It’s unfortunate that the above premise makes the film sound like any other number of lame, interchangeable romcoms, because Say Anything is anything but. Say Anything is in actuality a smartly written, well played, touching film that shows a real romance and a real relationship between father and daughter. In sharp contrast to the last decade’s obsession with lame slapstick and gross out gags, Say Anything is a gentle film that charms its audience into empathising with the characters rather than embarrassing them.

Crucial to the film working is the glorious writing of writer/director Cameron Crowe. Crowe’s writing creates believable characters in believable situations, not the cardboard caricatures that you might find in something like ‘Maid in Manhattan’. Lloyd is an underachiever at school; he doesn’t know what is in his future. All he knows is that he is good at kickboxing and that he wants to spend as much time with Diane as possible before she leaves for England. He talks too much, and tends to go off into tangents, but he is still endearing.

I really cannot think of anyone else that could have done justice to Lloyd better than John Cusak. Cusak is one of my favourite actors and the performance he gives here is one of his best, right up there with ‘Grosse Point Blank’ and ‘High Fidelity’. He perfectly puts over the vulnerability of Lloyd, but at the same time never makes him seem weak. If anything Lloyd is a man of conviction, he knows what he doesn’t want, even if he doesn’t quite know what he wants to do.

Diane is a bright girl who has worked hard all her life for what she has achieved. Valedictorian, the scholarship to England, huge achievements, but they came at a price. She bypassed her teenage years completely. Her yearbook is full of lines like ‘I wish I knew you better’ and ‘nice to finally meet you’ after Lloyd takes her to a graduation party. She realises that she has missed a great deal and Lloyd presents an opportunity to grasp some of what she missed.

Not only is Ione Sky incredibly attractive, but she is more than capable of matching Cusak in the acting stakes. The two play of each other so well and with the combination of their chemistry and Crowe’s writing we are presented with a completely believable romance. Diane falls for Lloyd and we buy into it, it’s not a perfect couple but we believe these two were meant for each other thanks to the quality of the work.

The other relationship in the film is that of Diane and her father. 5 years previous Diane’s parents split up and Diane was forced to choose which parent she wanted to live with, she choose her father. At that point her father told her that there were to be no secrets and that she could ‘say anything’ to him. It’s a mantra that Diane follows to the letter, even if the father doesn’t follow his own advice.

The father/daughter relationship in this film is so fresh for the romcom genre. Normally in this type of film the father is seen as the antagonist, constantly trying to break the couple up because he doesn’t approve. Now, Diane’s father doesn’t fully approve of the relationship, but because he wants the best for his daughter and he sees how happy Lloyd is making her he doesn’t resort to scheming and lying to break them up. Rather he lets the romance take its course.

You are probably most familiar with actor John Mahoney as the father of Frasier in the acclaimed sitcom of the same name. But, long before he was that father he gave an excellent performance as Diane’s father. He is so strong, always there for his daughter. Willing to do anything to give her the future that they have always talked about and as it happens, willing to do too much. In another wonder stroke by Crowe, further depth is added to the father by making him under investigation by the IRS. Mahoney plays this beautifully, in particular in a scene where he finally breaks down and in the final few moments with his daughter.

There are a couple of supporting roles of note. Lili Taylor plays Lloyds best friend and woman who has been hurt by a man she loves. There are some nice comedic moments from her. Philip Baker Hall has a minor, but pivotal role as an IRS agent and John’s sister Joan shows up as his on screen brother.