(500) Days of Summer. I did enjoy this movie; however, I just want to mention a movie I consider to be an even better romantic comedy, Adventureland. Personal preference. I suppose I just like seeing a more happy ending. Warning: This blog has more than its share of spoilers.
I should probably also admit before going much further that I'm also irritated that I missed Zooey Deschanel's She & Him residency at Spaceland a few months back. That just stunk. I don't know what I was thinking.
So yes, I liked Adventureland much better, but that doesn't mean I didn't love (500) Days of Summer. It takes a different look at relationships. It shows that sometimes people break-up. It shows that sometimes certain people aren't meant for each other. And yet, it does have a happy ending to a degree. Summer finds true love, an emotion she felt she would never feel -- rather quickly by the way -- after breaking up with Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). The movie doesn't end with Tom finding true love, but it does end with him potentially finding a new girlfriend.
Problem with the movie: Okay, I'm thinking the following isn't a problem, I just wished I'd realized this before going in to see the movie. So I guess this is more of a heads up. The movie doesn't stick to a linear timeline (I would have known this if I'd read the reviews). It starts out around day 290-ish, plus or minus 30 days, and then u-turns to the start. I wish I'd logged those days better in my mind, because I think it would have made the movie more enjoyable. Early in the movie, they're having breakfast in the evening. This is essentially the moment in the movie where they breakup. Fast forward towards the end of the movie and the same day is revisited, but a few hours before that moment. Oh well, it just means I'll need to watch this movie again on DVD.
What I enjoyed about the movie is that it showed amazingly romantic moments between the two of them and yet at the same time it showed moments where you just couldn't help but think, "There is something wrong going on with this relationship." That thought was brought out by Tom's sister where she said something like, "I'm happy you guys broke up. I think you'll realize this if you'd re-think your relationship." The movie then re-winds and shows you those moments where there were signs that Summer just wasn't fully invested emotionally into the relationship.
One complaint regarding the style of the movie. There is the When Harry Met Sally moment where people are getting interviewed about their relationships. It seemed like a scene that could have been cut. It seemed out of place. The movie does use various movie styles; however, so it was meant to be included. There is a musical number where perhaps you'd think that maybe this wouldn't work either, but I enjoyed it. There is also a rather long scene towards the end of the movie that uses a split screen that shows: imagined (I don't believe that is the word used in the movie, but you get the idea) versus reality. Now that was just a brilliant scene, because how many of us are hit with cold reality when it comes to relationships.
This is a minor moment, but I loved the scene where the boss called Tom into his office. I think in many movies, the boss is seen as unsympathetic or as a jerk. This movie treated the boss as a good guy. I liked that. It was one of those moments that just showed that this was a different type of film.
I had a brief conversation with a couple of friends about this movie. One mentioned that he thought Summer was just a mean character. I think through most of the movie, this just isn't true. I'll have to give it up to him; however, when a few months after their breakup they happen to meet up on a train ride where both are heading to the same wedding. To me, Summer does lead him on, giving him the illusion that perhaps he has another chance at getting the relationship back on track. We learn moments later in the movie (the split screen portion of the movie) that she's dating someone else who is about to ask her to marry him. As Tom later asks Summer, why didn't she just mention this fact to him earlier. That was cruel, especially since she asked him to a rooftop party where she knew her new boyfriend would be. I suppose you could use this moment to go back through the whole movie and apply this character flaw to their relationship and therefore re-address how she treated him during their relationship. Perhaps my friend is right. Perhaps I'll come to his conclusion when I see the movie again. For now, I'll argue in her benefit that sometimes it is hard to bring up those topics. Also, I'd argue that throughout the movie, it was clear that Summer and Tom had reversed roles. Summer had more of the dominant/"male" role in the relationship where she didn't treat their relationship as something that might potentially lead to a long term commitment. Tom had the more "female" role of looking for a long term commitment. If you look at it from that perspective, I don't think she treated him badly during their relationship.
Ending: Deschanel was in a movie called Yes Man, which I thought had the undercurrent of being a love story to the Eastside of Los Angeles. In many ways, (500) Days of Summer is a love story to Downtown Los Angeles.
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