(500) Days of Summer

(500) Days of Summer (2009)

From the beginning of the film, the audience is warned that although this appears to be a simple romantic comedy, it is not. “This is not a love story; this is a story about love”. (500) Days of Summer stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom, a young man who is miserable after being dumped by Summer, played by Zooey Deschanel. The story of their failed relationship follows a nonlinear storyline as the details leading up to their breakup and the events that happen afterward are revealed.

In most generic rom-coms, it is the girl’s story and from the female point of view. (500) is interesting in the fact that it is without a doubt the story of Tom, who has settled into the cliché of being enamored and gaga in love that is normally portrayed by the female. Following Tom’s perspective is a breath of fresh air, but Summer is equally as interesting. The role usually portrayed by the male actor, when played by Deschanel, creates a character known as the Manic Pixie Dream Girl. The MPDG interacts with the brooding young male (Gordon-Levitt) and arguably only exists to teach the protagonist a life lesson.

As noted earlier, the film follows a nonlinear storyline, which cuts between different events within the 500 days of Tom and Summer’s relationship. This was a nice choice by director Marc Webb, for the film would not be nearly as enjoyable or enticing had it been told in a standard fashion. The best part of the film was the borderline self-awareness. The narrator talks to the audience revealing that, at the very least, he knows this is a movie. The dancing/singing scene is somewhat out of place in a film that, before this scene, was set in a very stark reality. But the inclusion of strangers dancing and singing along with Gordon-Levitt, him singing along with the non-digetic music, and his interaction with cartoon birds hints that to some degree this film is self-aware and that anything can happen.

In his directorial debut, Webb was able to perfectly capture a realistic and modern relationship in a manner that was both captivating and heartbreaking. From the photo-montage to the split screen of expectations versus reality; from the homage to French films to the pop-culture references about The Graduate, Webb has created a distinctly memorable film and an example of what independent filmmakers should strive towards.