After Summer comes... Autumn

Rating: 8/10 (10 February 2010)

What a breeze of fresh air "500 Days of Summer" was to me! Finally a movie that doesn't give you the happily ever after crap from Hollywood. A lot of people, after being exposed to hundreds of romantic comedies a la Hollywood, have come to believe that there is just one right person out there for you in the whole wide world. They are obsessed with the thought of missing out on their one true soul mate. I must admit, I myself had this beautiful naive vision of love during my teen years, but like Tom Hansen (JGL) in this story, I had to learn the hard way to grow up and mature in love matters.
What I loved about this movie, is that the love story is told trough the eyes of the protagonist (JGL), it is ultimately the real way we experience love. Trough his eyes we get to see the ups and downs that he lives in his relationship. Take for example, the scene where he starts to sing and dance on the street after spending the night with Summer (Zooey Deschanel). It was a pure joy to watch and I could truly identify myself with him. When love hits you hard you get the feeling you are walking on a cloud. Another great example to show us his particular vision of things is the scene were the screen splits in two. He is about two enter the party of Summer and on one screen we see what his expectations are and on the other what happens in reality. This scene was precious to me, it shows you in a very plastic way the tricks that the mind can play on you. Of course the downfall is pretty hard.
My compliments to the two lead actors, they do a great work and the chemistry between them shows. The supporting actors also deliver very well and give some good comic relief. The soundtrack is also very beautiful and the songs help us understand the feelings of Tom Hansen. I cannot forget to mention the cinematography of the film. It includes some wonderful shots of the city of Los Angeles. I used to think of LA as a rather ugly city, but it seems I was wrong.
But what really deserves a special recognition is the editing in the movie. I am sure a lot of people found the back and forth in the storytelling confusing, but it was made this way for a purpose. When you think about the bad and good moments of a past relationship you will not be capable of remembering them in a straight linear way, it will all be a little mixed up, just like in this movie.
Well, let's don't blabber any more and jump to a conclusion. If you love the fairytale love stories this movie is not for you. But if you want to see a love story much more down to earth and take a good look on the right and wrong turns a relationship can take, this movie is for you. In the end the movie tries to tell you that life is all about grasping the right opportunities.
Will you make the right choice and give this movie a chance?