Film Data Year: 1989
Director: Cameron Crowe
Length: 100 Minutes
Rated: PG-13
Characters/Actors Lloyd Dobler:
John Cusack Diane Court: Ione Skye James Court: John Mahoney Corey Flood: Lili
Taylor D.C.: Amy Brooks Rebecca: Pamela Segall
Communication Courses
Interpersonal Communication Communication Concepts Honesty/Lying Relational
Stages Self-Disclosure
Pedagogical Perspective
This is a light romantic comedy
with a serious message about the impact of dishonesty in primary interpersonal
relationships. The movie could be used in high school or college classes (Diane
and Lloyd’s non-depicted sexual activity might be a sensitive issue for some
audiences).
Synopsis
Say Anything…is a lighthearted
tale about an unlikely couple. Lloyd Dobler (Cusack) is unsure what he will do
after graduating from high school, except to pursue his dreams of becoming a
professional kick-boxer. Diane Court (Skye) is valedictorian of her class and
plans for college – but unlike Lloyd, she has no social life. They attend a
graduation party together, and Diane is pleasantly surprised at how comfortable
and happy she feels around Lloyd. Their interest in each other grows and they
date throughout the summer. Diane’s parents are divorced and she lives with her
father (Mahoney), with whom she always had open and honest communication. As
Diane and Lloyd’s relationship develops, Diane’s relationship with her father
begins to change. Diane’s father believes Lloyd is complicating her life and he
recommends that she break off her relationship with Lloyd before it becomes too
serious. She acquiesces to her father’s wishes. Neither Diane nor Lloyd is
happy about the breakup, but she keeps telling herself it is for the best.
Diane and her father appear to have a healthy and positive relationship, but
when she learns that he has engaged in illegal financial dealings involving the
nursing home he runs, her trust in him is shattered. Diane realizes she wants
and needs Lloyd and reaches out to him; he supports her while she deals with
the devastating fact that her father is not the man she thought he was. Diane
tries to reconstruct her relationship with her father before she and Lloyd fly
off to England together.
Assignment
Relevance to the topic(s) ***Each essay will
be submitted to Turnitin.com, via the Dropbox link in Blackboard.***· Structure and mechanics· Grammar· Content·In this assignment, you will
write a 4-5 page paper, which should include answering the discussion questions
(listed below). Conceptualize and answer these questions under the light of
intercultural communication. That means that the answers should tie in with the
significance of intercultural communication, and how it has influenced the
characters in this movie. This paper should be written in an APA-Style format.
Your paper will be evaluated on the following:
Discussion Questions
1. What relationship stages do
Lloyd and Diane experience?
2. What were some of the reasons
for self-disclosure between Diane and her father and between Lloyd and his
female friends?
3. Why did Diane’s father choose
to lie to her about his finances? What effect did his dishonesty have on Diane
and their relationship?
