I was a manager at FYE when (500) Days of Summer came out on DVD. One of my employees was a huge fan of the film, but it just didn’t interest me enough to get me to watch it. I’m not sure why it didn’t appeal to me as I’m a fan of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, butt it just didn’t. I tried to watch it on basic cable a few years ago and quickly decided I wasn’t in the mood for it. Needless to say, I was apprehensive when I started the film tonight, but it won me over and I believe (500) Days of Summer belongs in the Must See rating.
(500) Days of Summer is about…
Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is looking for his true love and believes he found her in Summer (Zooey Deschanel). Unfortunately, Summer doesn’t believe in true love and the battle over whose point-of-view is correct is the foundation of their relationship.
I really liked Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s performance in this movie. He really brings the charm in this film. Deschanel is basically the same character she plays in most films. A bit of a hipster, if not a little more veiled than other films, who is quirky with an odd view on life. It works fairly well for the comedy side of this film. Chloe Grace Moretz plays JGL’s sister and she’s fantastic as usual.
There are tons of scenes in this film that I could reference as fantastic. There is an amazing musical performance, a funny scene involving twinkie’s and a bathrobe, and a moment where a beautiful skyline is drawn on Summer’s arm. All are extremely memorable moments, but I think early in the film watching JGL smashing plates and Moretz showing up to help her brother return to sanity may have been my favorite. It sets up the tone for the rest of the film, flipping back and forth in the non-linear storytelling that will take place throughout.
Director Marc Webb and cinematographer Eric Steelberg do some amazing work in this film. The sweeping shots of the skyline, the transition from the city streets to a sketch, interesting framing, and beautiful scenes make this romantic comedy standout amongst the cookie cutter styles seen in so many others. I did enjoy Webb’s Amazing Spider-man and didn’t hate the second one as much as many other people. This movie shows the level of work Webb can churn out and I hope he does something else like (500) Days of Summer in the near future.
I don’t always spend a lot of time discussing soundtracks, but I immediately added this films to my music on my phone. The songs really added to the film and in some cases even managed to narrate the actions. It definitely elevated the film and that’s why I’m even bringing it up. I don’t always notice the impact music has on a movie as it often is so vital that I just accept it as a part of the whole. Often, if music stands out to me it’s because it’s distracting or taking me out of the scene rather than bringing me in. However, this film managed to accomplish both.
While I found this film to be quite excellent, it still follows a lot of the elements of a romantic comedy. It just so happens that I often like a well made romantic comedy, and this one adds a bit to the genre. If you’re a fan of these kinds of movies then I definitely recommend adding (500) Days of Summer to your list of films to watch.
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