‘10 Things I Hate about You’ was probably one of the more successful ‘Teen Comedies’ of 1999 and was recently shown on Film Four. The story of the film is actually loosely based on the Shakespeare play ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ but set in a modern day high school.

It took only a little while for it to sink in that I was watching Shakespeare - this film is a little bit heavy handed in that sense, and you would have to not have ever seen Shakespeare performed if you were to fail to spot this aspect of the film. Anyone who has read the taming of the shrew will be able to tell you that the similarities between the play itself and the film are actually pretty spot on in places and the story really flows well and keeps your attention throughout, which is a fine testament to the skill of the Bard.

The basic plotline of the movie is that new kid at high school ‘Cameron James’ finds himself falling for ‘Bianca Stratford’ one of the most beautiful and popular girls in his class, he wants to invite her out on a date, but soon comes to realise that her over protective father has invented a seemingly crazy set of rules whereby Bianca is forbidden to start dating until her elder sister Kat does.

His reasoning behind this being that Kat’s angry, and bitter nature prevents her from actually gaining a boyfriend any time soon so Bianca will also remain without a boyfriend for as long as possible, keeping both daughters focused on their school work and not the opposite sex. This all seems well and good until the arrival of ‘Bad boy’ student Patrick Verona who may just be the one who is able to get past Kat’s tough exterior and find the real girl underneath.

10 Things I hate about you is a funny, intelligent and often moving teen film starring some of the best young American actors and actresses who have since gone on to receive even more exposure in the last few years. Highly recommended as a film for both teenagers and adults as a great example of a successful remake of a classic novel.

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Full Cast list for 10 Things I Hate About You: Aaron Therol, Aidan Kennedy, Alice Evans, Alisa Mackay, Allison Janney, Amber Matthews, Andrew Keegan, Ari Karczag, Benjamin Laurance, Bianca Kajlich, Brian Hood, Brian Mashburn, Bridget O’Neill, Cameron Fraser, Carlos Lacamara, Daniel Kountz, Daryl Mitchell, David Krumholtz, David Leisure, Demegio Kimbrough, Dennis Mosley, Eric Riedmann, Gabrielle Union, Gil Junger, Greg Jackson, Heath Ledger, Heather Taylor, J.R. Johnson, Jelani Quinn, Jesse Dyer, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Joshua Thorpe, Joster Inglis, Julia Stiles, Kay Hanley, Kyle Cease, Larisa Oleynik, Larry Miller, Laura Kenny, Michael Eisenstein, Monique Powell, Nick Brown, Nick Vukelic, Quinn Maixner, Susan May Pratt, Tarance Houston, Tim Bennett, Todd Butler, Travis Muller, Wendy Gottlieb.