Looking back at Cameron Crowe’s Say Anything…

"She's gone. She gave me a pen. I gave her my heart, she gave me a pen." - Lloyd Dobler

The Recap

The 1980s was a decade where The Brat Pack ruled. Bright young things such as Rob Lowe, Judd Nelson and Molly Ringwald were all over the cinema screen in movies that were mostly written and directed by the late great John Hughes. However, there was a young writer who, after making a name for himself in magazine writing, was making a splash in the movie business. By the end of the decade he had not only had a sleeper hit with Fast Times At Ridgemont High, but was about to step behind the camera to direct his first feature, Say Anything... Step into the spotlight, Mr. Cameron Crowe.

Lloyd Dobler (John Cusack) is an under-achieving high school student who would prefer to spend his time kickboxing rather than sitting in class. Diane Court (Ione Skye) is an overachiever who never feels more alive than in the classroom and is crowned class valedictorian. As they finally graduate high school, the summer approaches and, after Lloyd's many attempts to persuade Diana what a nice guy he really is, the two begin dating.

As their relationship grows, so do the worries of both Diana's and Lloyd's family and friends, who think that two vastly different people have no future together. Thrown into this is the fact that Diana's father (John Mahoney) is under investigation from the IRS for alleged tax fraud and she worries that the time she is now spending with Lloyd should be spent with him.

Also hanging over them is an invisible ticking clock that is slowly counting down to the end of summer when Diana is leaving to study in England.

As the summer progresses, the two deal with their growing feelings for each other, the pressure from those around them, the pressures they put upon themselves, a break-up, a make-up and dealing, in Diana's case, with the fact her father is going to prison, all of which ultimately makes their relationship stronger.

Thoughts & Reaction

A child prodigy to some degree, Cameron Crowe was starting out his career as most of his peers were still sitting in English class. Having graduated high school at 15 he was introduced to Rolling Stone editor Ben Fong-Torres who hired him to write for the magazine, making him the youngest ever contributor in Rolling Stone's history. He interviewed some of the biggest names at the time and (al)most famously spent three weeks on the road with The Allman Brothers Band for a piece for the magazine.

When Rolling Stone upped-sticks to New York in 1977, Crowe decided to stay in California and he very unintentionally started his trek into the film industry. The first film he was involved in with Fast Times At Ridgemont High, which was based on his book Fast Times At Ridgemont High: A True Story where a then 22-year-old Crowe went undercover back to high school to relive his senior year.

He followed that up by penning a script to The Wild Life. Both movies drew him to the attention of uber producer James L. Brooks who wanted to see what Crowe could do behind the camera as well, and he financed Say Anything... which put Crowe on the Hollywood radar as a double threat of writer and director.

A more cynical look at teen love, Say Anything... is a sweet enough story that pits the usual suspects, boy and girl from two different ends of the spectrum falling in love, family doesn't approve, etc, and takes it further. There are no real happy endings. In fact, the story of Lloyd and Diana's relationship is left open to interpretation.

Crowe also adds in a nice sub-plot with regards to the relationships outside of the main, most notably the one between Diana and her father and Lloyd and his sister (played by Cusack's real life sister Joan) and the fragilities and friction both have, something which I felt was lacking in other films of the period. (Pretty In Pink, I am looking at you.)

What offsets a really well written and thoughtful script, though, is the ensemble of characters Crowe managed to put together. Lead John Cusack really excels in the role of Lloyd. Nobody can play sweet, doubtful and funny like him and in many ways it is probably his best performance on film.

The memorable scene with him standing across from Diana's house blaring Peter Gabriel's In Your Eyes could melt the heart of even the most cynical of non-romantics.

He is backed up admirably, if sometimes woodenly, by Iona Skye as rich girl Diana. Fraiser's John Mahoney excels in the role of Diana's overprotective father and Lili Taylor is rather fantastic as Lloyd's best friend Corey.  Keep an eye out for a very young looking Jeremy Piven of Entourage fame and a fantastic and very funny cameo from Eric Stoltz.

Upon its release the film did well at the box office and has become a firm favourite among fans in the years that have followed. Crowe's next project would again focus on the complexities of relationships, this time moving up into the twenty-somethings with Singles.

Say Anything... Key Info
Released: April 14th 1989
Distributed By: 20th Century Fox
Budget: $16,000,000
Box Office Gross: $20,781,385
Best DVD Edition: Say Anything... 20th Anniversary Edition