Director Marc Webb's (500) Days of Summer has become one of my absolute favorite movies of all time. I remember the first time I ever watched it, having been assigned the first fifteen minutes to watch as part of a course on media aesthetics. Ten minutes in, I decided I was seeing this through until the end, because never before had a movie grabbed my attention in such a way. This is a film that, for me, says all the right things at all the right moments.
Told through a nonlinear narrative, we see Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) fall head-over-heels for his coworker, Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel); Tom is convinced he will never truly be happy until he finds "the one" while Summer, on the other hand, dislikes labels and doesn't believe in the concept of love. Naturally, they're headed for disaster; in the very beginning of the movie, we jump right to the moment in their relationship where Summer suggests the two of them stop seeing each other. From that point on, we get to see bit by bit how their relationship grew and changed to the point that it simply stopped existing all together. It's a brilliant way to tell a story such as this, since it manages to present the time-tested story of "boy meets girl" in a really unorthodox, cynical way, while at the same time managing to present an uplifting message. Had this been conveyed in chronological order, we'd get a depressing story about a happy relationship that falls apart, only for a hamfisted ray of false hope to attempt to lift the mood before it ends. When things are scattered around some, we know where everything is going right from the start, so the value lies more in finding out how things get to the point we know they end up at. It's a creative way to tell a basic story, allowing the fleshed-out, well-written characters to do all the heavy lifting.
In the starring roles we have Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel; they both work superbly together. Gordon-Levitt is able to fluctuate seamlessly between wide-eyed optimist and disheveled sad sack, depending on the point in time that the scene is focusing on. He's a wholly relatable guy whom we want to see succeed, even if all of his woe was brought on by his own poor judgement. Deschanel manages to be both down-to-earth and completely unattainable at the same time, a combination that works out perfectly for the character of Summer. I feel as though everyone has had a Summer in their life at some point, which really highlights what makes this movie work so well; it's extremely easy to align our own failed romantic experiences with those of the characters on screen. When you think about it, bad relationships are far more common than someone finding "the one". Because it's so relatable, it's that much easier to become invested on an emotional level.
In supporting roles, we have Clark Gregg as Vance (Tom's boss), Geoffery Arend as McKenzie (Tom's coworker), Matthew Gray Gubler as Paul (Tom's friend), and Chloë Grace Moretz as Rachel (Tom's little sister). While the main focus is clearly on Gordon-Levitt and Deschanel, all of these actors give stellar performances nonetheless. I especially enjoyed Clark Gregg's cheery, soft-spoken CEO of the greeting card company Tom works at; while all of these characters are funny, none of them are comic caricatures of real people. When Tom is hanging out with Paul and McKenzie, it sounds like a couple of twenty-something friends hanging out. When he discusses his relationship troubles with his sister, it sounds like two siblings trying to level with each other. This is thanks in part to the talented actors and also to the incredibly tight script. This movie is a well-oiled machine, in that all the components mesh seamlessly together to churn out a really impressive product.
I particularly enjoyed the message behind the movie as well. It's not entirely cynical, but it doesn't leave us with the same old fairy tale nonsense that so many romantic comedies rely on. It doesn't completely shut down the notion of believing in a one true love, but enforces the importance of having some backbone; Tom is clearly not entirely comfortable with his relationship with Summer, constantly wanting more despite her having told him that she's not interested in anything serious. In his eyes, once they reach a certain point, the wall will come down and they'll live happily ever after. He assumes everything will work out for the best because he projects everything he wants to see onto Summer; he clings to a few minor things they have in common, using that as justification for overlooking the fact that she is looking for something completely different than he is. They both enjoy The Smiths, so of course it's fate that they end up together. The two are flawed people who gravitate towards opposite, unhealthy extremes when it comes to relationships; in the end, they both discover that they were wrong. Summer is, for the most part, oblivious and selfish while Tom is far too eager to bend over backwards when faced with the slightest chance of finding "the one". It stresses how vital it is to look at things with some objective when dealing with matters of the heart; while it may hurt, it's sometimes necessary to admit that a situation isn't working out the way it was intended to. No life is free of pain or heartbreak, but that doesn't mean that it's not worth it to keep on trying.
(500) Days of Summer is a wonderful film and, in my opinion, one of the greatest stories about love ever told (since, as the opening narration points out, this is not a love story). It's shot with a great attention to detail, the nonlinear timeline keeps things interesting, and the performances are top-notch all around the board. It manages to be hilarious, heartfelt, and smart, making for an all-around fantastic time. If you haven't seen it yet, definitely give it a watch; this one is most assuredly an underrated classic that shouldn't be missed.
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