Say Anything...

"A Lloyd meets girl story."

1989 1h 40m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

🔥

98%

CERTIFIED FRESH

💯

METACRITIC

⭐

7.3

IMDB

★7.0TMDB · 1,176🍅98%Rotten Tomatoes●86Metacritic★7.3IMDB · 101,179

RomanceComedyDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Average student and eternal optimist Lloyd Dobler seeks to capture the heart of Diane Court, a beautiful but unattainable valedictorian classmate. He surprises just about everyone - including himself - when she returns the sentiment. However, Diane's divorced, over-protective father soon begins to disapprove of the match, and Lloyd realises that it's going to take more than just the power of love to conquer all.

“A Lloyd meets girl story.”

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Cast

John Cusack
Lloyd Dobler
Ione Skye
Diane Court
John Mahoney
James Court
Lili Taylor
Corey Flood
Amy Brooks
D.C.
Pamela Adlon
Rebecca
Jason Gould
Mike Cameron
Loren Dean
Joe

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Cameron Crowe
Writers: Cameron Crowe
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

37 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Cameron Crowe, shot by László Kovács. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Richard Gibbs. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Richard Marks shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

John Cusack and Ione Skye and John Mahoney carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A Lloyd meets girl story.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0098258 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Cameron Crowe directs. László Kovács behind the camera. Richard Gibbs scores. Richard Marks cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

137 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Directed by Cameron Crowe, shot by László Kovács. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Richard Gibbs. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Richard Marks shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5John Cusack and Ione Skye and John Mahoney carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "A Lloyd meets girl story.".
7IMDB entry: tt0098258 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 9 themes, including "high school", "seattle, washington", "high school graduation", "teenage crush".

The technical file

Cinematography: László Kovács
Original score: Richard Gibbs
Editing: Richard Marks
Production design: Mark W. Mansbridge
Costume design: Jane Ruhm
Makeup / hair: Cheri Minns
Sound: Chris Jenkins
Runtime: 100 min · 1h 40m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $16,000,000
Box office: $20,036,737
Return: 125% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Say Anything... (1989)
Rotten Tomatoes: 98% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 86/100
IMDB rating: 7.3/10 · 101,179 votes
MPAA: PG-13

Awards

1 win & 3 nominations total

Also by

Cameron Crowe

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Shreyance Parakh2017-05-04
★ 10/10
Forget it, I don't care...I LOVE YOU !! I can't make out why this movie has has a user score of JUST above 70%...I guess because people don't find an honest romantic movie equaling an intriguing, exciting, intelligent, thrilling, action packed or any other brain tickling director's master piece.. But to be honest, this movie is climbing the charts on being my favorite movies, and not just the romantics, of all time.Speaking of which i don't even watch too many romantic movies because however beautiful they are they almost always make you feel that the fairy land exists.That's what is so beautiful about SAY ANYTHING that it doesn't make you believe that there is a fairy land instead its so honest and assures you that you really don't need a lot of things to live happily if you've got a person for whom you have love in your heart and the feeling is reciprocated in the exact same manner!! This movie is special in the sense that it was made way back in '89 and still holds the same relevance...because LOVE is TIMELESS... Do not miss it if you wanna feel what love is in the truest sense of the word... "I gave her my heart and she gave me a pen" - it kills me but if you hold on, you'd find out that she gave the pen because she couldn't give him his love filled heart back !! A great and successful effort on the director's part to not try and make something special out of this movie because in the end that's what really makes it so special..A 10/10 for sure...one of the best movies about LOVE !!
Wuchak2021-06-20
★ 5/10
The summer after high school in Seattle in the late 80s Ione Skye plays Diane, a misfit "preppy" girl who suddenly comes alive upon graduation after striking up a relationship with Lloyd Dobler, played by John Cusack. Diane has a scholarship to a prestigious college in England and her Dad, played by John Mahoney, doesn't want some aimless kickboxer getting in the way of her success. Joan Cusack fittingly plays Lloyd’s sister while the alluring Bebe Neuwirth shows up for a cameo as his teacher. "Say Anything" (1989) is a coming-of-age drama/romance praised by critics and has loads of fans. I agree to some degree: The situations and relationships smack of real life and you can tell that writer/director Cameron Crowe and the cast put time & effort into creating this "reality." For instance, two of Lloyd's best friends are girls, Corey and D.C., who try to advise him on his new relationship. Another example is Diane’s honest relationship with her dad. The first half is filled with quality scenes, like Corey playing her guitar at a party, still venting emotions regarding a past flame. Plus unlike, say, "Porky's" and "American Pie" there's thankfully no juvenile raunch. In other words, "Say Anything" is a classy teen-college flick. Yet I’m not a big fan of Cusack and Crowe apparently doesn’t know how to lens beautiful women, like Skye (and I’m not talking ‘bout nudity or sleaze). Meanwhile the second half isn't as entertaining as the first because it leaves the high school graduation antics behind to focus on Diane and Lloyd's increasingly intimate relationship, as well as unexpected revelations about Diane's father. Those who like stories about romantic relationships will no doubt appreciate the second half more than me. It’s decent and I respect it, but Crowe did far superior work with "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" (1982) and “Jerry Maguire” (1996). The film runs 1 hour, 40 minutes, and was shot in Seattle; Kitsilano Beach, Vancouver (the graduation scene); Los Angeles and North Hollywood (the boom box scene). GRADE: C+