​Minh Phuong Nguyen's
Foundation Portfolio
[9 FRAME ANALYSIS]
10 Things I Hate About You
10 Things I Hate About You (1999), directed by Gil Junger, is a rom-com that follows two different but are somehow linked-together: Cameron, a new student in Padua High School, and Bianca Stratford, an unattainable popular girl; Kat Stratford, Bianca's sister, and Patrick, rumored to be an "Australian bad boy".
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FRAME #1
To help the audience get the sense of the overall settings, the film starts with an establishing shot which captures a broad view of the city. The film creates a light and entertaining atmosphere, using a vibrant and colorful palette as well as high-key lighting, a typical type of lighting used in romance films.
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The title and starring actors also make their appearances throughout this shot. They all shared the same font which looks like scribbles or handwriting, reflecting the film's target audience and setting a youthful and lighthearted tone.
"One Week" by Barenaked Ladies, a pop song played by the "girly" girls in the blue car, sets an initial film tone as excitement and entertainment. The song, released in 1998, was considered as popular around the time when the film was released (1999), making the film more relatable for the audience as the song can connect the it to the cultural context of its time - the late 90s.
FRAME #2
Soon after that, "One Week" soon got drown out as one of our protagonist Kat blasts another rock song named "Bad Reputation" (1981) from her car's speaker. Both songs both have a fast tempo, suggesting that the movie will move at a fast pace.
"Bad Reputation" is loud and aggressive, just like Kat's appearance and behavior. Judging by the song's title, lyrics, Kat is likely infamous (she doesn't seem bothered anyway). The way Kat is alone in her car, with a color that is completely opposite to other girls, implies that Kat goes against the teen-girl stereotypes and is "not like other girls".
FRAME #3
In this close shot, Kat doesn't have any flashy make-up, jewelries or fashionable, trendy clothes like the girls in the blue car. Instead, she wears full black clothes, multiple ear piercings, hair usually gathered in a messy ponytail and even shows signs of disinterest (rolling eyes!) towards the other girls' overall style and behavior. These physical traits signal her opposition of traditional femininity and her dedication to “edginess.” She vibrates a very strong, powerful and independent energy, or perhaps her personality is somewhat harder to predict than other girls. In other words, Kat can be regarded as the central character with distinct characteristics rather than being defined by her physical appearance differences.
FRAME #4
The next frame gives us some additional insights into the film's narrative. Walking alongside the pavements, slightly messy grass lanes and across the rough road are teenagers with diverse clothing styles. From there, the environment here can be viewed as not as "civilized", or even a little wild comparing to the modern day time (as of 2020s)​​.
Kat and her car, once again, takes the spotlight and moves forward before the blue car. This asserts Kat's significant position in the film as one of the leading roles.
FRAME #5
Another establishing shot is made to help the audience get to know the settings. As the location is a Padua high school, we can see that the film is about the romance of high school students.
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As the camera moves high and higher, we can see the diversity of the students in the school. It can be predictable that in the world of Padua, there are many familiar high school cliques as the sports kids appear right at the beginning of the shot as well as the presence of small friend groups gathering around the school yard.
An additional point to note is that the school sure does have a typical academic setting with traditional design, which can be associated with prestige. However, from the music and the students observed throughout the shot, the audience can see that the community here is rebellious, contrasting significantly to Padua's appearance.
FRAME #6
Throughout this midshot, we can easily get a better grasp of Kat's personality and image at school. The act of recklessly ripping off the school's prom poster has shown her initial disinterest in social activities at school, possibly dismissing it as an unimportant event. This action has hinted the audience that Kat sets herself apart from the mainstream, which might portray her as an anti-social individual in Padua High.
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This is clearly not the first time Kat has done anything rebellious with her confidence and the other students' reaction. Since she seems to be opposed with the mainstream most of the times, Kat must have a limited social circle since no one can get along with her and... has a bad reputation.
FRAME #7
In the 7th frame, a nametag of the school's guidance counselor is shown as the main subject. The feminine items on the table (flowers, mini basket, vase) show us that the school's counselor is a women and might be indicated as quite reputable because of her polished nametag "Ms. Perky - Guidance Counselor".​ Additionally, since a counselor's job is to guide and help students, this frame acts as foreshadow of an introduction to another character who's likely a student who's in need of help, for example, a new student.​
FRAME #8
In the next shot, the camera is positioned to capture a frame where Cameron takes up more than half of the space, signifying that he's also one of the main characters. The blank space next to him - leading room - indicates that he's having a conversation with another person which is most likely the guidance counselor (Ms. Perky) shown in the previous shot.
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Judging from his expressions and appearance in the scene, the audience can deduce that Cameron is a shy and approachable guy. Since he also seems anxious and clueless, Cameron might be a new student to Padua High. This can be further supported by the dead giveaway that he is talking to the counselor.
FRAME #9
In this over-the-shoulder shot, the audience can get the contrast between the two characters as Cameron's casual wardrobe consists of mainly dark and cold-tone colours whereas Ms. Perky's outfit is vibrant and eye-catching with her carefully styled hair as well as fancy pearl necklace. Ms. Perky is visibly a "serious" person with the frown, judging look on her face as she types, making the scene appears to be like an "interrogation".