Refreshing unconventional indie romantic comedy

Rating: 8/10 (5 August 2009)

What a nice surprise this was. A refreshing somewhat off-kilter romantic comedy about a hopeless romantic believing in one true love who falls for Summer, the girl who doesn't believe in the concept of love at all and even less in conventional labels. Yet she likes him and they do have a form of relationship. The narrative structure is peculiar going back and forth in non-chronological order during 500 days, of what? I won't tell you. It makes for some fun storytelling showing contrasts before and after certain events. There are some interesting visual finds (such as the split screen between expectations and reality, and the city fading) but overall it's rather conventional in terms of cinematography with "actors staring straight at the camera" shots being used a fair bit. The writing was at times quite clever and other times sounded realistic and sincere. I loved the narrator who added both seriousness and whimsy to the proceedings. I didn't care for the product placement of Ikea but I suppose it gives instant recognition as to what type of store it is. The audience I was with really responded to the movie: laughing, sighing and seeming to have a great time. I also enjoyed myself and smiled often. There are some really funny amusing scenes in this flick.
The two leads were quite charming, enthusiastic and had a wonderful chemistry. He's been acting since he was a kid but I predict great things for Joseph Gordon Levitt as a leading man. As for Zooey Deschanel as Summer, she has the cool girl next door appeal with something extra that makes her somewhat unattainable yet hard to resist or dislike. She's not bad, she's just honest and doesn't seem to believe in love. The enjoyable secondary characters didn't have big roles but most did have a shining moment with my favorite secondary character being the mature insightful-beyond-her-years younger sister of the main character. The ending seemed a bit forced to me although clever. It could have been better although it does kinda make things come full circle. Actually, watching this again much later on DVD, I think it's close to a perfect ending and it's certainly memorable. I was also forgetting to mention the very nice choice of songs from the likes of Regina Spektor, the Smiths and other cool acts. I see I'm being rather critical but overall I really enjoyed 500 Days of Summer and the more I talked to it with my friend, the more it made me want to see it again. I could see this film gaining a cult following or being a sleeper hit. It's definitely worth watching preferably with someone of the opposite sex, whether you're romantically involved or not.
Rating: 8 out of 10