Friday's Five: The Lloyd Dobler Effect

I ran across this blog post recently, describing a group of men in NYC who dressed as Lloyd Dobler, boomboxes blaring "In Your Eyes" above their heads, to celebrate the 20th anniversary edition of the movie Say Anything. I'll pause for a moment while you grapple with the notion that a) yes, it really was 20 years ago and b) there really are people with that much free time.

But I can't blame them for being committed to one of the all-time great movie characters, who famously declared that "I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that." Between that statement and his unfailing love for Diane Court, you just can't go wrong with Lloyd.

So in honor of Lloyd Dobler and the 20th anniversary of one of my most-loved teen films, here are five other favorite movies with John Cusack that my husband and I wind up watching every time we stumble onto them:

1. Sixteen Candles (1984): Okay, so Cusack isn't the star of this Molly Ringwald classic, but it's so funny to see him so young as he plays one of the dorky friends to geeky Anthony Michael Hall.
   
   
2. Grosse Point Blank (1997): Cusack stars as a professional assassin returning home for his high school reunion, where he runs into his long lost love (played by Minnie Driver). Chaos, wit and much gun fire ensue, along with a great soundtrack.
   
   
3. Being John Malkovich (1999): This mind-bender of a film includes a rough-looking Cameron Diaz (who knew that was possible?!) and a scene with John Malkovich cross-dressing. Strange and fantastic.
   
   
4. High Fidelity (2000): Another terrific soundtrack accompanies Cusack as he tries to piece together his romantic history (via his top five break-ups) to explain his latest relationship failure. Ah, the mix tape -- how I loved you.
   
   
5. Serendipity (2001): I don't know exactly why we can never turn off this movie when it shows up on TV (including last night) -- maybe I love the idea that what seems like coincidences is actually life leading us to just where we need to be. Or maybe it's the fun of another side-kick role for Jeremy Piven. The movie won't change your life, but it's still worth watching.

Note: The title for this post was shamelessly stolen from the band of the same name, who will be playing in Charlotte next Saturday.