500 Days Of Summer

Rating: 10/10 (29 August 2009)

500 Days Of Summer is a new comedy drama that examines and probes deep into your normal average romantic films and gives us it's own look at relationships and why they do sometimes work and why sometimes they don't. Just briefly it is about a young man named Tom, who falls for his new co-worker Summer and while they begin to bond and become good friends, he wants a much more committed relationship, whereas she wants it to be casual and sometimes seems to be giving Tom the brush off, so to speak. With the help of his friends and little sister, Tom tries to put all the pieces together to win Summer over, but along the way he does discover a lot more about himself, her and how tricky relationships can be. 500 Days Of Summer is not your typical film about love and I am hoping that that fact will not put too many viewers off. If you were hoping to see a predictably happy and schmaltzy head over heels in love film, then you should probably check for a different film to see, or if you are a little more experimental than give this one a try. By the end of the film it reminded me a lot of some of my favourite Woody Allen relationship comedy dramas of the 70's like Annie Hall and Manhattan. They both offer up some of the most witty, human and realistic looks at love and relationships I have ever seen and both sets of films do so in a quirky and sometimes offbeat kind of way and also blends comedy into the mix to make things interesting. Even the character personalities of Tom and Summer reminded me of a lot of the male and female leads in those Woody Allen pictures as well. A lot of the times because of how real and believable they seemed and because they were actually smart and well spoken characters who knew what they were talking about and what they wanted. They can get a bit high strung and over analyze things at times, but I also enjoyed that perspective of the film as well because honestly speaking, which of us does not do that at all in any sort of a difficult situation? I also really liked Tom and Summer because while watching the film I felt like I got to know them better and it were like watching everyday average people and even with their quirks and sometimes stubbornness that at times drove them throughout the film, I still really liked these characters, flaws and all. Not to mention that Joseph Gordon Levitt and Zooey Deschanel who play these characters do a fantastic job. I also must mention the low key yet interesting direction of the film's director and the brilliant dialogue and look at human nature and relationships that felt like the most honest film about said subject I have seen in awhile. All this may sound like a heavier and more depressing film, but it is anything but. At times it was very cheerful and always left the door for the characters open to new possibilities and outcomes. Some of the humour in the film works quite well also, so it is not a depressing experience at all. I think if anything the film will offer couples who go to see it a lot to talk about. Not necessarily concerning ruining their relationships, but perhaps in some ways to make it better and discuss things about it that they normally might not have. For it's depth, insight and charm 500 Days Of Summer is a definite winner and one of the best films of the year.