10 Movie Geeks Who Got The Girl
When the nerd lands the hottie, we all win...
If I Love You, Beth Cooper proves nothing else, it's that the truly geeky can win the heart of the one they love.
So if you're still worrying yourself into a frenzy over whether that dream girl will finally notice you, then movies can provide a wealth of advice.
Follow some of these sure-fire ways to eternal love. Or at least a quick shag.
Spider-Man (2002)
The Girl: Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst)
The Geek: Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire)
The Technique: Peter wins her over on two fronts. First, he becomes a super-powered crime-fighter who makes MJ's knees go trembly at the thought of an upside-down kiss.
And secondly, he's sweet-natured enough to wait for her to see that he's a hero without the mask.
This one is probably a little difficult to pull off in real life. Unless you have easy access to a genetically-modified spider.
Next: Ghostbusters II
[Page-break]
Ghostbusters II (1989)
The Girl: Janine Melnitz (Annie Potts)
The Geek: Louis Tully (Rick Moranis)
The Technique: You'd think Louis would've been happy with (possibly) bagging Sigourney Weaver's Dana in the first one -but he was possessed during that, so he doesn't remember and it doesn't count.
Eventually, it's his heroic backing of the boys and his unsure nature that attracts Janine (no superstar in the confidence stakes herself).
One babysitting stint later and the pair are at it like rabbits, so maybe you should offer to babysit and leave spook-hunting to the professionals.
Next: Superbad
[Page-break]
Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we’ve got you covered.
Superbad (2007)
The Girl: Jules (Emma Stone)
The Geek: Seth (Jonah Hill)
The Technique: Hill's portly, potty-mouthed wise-acre tries an old-fashioned attempt to win over his lady-crush by offering to bring alcohol to her party.
Things don't really go to plan as he and best mate Evan (Michael Cera) end up on a wild night of mishaps and police encounters.
And when a drunken Seth does get to express himself to Jules, he ends up accidentally head-butting her. Strangely, this seems to be what wins Jules over.
But let us make it clear - giving a girl a black eye will not make her love you. It will result in damaged testicles.
Next: American Pie
[Page-break]
American Pie (1999)
The Girl: Nadia (Shannon Elizabeth)
The Geek: Jim (Jason Biggs)
The Technique: Jim stumbles into this one - at first planning to exploit Nadia's oversexed nature by watching her strip on web cam, he discovers that she's actually into the idea.
But when she invites him to join her, Jim's overeager genitals don't exactly help matters.
And, in truth, Jim doesn't actually end up with Nadia, but learns an abject lesson in geek-love: punch your weight. He's eventually deflowered by uber-nerdy (but sex-mad) flute-lover Michelle (Alyson Hannigan).
Next: Revenge Of The Nerds
[Page-break]
Revenge Of The Nerds (1984)
The Girl: Betty Childs (Julia Montgomery)
The Geek: Lewis Skolnick (Robert Carradine)
The Technique: Deception - yes, the age-old basis for all, er, love?
Frustrated by the mistreatment at the hands of the Adams college jock frat, Lewis decides to take revenge by disguising himself as tough guy Stan Gable and seducing his girlfriend, Betty.
Since this is a comedy, the plan actually works, though using a disguise to sleep with someone through false pretenses is generally viewed as a crime.
Just so you know.
Next: Back To The Future
[Page-break]
Back To The Future (1985)
The Girl : Lorraine Baines (Lea Thompson)
The Geek: George McFly (Crispin Glover)
The Technique: This one is pretty much reliant on destiny - or your child arriving from the future in a converted DeLorean time machine. So don't go pinning your hopes on it.
But while Marty's interference does have a big impact on George McFly's interaction with Lorraine, it's him overcoming his confidence issues and standing up to bully Biff (Thomas F Wilson).
Believe in yourself - and you'll win the day.
Next: 10 Things I Hate About You
[Page-break]
10 Things I Hate About You
The Girl: Bianca Stratford (Larisa Oleynik)
The Geek: Cameron James (Joseph Gordon-Levitt)
The Technique : While Cameron has an advantage in that he's not truly nerd-like, he's still shy enough that he has to take part in an elaborate plan to get Bianca's sister (Julia Stiles) to date so that their uptight father will let Bianca see boys.
Cameron's plan works in that he ends up with Bianca, but not before being punched out for his trouble.
The moral of the story - complicated plans to woo women don't usually work too well - best keep it simple.
Next: Can't Buy Me Love
[Page-break]
Can't Buy Me Love (1987)
The Girl: Cindy Mancini (Amanda Peterson)
The Geek: Ronald Miller (Patrick Dempsey)
The Technique: Miller takes an odd path to love - he helps cheerleader Cindy out at first and she reluctantly agrees to help him be cool for a month.
As he hangs with the jocks and loses sight of his real friends among the nerds, he grows closer to Cindy, but at what cost?
In the end, he learns to be himself again (yawn) and Cindy discovers she loves him for it (double yawn).
Of course, it doesn't hurt if you're simply acting like a nerd and grow up to look like Patrick "McDreamy" Dempsey, either. Can't help you with that, though...
Next: Transformers
[Page-break]
Transformers (2007)
The Girl: Mikaela Banes (Megan Fox)
The Geek: Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf)
The Technique: Sam desperately wants to get close to the seemingly unattainable Mikaela, who he thinks only hangs out with jocks.
But just as a happy accident lets him start to get closer to her, fate - and giant f*****g robots - intervene, which helpfully lets Sam play the hero and save the world.
It doesn't hurt that he suddenly has the coolest car in the world. Best hit the local Ferrari dealership, then. Or Cybertron.
Next: Teen Wolf
[Page-break]
Teen Wolf (1985)
The Girl: Pamela Wells (Lorie Griffin)
The Geek: Scott Howard (Michael J Fox)
The Technique: As the tagline runs, Scott always wanted to be special, mostly so A) he can play better basketball and B) win the heart of dream girl Pamela.
So when he learns he's a werewolf, he naturally uses it to his advantage, winning her over with his hairy charms. Hope she has flea treatment on hand.
Oh, and he's another one who realises that his true love isn't the sex kitten fantasy, but bessie mate Boof (Susan Ursitti), who has always pine for him.
Which has us cautioning all geeks to see if their best friend loves them.
Like This? Then try...
Sign up for our free weekly newsletter here .
Follow us on Twitter here .
James White is a freelance journalist who has been covering film and TV for over two decades. In that time, James has written for a wide variety of publications including Total Film and SFX. He has also worked for BAFTA and on ODEON's in-cinema magazine.
