Film: (500) Days of Summer
Cast includes: Joseph Gordon-Levitt (3rd Rock from the Sun), Zooey Deschanel (Elf, Weeds)
Director: Marc Webb
Genre: Quirky romantic comedy
In brief: “Relationships are messy. We should have fun while we can and save the serious stuff for later.” …at least that’s Summer’s philosophy. In the beginning of the movie, day 290, Summer tells Tom, “I think we should stop seeing each other.” From there, it’s a rollercoaster ride of the highs and lows of the Tom & Summer story. Summer was the new hire at Tom’s greeting card company. Tom was instantly smitten. Summer wanted to keep it casual. Tom thought love would conquer all. It didn’t. While his best friends are telling him to move on and get over Summer, Tom has a different idea… he’s determined to get her back.
While the plot premise is fairly commonplace, nothing else in this wonderfully fresh, witty movie is. A calendar device lets us zip around in the timeline effortlessly as the saga unfolds. Borrowing shamelessly from a variety of film techniques, (500) Days easily transitions from a style that looks, for example, like a documentary to that of… say… a Hollywood musical. And don’t be surprised if you sometimes feel as if you’re watching a Woody Allen movie. The sharp, clever dialogue is first rate and often had us chuckling long after scenes have moved on.
To say this film is well done would be an understatement. I'd have to give it extra points for originality and difficulty. I can forgive the occasional flat moments and shortcomings because the overall ride is so much fun. Rather than choosing a more standard storytelling format, first-time director, Marc Webb went out on a limb... many of them. Some artistic decisions worked out better than others, but on balance, (500) Days of Summer is better than the sum of its many parts… from the opening disclaimer that the characters are fictitious… to the very end.
3 popped kernels
Popped kernels for creativity, originality and charm. Great script... lovable characters.
