(500) Days Of Summer - includes trailer
May 23rd 2010 10:53
The authors note at the start of '(500) Days Of Summer' reads:
The following is a work of fiction.
Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
Especially you Jenny Beckman.
Bitch.
(500) Days Of Summer plugs into the zeitgeist of today’s relationships with post-modern pizzazz and also, for once - a man’s point of view. The film for me is a nostalgic tale into the memories of love and heart break. It constantly juxtaposes the good times with the bad during an off the wall journey that contains a strong visual flair through out, inventive editing, an attractive cast and smart writing. Starring one of yours truly’s favourite actors, the brilliant Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Looper, Inception, Mysterious Skin, Brick) and the wonderful Zooey Deschanel (The Good Girl, The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, Almost Famous). The cast also features Chloe Moretz (Let Me In, The Invention Of Hugo Cabret, Kick Ass) and Clark Gregg who most audiences will recognize as Agent Coulson from Iron Man/Avengers films.
Bouncing back and fourth between the best and worst memories of a relationship between Tom Hanson (Gordon-Levitt) and Summer Finn (Deschanel). This non-linear tale tells the story of boy meets girl, with a twist. Tom has grown up sucked into the belief that the movies he watched and the music he listened to as a boy, would foretell the story of love at first sight, destiny and the moment where he would meet ‘the one’. Summer, however, doesn’t believe in love, she grew up disillusioned by her parents divorce, cutting herself off from anything to do with feelings. It’s all done with a joyfully dry humor that always feels uncannily close to home - grinning in your face as it unfolds. When these two finally do get together, he wants her in a committed relationship and she just wants casual sex.
(500) Days is written by first time writers Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber and director Marc Webb (who’s directing the next Spiderman film). This trio have come up with a completely fresh spin on the romantic comedy genre which still maintains the essence of quirky, original indie films like Garden State and Being John Malkovich. Director, Marc Webb, came from a music video background and it shows, in a good way. The film is slickly edited, even containing a charming musical dance sequence and has a rhythm to it that accentuates the subtle and very clever humour of the film.
Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt has constantly proven that he is the best actor of his generation from his maniacal, unhinged performance in the average Kill Shot to his devastatingly ground breaking performance in the confronting and brilliant Mysterious Skin, with a plethora of other stunning character portrayals under his belt (Brick, The Lookout), in 500 Days Of Summer, his charm sky rockets, proving that he’s up to the challenges of stepping out of his comfort zone and handling the off-beat comedy and dance number with a charismatic, expert hand. Zooey Deschanel is an actress I wasn’t as aware of before this film, but she is perfect for the role of Summer, she lights up the screen every time she is on it, she has a beautiful presence. It’s not hard to see the appeal of Summer when Deschanel plays her, she really makes it easy to understand what the narrator refers to as the ‘Summer effect’. The chemistry between the two actors are marvellous, really creating a dynamic that knocks this film out the park.
The film in general is an ode to indie pop culture, which flirts with musical numbers, amusing homage’s to art films like Breathless and The Seventh Seal, along with a soundtrack of college rock numbers, like the Pixies, the Smiths and Wolf Mother, which is perfectly used to compliment it’s story that leans more towards younger, cooler audiences that will be hip to it’s references and what they have to say concerning the climate of our culture over the last twenty years. This is all post-modern comedy at it’s best.
While (500) Days Of Summer is always funny, in the same way that films like Juno and Ghost World are, the true treasures of the film lie in it’s heart and it’s stinging poignant undertone of truth, plus it’s ability to feel hip all while doing this is it’s biggest strength. This will appeal to discerning audiences who roll their eyes at most of the conventions of society, in particular the way most relationships are portrayed in mainstream films, and will touch the hearts of the cynical and jaded while making the pissed off and heart broken roll with laughter.
(500) Days, underneath everything else, is a generational tale of young people who have grown up insulated from parental figures, which are nowhere to be found in the film. It’s all clearly indicative of how much the dynamics have changed in the world of men and women today, with all of these younger characters having to be their own emotional guides, clearly feeling at odds with the general wisdom of generations that have come before them.
Tom’s Friend: Why don’t you just ask her out.
Tom: Don’t be stupid.
This has clearly been building for quite some time, simmering away in men who have become more and more confused with the dating world and as far as I can tell (500) Days is the first film to actually address this shift, which is what gives it such a refreshing feel of originality. There have of course been other expressions of this in teen film’s like 17 Again and Super Bad, which mainly used this concept for throw away lines in the midst of their juvenile laughs. There’s also been T.V.’s Entourage, but none of the episodes have communicated these themes so solidly in such an effective and focused way, while also being so charming about it too. This is probably the reason also, why males have responded so strongly to (500) Days Of Summer.
I have now seen (500) Days Of Summer nearly 500 times and am yet to grow tired of it, it’s incredibly smart and also extremely playful. It hooks into you, bringing to mind that girl that had such an effect on you. You remember how you felt the first time you fell for her, the first time you knew you were in, the first time she broke your heart, the first time she pulled her hand away from yours. There are so many inventive touches in the film and it’s all pulled off slickly by director Marc Webb, with some really fantastic acting from the two appealing leads. It’s a wonderfully funny and emotionally resonant experience.
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Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
Romantic comedies are traditionally pure fluff but this one exceeded expectations of the genre by being honest about human relationships. An instant fave to be watched with High Fidelity.
Comment by ShaunK
Screen Adventure
You don't need to tell me about pure fluff....I'm well with you there
From your comment this sounds yet again like a case of a film that you liked by I liked way more than you (i.e. Black Snake Moan) I loved this film so much and have seen a ton of times.
Havn't seen high fidelity in a while though - might have to revisit that as I remember nothing of it.
Thanks for for visiting
Comment by Matt Shea
Basically, I found the characters impossible to like: she's frustratingly obtuse and frankly a bit of a self-centred punkarse, while he's a drip for being so taken with her for so long.
And don't get me started on the wise-beyond-her-years little sister... The self-indulgent indie music dropping got on my nerves as well.
Having said all that (and obviously I needed to get a few things off my chest) there are some nice elements. Gordon-Levitt is a fantastic actor, and the revision of modern Los Angeles was nice too.
Comment by ShaunK
Screen Adventure
I thought it was really funny and I thought that the music, while I didnt personally like alot of the songs I thought that they were set very well for the scenes.
As far as the younger sister goes - I found that to be satirical, with a kernel of truth to it, also keeping in mind that this was the only other female character in his life so he tended to listen to what she had to say far more than he should've
If you wanna talk about something that annoyed me in a film it was all the smart ass pop culture references in Juno every two seconds
But this ones a winner for me
Thanks for your comment