(500) Days of Summer, 2009.
Directed by Marc Webb.
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Zooey Deschanel, Chloë Grace Moretz, Geoffrey Arend, Matthew Gray Gubler and Clark Gregg.
SYNOPSIS:
Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love. Girl doesn’t.
(500) Days of Summer is a nice little film I recommend to all my friends simply by calling it ‘a lad’s chick flick’. When young men hear the words ‘chick flick’ we all groan, and we all know the feeling of having to sit through them with the girlfriend, however(500) Days of Summer offers a slightly different twist on the genre. It’s from the man’s perspective and this is why I’ll always refer to it as a ‘lad’s chick flick’.
Unlike it’s female-aimed counterparts, this film focuses as much on the break-up as the getting together, and with some clever editing and smart storytelling, it ensures you never forget that it’s not a love story, but more so a break-up story. A winding road of how the two principle characters got to the point of breaking up – if they were ever really together. Tom, played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt (The Dark Knight Rises) falls for a pretty young girl who’s recently began working alongside him, Summer – see the connection with the title!?!?! – played by Zooey Deschanel (New Girl).
Within the first few minutes we’ve seen both the beginning and the end of their part in one another’s lives, we’re told by the narrator that it’s not a love story, and there’s no happy ending for the couple. It’s certainly a direct way of driving the point of the film home, but it works nonetheless. As the film progresses, we see both the evolution of the couple as they grow closer, with Summer telling Tom things she’s never told anyone else before, and the beginning of the end, with slight reactions from Summer alerting the audience that they’re getting closer to finding out exactly why the two didn’t work out.
The editing did a big job in allowing me to really enjoy the film, because if it was linear, I don’t think it’d have such an impact by the end of the film, at least from my point of view. Being able to see both ends of the relationship spectrum between the two really shows that whilst all relationships start off as fantasy wonderland epics, very few stay the course and remain happy.
(500) Days of Summer isn’t all doom and gloom though, with some generally funny parts, be it from Tom’s heartbreak, for example his rant on the bus, or his shouting at a couple after buying alcohol and Twinkies from a store in his dressing gown, or jokes from his two friends, McKenzie and Paul. Chloe Grace Moretz (Kick-Ass) even puts a turn in as Rachel, the strong willed, no nonsense little sister that is always available for advice, and the relationship between the two siblings can provide some surprising laughs, if only for the frankness of the younger sibling. It helps to stop the film from becoming an overbearing, eye-rolling, ‘get over yourself’ mess.
All that aside, the message of the film is clear, and definitely one that recently split couples will be able to identify – not that it’s particularly cryptic: even if you end up losing a good relationship, that’s not the end. It addresses this in the space of a few minutes right at the end, and although it’s definitely cheesy and does take something away from the film – it’s all about the name – it helps close the film, and certainly that chapter in Tom’s life.
Maybe I’m just a closet romantic, or secretly I love the ol’ chick flicks, but a fair few of my friends have watched and enjoyed (500) Days of Summer – some going so far as to say it makes them feel better after a breakup – so I can’t be the only one.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Luke Addison is an aspiring film journalist with a passion for all things television and film. Follow him on Twitter @Novo_Slev.
Originally published March 16, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
