So, again, it’s been a while since I last posted. I need to make a better effort to make time for this, since in the beginning it was supposed to function as an outlet for me to flex the very small creative muscles I have. (When compared to say my wife’s gigantor creativity muscles).
So, we are going to start the DVDPurge yet again….though so far it hasn’t purged much at all. It occurred to me this morning that I probably own a lot of these movies because I love a lot of these movies. But if I don’t actually watch said movies, what purpose to they serve besides taking up space? Perhaps the chopping will begin soon?
That said, we’re back to business. Here’s my review/ruling on 500 Days of Summer:
Movie #3: 500 Days of Summer (2009), starring Zooey Deschanel, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, directed by Mark Webb.
This is QUITE a shifting of gears from our previous film, 300.
Being told, up-front, that this story is not a love story, is an important thing that sets the tone for the movie right off the bat. Given the (for me personally at least) magnetic charm of both leads (Gordon-Levitt’s performance was nominated for a Best Actor in a Comedy/Musical Golden Globe, which ended up being won by Robert Downey, Jr’s performance as Sherlock Holmes), the foreshadowing of a not-so-happy ending didn’t leave me disappointed from the start, but rather curious to see how this story played out. This is a different take on the typical romantic comedy. The back and forth nature of the film, going from Day 355 to Day 24 to Day 192, etc. was in some cases confusing, annoying, frustrating, and dizzying, but in a way, isn’t that the way that love is?
I first saw this film in theaters on a date with my then girlfriend (now wife, Nicolette). I definitely don’t mind going to see these types of movies but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it, which garnered its own Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture Comedy or Musical. (Lost out to The Hangover)
The music/score is wonderful. Songs by Regina Spektor (“Us”, “Hero”), The Temper Trap (“Sweet Disposition), and Feist (“Mushaboom”) all fit perfectly within the wonderful editing and storytelling/writing that the film boasts.
But overall, I think it’s the honest and serious but also funny at the same time take on courtship and relationships that resonates. The film expresses the awkwardness of meeting someone and beginning a courtship of that person, the high that comes with being around them, learning about them, thinking about them, and then the ecstatic celebration of the beginnings of a relationship/involvement with them. JGL’s hilarious montage of seeing Han Solo’s rogue-ish smile reflected in a car window, and subsequent flash-mob dance-fest to Hall and Oates’ “You Make My Dreams” is both hilarious and heart-warming (complete with animated bluebird). Relationships are AMAZING!
Which segues nicely into Day 303, where Summer is gone and there is misery in all things for Tom. Relationships can also SUCK and your heart gets ripped out.
Balancing happiness and misery, the taking of risks, exposing and talking about vulnerabilities, learning the ins and outs of a person…all of these things are illustrated in the film in such a real and honest manner. Love and relationships are friggin’ complicated. They take work. That doesn’t change whether you’re on Day 5 or Day 4997 (which is how many days I’ve been with Nicolette). They can be incredibly uplifting and baffling at the same time. You can absolutely love someone and simultaneously hate them (perfectly summed up by Tom’s list of things he loved about Summer juxtaposed with the same exact list being things he hated about her).
The expectation versus reality scene was so well done. How many of us can think back to a situation where we basically experienced something like this? How on-point is this in terms of the way we visualize a relationship and moments with someone and how much they can differ from what really ends up happening?
With an absolute bittersweet ending, (spoilers? If you haven’t seen this movie in the 8 years it’s been out, I’m not sure what to tell you…), it’s easy to see how relationships can seem like a waste of time, that some people are doomed to be unlucky, etc. The park bench scene where Tom states that Summer was right (about true love not existing) and Summer asserting that Tom was right (because she just woke up one day and felt like she wanted to marry the man she was with after him) is heartbreaking because the timing wasn’t right for them. Both characters experience a change in outlook when it comes to love and relationships. Tom for a short time becomes cynical about it all until he chooses to move on and get over fears of rejection and investment and asks Autumn (a little on the nose, but a cute joke about seasons changing and transitions nonetheless) for coffee.
It all boils down to the idea that sometimes relationships and love doesn’t work out or last. That doesn’t mean in the slightest that it wasn’t real, didn’t mean something, and didn’t teach those involved any valuable lessons or skills to go forward with. Love is great and love sucks.
Sometimes they do work out, though. I married my Summer.
Random tidbits:
- relationship advice from a young Chloe Grace Moretz!
- Vance, aka Clark Gregg, aka AGENT COULSON!?
- Oh hi, Minka Kelly!
- Who knew how cool chalkboard paint walls could be back in 2009? They are all the rage now, but man, a chalk headboard looked awesome.
Verdict: Gonna go 4.5 stars for this one. Love the honesty and original take on everything. Keep.
Next up: One of Nicolette’s all-time (not a typo) favorites…The Adjustment Bureau
everything, etc. 