Good movie, but is it a direct attack on Generation X?
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — High Fidelity
alwards — 9 years ago(June 19, 2016 01:02 PM)
I always sit down to watch this when I run across it, because it's a good movie and I love John Cusack.
But as an aging Gen-Xer, the whole "My life is so miserable even though I'm obviously privileged and have all these choices" theme wears really thin over the years.
This guy runs a low-profit record store which pays enough for him to eat, he is incredibly good-looking (a movie star: duh), could go back to being a much-loved DJ with a following among fashionable people (all pretending they're "alternative") and his potential or actual choices among women include:- Iben Hjejle
- Lisa Bonet
- Catherine Zeta-Jones
- Lili Taylor
- Natasha Gregson Wagner
I accept that Hollywood puts pretty people in movies, but the level of beauty in this film would be nearly preposterous even in a James Bond film, or stylish Oceans 11-type James Coburn vehicle. In reality, no man short of maybe Warren Beatty between about 1967 and 1974 had a stable of potential mates to equal that. Ryan Gosling-Reynolds-Seacrest crossed with David George Beckham-Clooney-Pitt couldn't pull that much top 0.1% female action.
And we're supposed to believe this guy is an angst-ridden man on the fringe of his social class?
I still love the movie, but I wonder if it's an unintentional parody of Generation X, with our penchant for creating crisis and alienation out of wholecloth.
I know there's plenty of self-referential dialogue of the "I have no right to be miserable because I'm not living in a refugee camp" school, but the surfeit of astoundingly beautiful women in this movie always gives me a laugh.
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jbaxtron — 9 years ago(September 20, 2016 01:21 PM)
I understand your question about this guys life being seemingly so great but hes whiny and that is a dig at Gen Xers, however to say any of the women in this movie besides Catherine Zeta-Jones are top 0.1% is pretty naive.
I'm not tall or rich or overly attractive but all these women besides CZJ, are average-cute. And to me this fits his overall views, for instance, the only one he was "Crazy" about and the "Source of his sexual confidence" was CZJ. The rest couldn't hold a candle. That was EXACTLY HIS PROBLEM. He thought he could have women he felt comfortable around maybe even slightly superior to that would also look like CZJ and be as interesting and smart and everything would be wonderful and fantastic. That's why so many of his other relationships failed. He was looking too high, so these average-cute women didn't stand a chance. -
blindvias-071407 — 9 years ago(September 25, 2016 11:10 AM)
In the book, the story takes place in London and it explores one man's relationship with women going back to childhood, even touching on mother/son issues. I never got the impression of an attack on Gen X or on men but more an impression of universal themes for a lot of men. I certainly think of High Fidelity as
guy lit
.
The movie was set in the States and certainly was cast with pretty people. But that shouldn't be a shock, should it? That's often one of the prerequisites to getting noticed and getting work in movies. Few people will put up with a movie starring plain Janes and frumpy looking men. Casting directors are likely influenced in the same way. -
Naughty-God — 9 years ago(October 04, 2016 05:16 PM)
At no point of the movie did I feel like this was a self-referential critique of Generation X. A movie like that would be "Slacker", "Clerks", "Reality Bites" or any episode of "Friends".
This movie picks its battles and the main one is Rob's struggle to make sense of his failure at relationships. That's a universal struggle that crosses all generations. Furthermore, the ONLY hot woman in this film was Catherine Zeta Jones. His current girlfriend looked pretty and had a very warm personality, but she also looked more 'real' than the typical made-up HOllywood starlet. Even Natasha Wagner was made to look a little more simple for this role as she's really cute. Lisa Bonet looks lazy and tired just like she does in everything else she's in. Lily Taylor is not a "looker" by any stretch, but she's a great actress.