The movie "10 Things I Hate About You" off of which the television show is based came out in 1999. Of course, that movie was based off the Shakespeare play "The Taming of the Shrew."
It appears the television show tried hard to remain faithful to the movie update and the original play. All of the major characters made an early appearance in the pilot, including Patrick Verona - who was played by Heath Ledger in the cinematic version.
While the television show started out strong, I was happy about how it got the Shakespeare joke out of the way quickly, "Beguile - big word Shakespeare," it lagged towards the end. There's only so much to work with in a play, or even a movie.
Also, besides Nicholas Braun - who has taken up the role of Cameron in the television show - the performances weren't particularly inspiring. Meaghan Jette Martin's Bianca struck me as absolutley over the top. It was like she was playing a characiture of a characiture. It was completely unnecessary.
I wonder if the references the show used in some scenes during the pilot, while possibly appropriate for the audience that might've enjoyed the movie in 1999, are really appropriate for today's t(w)een audience. The constant Kim Jong Il jokes, healthcare reform, etc. I understand that Kat is supposed to be high-minded, but it seems deep for television high schoolers. There were some funny male modeling scense which I assume were in homage to "Zoolander." Though I'm not entirely sure it was intentional. (They had to be though. Right?)
Overall, it felt to me like the show lacked direction and pace. I usually eat shows like this up, but I think ABC Family hasn't quite found the groove with this edition.
P.S. This post kicks off a week of new posts.
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