (as I probably will for my lifetime), it helps to be male and a non-commercial rock music follower as that is obviously what the target audience seems to be.