10 Things I Hate About You is a 1999 American romantic comedy film. It is directed by Gil Junger and stars Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik, David Krumholtz and Larry Miller. A loose adaptation of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew set in a modern American high school, the screenplay was written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith. The movie's title is a twist on The Taming of the Shrew (see below) but is also a reference to a poem written by the film's female lead to describe her bittersweet romance with the male lead. The film was released March 31, 1999, and it was a breakout success for stars Stiles and Ledger. The film marks the directing debut of Junger, as well as the screenplay debut for Lutz and Smith. Lutz and Smith later wrote the screenplay for a second Shakespeare teen comedy, She's the Man.

Premise

A new boy in school, Cameron, likes the ever sought-after Bianca. However, her father has decreed that she may not date until her sister, Kat, does. Cameron convinces the popular model Joey to pay outsider Patrick Verona to take out the ill-tempered Kat, so that he can take Bianca out. Joey thinks Bianca is going to go out with him, and it all culminates at the prom.

Plot summary

Cameron James (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), the new kid at Padua High School, is given a tour of the school by Michael Eckman (David Krumholtz), who is an audio-visual geek and former leader of a clique of future MBAs. Michael provides Cameron with information on the school’s various cliques. During the tour, Cameron spots the beautiful and popular Bianca Stratford (Larisa Oleynik) and is immediately smitten with her. Michael warns that Bianca is shallow, conceited, and worst of all, not allowed to date. Michael does, however, inform Cameron that Bianca is looking for a French tutor.

At the Stratford residence, Bianca’s outcast older sister Kat (Julia Stiles) receives a letter of acceptance to Sarah Lawrence College. Her protective father, Walter (Larry Miller), is distraught by the news, as he wants Kat to attend college nearby. Kat distracts her father by revealing that Bianca was given a ride home from school by Joey Donner (Andrew Keegan). Bianca begs her father to allow her to date, but to no avail. Kat's aversion to dating prompts the father to come up with a new rule: Bianca can only date if Kat is dating.

Cameron starts tutoring Bianca, and she informs him of her father’s rule after Cameron makes many failed attempts to ask her out. This news motivates Cameron and Michael to set out to find a boy who is willing to date Kat.

Cameron suggests Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger), an outcast who is just as ill-tempered as Kat. Cameron tries asking Patrick for his assistance, but Patrick scares him off. Joey, also attempting to date Bianca, pays Patrick to date Kat. Kat, however, wants nothing to do with Patrick. Cameron and Michael finally explain their situation to Patrick and inform him that Bogie Lowenstein (Kyle Cease) is throwing a party. Cameron and Michael spread rumors around school that Bogie's party will have beer and dancing, although it is actually a small private gathering.

At the party, Kat tells Joey to stay away from her sister. Joey brags that he cannot guarantee she'll stay away from him. Kat gets upset and begins drinking, leading her to dance drunkenly on a table. Meanwhile, Cameron discovers that Bianca was using him to find a date for Kat so that Bianca could date Joey.

Cameron decides to stop trying to date Bianca, but Patrick convinces him to go for it. Bianca asks Cameron for a ride home after discovering Joey’s true character. Cameron drops her off and tells her that he really likes her and was very disappointed in her. At that point Bianca kisses Cameron. Patrick brings Kat home, and she drunkenly tries kissing Patrick. He suggests they should do that some other time, hurting Kat’s feelings.

The next day at school, Patrick publicly sings a song Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You to Kat in front of everyone asking her forgiveness, landing him in detention. Kat gets him out of detention by "flashing" the soccer coach. Kat and Patrick spend the day together, and they both realize that they truly do like each other. Patrick, motivated by Joey's bribe of $300, asks Kat to the prom. However, she is suspicious of his motives and they get into a fight.

Bianca tries to convince her father to let her go to prom, but he refuses, since Kat isn’t going. Bianca confronts Kat. Kat then reveals that she dated Joey and they had sex. However, when Kat told Joey that she wasn't ready for sex and did not want to do it again, he immediately broke up with her. Even though she forbade Joey to tell anyone of their one time together or else she would tell all the cheerleaders how “tiny” he is, Kat still felt immense rejection, thus spurring her to become a total nonconformist and distance herself from her peers.

Bianca and Kat end up going to the prom with Cameron and Patrick. Joey is furious to learn that Bianca has gone to prom with Cameron, and confronts Patrick about the "arrangement" in front of Kat. Kat blows up at Patrick and leaves.

The next morning, Bianca thanks Kat for going to prom and the sisters make up. Kat's father allows her to go to Sarah Lawrence. At school, Kat reads a poem which she wrote for English class, titled "10 Things I Hate About You" (written about Patrick). In the parking lot Kat finds a guitar Patrick bought her with the money Joey paid him. Kat forgives Patrick, and the two kiss and make up.

Characters

• Julia Stiles as Katarina "Kat" Stratford: The female protagonist of the story, the "shrew" in the movie, is a proud, nonconforming feminist who likes to listen to riot grrrl music and read books like The Bell Jar and The Feminine Mystique. She tends to make people cry because she is not afraid of telling things like it is. She is against dating and often "sneers at the idiocy of teenage social life," as The New York Times puts it, and is "a breath of fresh air in the stifling materialistic atmosphere of today's Hollywood teenage movies." She was accepted into Sarah Lawrence College. She has an English literature class, during which she is known to contradict the teacher, with Pat and Joey. Bianca has stated that Kat likes men after finding a picture of Jared Leto in her dresser. Bianca describes her as being from Planet Loser, having once been popular "until she got sick of it or something" and Cameron refers to her as antisocial. She eventually decides to date again upon meeting Patrick, dedicating her sonnet assignment to him.
• Heath Ledger as Patrick Verona: The male protagonist of the story, described by a The New York Times reviewer as a "rough-edged outsider" and "teenage rebel" who hangs out at a pool hall,smokes cigarettes and drinks alcohol. He has English literature with Kat and Joey; and biology with Cam and Michael. He speaks in a partly Australian dialect, often lapsing in American. When Kat inquires if "the accent" is real, he explains to her that he lived in Australia with his mother until he was ten. He is hired by Joey, Cam, and Michael to take out Kat so that Bianca can be permitted to date, hence his job is to "tame" the "shrew." At first, he pursues her for the money but later he falls for her, showing a softer side and transforming into a more sensitive person.
• Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Cameron James: A foil of Patrick, they both pursue a Stratford sister and share parallel scenes (e.g., driving a Stratford home from Bogie's party). But while Pat is seen as intimidating and manly; Cam is seen as sweet and delicate. He is a new kid, has a father in the U.S. army, and befriends Michael and Patrick.
• Larisa Oleynik as Bianca Stratford: Kat's younger sister and foil, seen as a "Valley girl" type, wears designer clothes and is popular in school. She gets caught in a love triangle between Cameron and Joey before realizing Cam is the man for her. Kat's assertiveness rubs off on her and she punches Joey in retaliation of making a bet to sleep with her and in turn breaking Kat's heart over Patrick.
• David Krumholtz as Michael Eckman: An audio-visual geek who is delegated the task of showing Cameron around, which he uses as an opportunity to seek revenge on the group of aspiring MBA's which he led until he was kicked out for getting Izods from outlet stores.
• Andrew Keegan as Joey Donner: A male model, who once bedded Kat and makes a bet that he can do the same with Bianca. Instead of warning Bianca, Kat chooses not to date so that Bianca will not have to date him. He is deceived by the guys that by paying Pat to date Kat he will be permitted to date Bianca when really it is Cameron who would be dating her.
• Susan May Pratt as Mandella: A Shakespeare aficionado whom Michael, disguised as William Shakespeare, takes to the prom.
• Gabrielle Union as Chastity: Bianca's bests friend, she goes out with Joey after Bianca dumps him for Cameron at Bogie's crashed party.
• Larry Miller as Dr. Walter Stratford: An OBGYN, single father who is very protective toward his daughters. He sets forth the rule that Bianca may not date until Kat does, however the film fails to address the fact that he changes this rule by consistently forbidding Bianca to so much as attend functions where boys may be if her sister does not accompany her.
• Daryl Mitchell as Mr. Morgan: The English literature teacher.
• Allison Janney as Ms. Perky: The school's guidance counselor.
• David Leisure as Mr. Chapin: A teacher and the women's soccer coach.
• Greg Jackson as Scurvy: One of Patrick's friends.
• Kyle Cease as Bogie Lowenstien: A member of a clique of aspiring MBA's, the new leader after Michael is ejected.
• Kay Hanley and Michael Eisenstein, members of Letters to Cleo
• Monique Powell and Brian Mashburn, members of Save Ferris

Shakespearean references

The two sisters in The Taming of the Shrew are called Katharine and Bianca, while the two sisters in 10 Things are named Katarina, known as Kat, and Bianca. Kat and Bianca's last name is Stratford, making reference to Stratford-upon-Avon, the English town known worldwide as the birthplace of William Shakespeare. Katharina's suitor in Shakespeare's play is Petruchio of Verona, who becomes Patrick Verona in 10 Things. In the movie, the high school is named Padua, the city in which Shakespeare's play is set.

Comparison of the two works will also reveal similar plot ideas. For instance, Shakespeare's Lucentio wishes to wed Bianca, but cannot until her sister is married. Knowing that Bianca cannot enter into any relationships, he poses as a tutor named Cambio in order to become closer to Bianca — much as in 10 Things where the similarly named Cameron takes up French to tutor Bianca. While still posing as Bianca's tutor, Lucentio confers with a somewhat wild character, Petruchio. Like Patrick, he is an out-of-towner and little is known about him. Petruchio agrees to marry Katharina simply for the dowry that comes along with her, allowing Lucentio to pursue Bianca — just as Patrick agreed to date Kat for the money offered to him by Joey.

The characters of 10 Things are unusually verbose, regardless of the cliques to which they belong, which is much in keeping with the style of Shakespeare. At several points the characters also either directly quote Shakespeare or allude to his style of writing in their own speech, typically for comedic value. For example, upon seeing Bianca for the first time, Cameron declares "I burn, I pine, I perish!" Also, when Michael pulls out on his motorbike in front of Kat and she admonishes him, he calls her "the shrew."

An additional tie-in to the work of Shakespeare is the fetish that the character Mandella (Susan May Pratt) has for things Shakespearean, including costumes, plays and poetry. In an apparent third (although not quite as developed as the two lead couples in the final film) coupling, Michael falls for Mandella while learning about Kat. The attraction begins when he starts to quote Macbeth to her and she finishes the line. Mandella is told later in the film that William Shakespeare will be her date to the prom. Fulfilling the promise, Michael appears dressed as William Shakespeare. The title of the song "Cruel to Be Kind" performed for the film by Letters to Cleo is taken from a line from Hamlet. Although a Shakespeare aficionado, Mandella appears to be completely oblivious to the extreme parallels between the current events at Padua High School, and "The Taming of the Shrew"

The Shakespeare references continue when Kat is assigned to write her own version of Shakespeare's Sonnet 141. Her poem becomes "10 Things I Hate About You."

Production

Exterior shots of principal photography were filmed in Gig Harbor, Tacoma and Seattle, Washington. The high school's exterior was shot at Tacoma's Stadium High School. Bianca and Kat's home in the film is in Tacoma's exclusive North End neighborhood, the same neighborhood where the home from The Hand that Rocks the Cradle is located. A brief scene takes place at the Fremont Troll in Seattle, Washington. Katarina and Patrick's date takes place at Gas Works Park in Seattle, Washington. The biker bar that Patrick is shown going into is the Buckaroo Tavern in Fremont, Seattle. The exterior shot was taken at Alki Beach. The Padua High School Prom was filmed at Seattle's Century Ballroom as well as at the restored Paramount Theatre. The prom sequence was shot over three 90+°F days in Seattle. The store in which Kat picks out her dream guitar is the Ted Brown Music Company in Tacoma.

Costume designer Kim Tillman designed original dresses for Larisa Oleynik and Julia Stiles as well as the period outfits for Susan May Pratt and David Krumholtz. Gabrielle Union's snakeskin prom dress is a Betsey Johnson design. Heath Ledger and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's vintage tuxes came from Isadora's in Seattle.

The primary tagline is an allusion to a poem written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning from her Sonnets from the Portuguese collection. ("How do I loathe thee? Let me count the ways.") Another tagline is a spoof from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet ("Romeo, Oh Romeo, Get Out Of My Face.") and another is a line from The Taming of the Shrew that is spoken in the film by Cameron ("I burn, I pine, I perish!").

The original script was finalized on November 12 1997.

Release and reception

International

Date	Country	Alternate Title
March 31, 1999
		10 choses que je déteste de toi
June 3 1999
June 5 1999
June 24, 1999
July 1 1999		10 דברים שאני הכי שונאת אצלך
July 2 1999		Zakochana Złośnica
July 7 1999
July 9, 1999
July 15 1999		10 dolog, amit utálok benned
July 23 1999		10 Things I Hate About You
		10 razones para odiarte
		10 Ting Jeg Hater Med Deg
July 29 1999
July 30 1999
August 5 1999
August 6 1999		10 Coisas que Eu Odeio em Você
		10 orsaker att hata dig
August 12 1999
August 19 1999		10 cosas que odio de ti
August 27 1999
		10 cose che odio di te
September 3 1999		10 põhjust sind vihata
		10 Coisas Que Odeio em Ti
September 10 1999		Senden nefret etmemin 10 sebebi
October 21 1999		10 Dinge, die ich an Dir hasse
November 19 1999		10 cosas que odio de ti
July 19, 2000		10 bonnes raisons de te larguer
January 17 2001		Ai no kara sawagi

Box-office

In its opening weekend, the film grossed $8,330,681 in 2,271 theaters in the United States and Canada, ranking #2 at the box office (lagging far behind The Matrix), and #53 by the year's end. It grossed a total of $38,178,166 in the United States and Canada and $15,300,000 in other territories, about $53,478,166 worldwide. The film had an estimated budget of $30 million and is considered a moderate financial and critical success. On October 12 1999, the Region 1 DVD was released. In the box-office, the movie is #9 in teen romance, #18 in high school comedies, and #93 in romantic comedies.

Awards and nominations

In the year the movie was released, the lead actors Gordon-Levitt, Stiles, and Oleynik each received YoungStar Award nominations for Best Actor/Actress in a Comedy Film. The movie was nominated for five Teen Choice Awards: Film Breakout Performance (Stiles), Film Choice Comedy, Film Funniest Scene (featuring Krumholtz), Film Sexiest Love Scene (featuring Stiles and Ledger), and Soundtrack of the Year. More notably, the film's casting directors Marcia Ross and Donna Morong won "Best Casting for Feature Film, Comedy" at the Casting Society of America in 1999. In 2000, Stiles won the CFCA Award for "Most Promising Actress" for her role as Kat Stratford (tied with Émilie Dequenne in Rosetta) and an MTV Movie Award for Breakthrough Female Performance. The same year, Ledger was nominated for Best Musical Performance for the song "Can't Take My Eyes Off You."

Television series

On Wednesday, October 8, 2008, the cable network ABC Family greenlit the pilot episode of a new half-hour, single-camera comedy series based on 10 Things I Hate About You. Though the film version was an updated take of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, it appears as though the television series will focus largely on sisters Kat and Bianca Stratford, who must juggle their social lives at Padua High, boys and their overprotective father, but approach life differently, as Kat is impatient to make a difference in the world, is strong-willed and feminist, while Bianca is more concerned with her looks and popularity.

The director of the film, Gil Junger, will also direct the pilot of the television series, which is being written and produced by Carter Covington.

Seeing as the movie was released nearly a decade ago, it's considered unlikely that any of the cast from the original film will reprise their roles.

Soundtrack

References

See also

• Romeo + Juliet

External links

• Yahoo! Movies: 10 Things I Hate About You
• 10 Things I Hate About You - Transcript
• Kat's 'Hate' Poem from AmericanRhetoric.com
• CNN Review: '10 Things I Hate About You' worth loving (1999-03-31)