What is it, about a man so compelling that he has his own website - despite being a totally fictional character?Say anything - written and directed by cameron crowe - was ranked in 2002, Entertainment Weekly as the greatest modern movie romance. this ranking is by no stretch of the imagination… as I, the heartless, cold, and romance hating person, can sit through this entire movie with a smile on my face. not because of the high school graduation theme; not because lloyd's nephew is the cutest kid (and most underrated) in a movie. ever; not because the fashion is amazing.
instead, it is because lloyd dobler broke my heart with happiness when I first saw this movie at 11 years old. he was what i dreamt of at night (for maybe a week - because i was a fickle young child), and what we hope for our friends, sisters, and everyone in a relationship. he is the all concerning dreamboat of a man. just a boy in love with a girl.
I read this intriguing article on john cusak, and how every woman is in love with john cusak for the characters he plays in romantic movies. I will make clear, however, am fully aware I am not in love with john cusak - I am in love with an 18 year old boy, written by an older man, for entertainment value. perhaps it is for this reason that I grew up with such a jaded idea of love. i knew lloyd dobler could probably never exist
Lloyd Dobler (played by John Cusack) - according to wikipedia - is "a mediocre student and aspiring kickboxer who attempts a relationship with valedictorian Diane Court (played by Ione Skye) immediately after their graduation from the same high school. Diane has just won a major fellowship to study in England, and will be going there at the end of the summer. Highly intelligent and yet socially inexperienced, Diane is intrigued by Lloyd's endearing manner and willingness to take a chance on someone like her. She agrees to Lloyd's request for a date, and the two of them begin seeing each other regularly. Lloyd seeks advice and counsel from his sister and several close, female friends who are genuinely looking out for Lloyd's best interests as he embarks on his first serious romantic relationship. Diane's father, Jim (played by John Mahoney), is under investigation by the Internal Revenue Service for alleged tax violations committed at his nursing home, and as the relationship between Lloyd and Diane deepens, she worries that she should be spending more time with her father, rather than with Lloyd. Also, Jim does not approve of his daughter dating an underachiever like Lloyd, and pressures her to break up with him. Lloyd ultimately wins Diane's heart before the summer's end, and helps support her emotionally after her father's conviction. The film ends with Lloyd escorting nervous flyer Diane to England."
anything from the kick of glass, to the fist pump after their first date; from the photo he takes 'with' diane at graduation, to his nervous talking habit. and maybe the most famous scene - and in my opinion, the most romantic thing in the world (it's peter gabriel for crying out loud!!) - Lloyd standing outside Diane's bedroom window, holding a boombox over his head while Peter Gabriel's In Your Eyes plays. *sigh.
does it help that this movie is set in seattle - yes. i won't deny it.
let's all bask in lloyd's innocence, and wonder. and the fact that he (more than once) describes exactly how I feel about life right now.
Lloyd Dobler: I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that.Lloyd Dobler: What I really want to do with my life - what I want to do for a living - is I want to be with your daughter. I'm good at it.
D.C.: Why don't you just call her again?Lloyd Dobler: I draw the line at 7 unreturned phone calls.
"Lloyd Dobler: [leaving the last of a series of messages on Diane's answering machine] "This is my 8th, and last phone call… Maybe I didn't really know you. Maybe you were just a mirage. Maybe the world is full of food and sex and spectacle and we're all just hurling towards an apocalypse, in which case it's not your fault. I'm been thinking about all these things and... you're probably standing there monitoring. And one more thing - about the letter. Nuke it. Flame it. Destroy it. - It hurts me to know it's out there. Later."
Corey Flood: [Lloyd's letter to Diane] Dear Diane, I'll always be there for you. All the love in my heart, Lloyd.
[on choosing a career] Lloyd Dobler: How many of them really know what they want, though? I mean, a lot of them think they have to know, right? But inside they don't really know, so... I don't know ,but I know that I don't know.Lloyd Dobler: I am looking for a dare to be great situation.
Lloyd Dobler: She's gone. She gave me a pen. I gave her my heart, she gave me a pen.
thank you peter gabriel, for inspiring love, in a boombox:
"Love... I get so lost, sometimes days pass and this emptiness fills my heart when I want to run away I drive off in my car but whichever way I go I come back to the place you are All my instincts, they return and the grand facade, so soon will burn without a noise, without my pride I reach out from the inside In your eyes the light the heat in your eyes I am complete in your eyes I see the doorway to a thousand churches in your eyes the resolution of all the fruitless searches in your eyes I see the light and the heat in your eyes oh, I want to be that complete I want to touch the light the heat I see in your eyes Love, I don't like to see so much pain so much wasted and this moment keeps slipping away I get so tired of working so hard for out survival I look to the time with you to keep me awake and alive And all my instincts, they return and the grand facade, so soon will burn without a noise, without my pride I reach out from the inside In your eyes the light the heat in your eyes I am complete in your eyes I see the doorway to a thousand churches in your eyes the resolution of all the fruitless searches in your eyes I see the light and the heat in your eyes oh, I want to be that complete I want to touch the light, the heat I see in your eyes in your eyes in your eyes in your eyes in your eyes in your eyes in your eyes "