Not a classic, but a solid date-flick

Rating: Null/10 (4 August 2011)

I just saw a preview in London with the very nice Will Gluck coming on stage afterwards to talk about the film.
Romcoms really aren't my cup of tea, and I'm especially wary of the sub-genre that claim to subvert the genre's clichés. 500 Days of Summer really annoyed me in its grandiose claims to be a new kind of rom-com where the guy doesn't end up with the girl. It turned out to be just as predictable as the rest. And you know what? People want to see the guy get the girl...it's what they're paying their hard earned money for.
It's to Will Gluck and the other writers' credit that they get that. Instead of subverting the clichés and alienating their audience, they PLAY with them instead. The main characters sit in front of the TV watching a rom-com (itself a really funny film within a film) and skewer all of the plot points and character tics that you get in studio comedies. The fact that they go on to mouth the same clichés in their own lives is deliberate and well-managed. It's called having your cake and eating it and, by and large, they get away with it.
As with all rom-coms it's made or broken by the leads. Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis are good actors, sure, but crucially they're Likable. You want to see them happy at the end, and you don't really care so much about how they get there.
The first hour is really fun. Lots of jokes about LA vs NYC; the cringe-worthy way people break-up with people; your first day in a new job, that kind of thing.
The last half-hour falls a bit flat, and there are a couple of poorly judged moments where Justin starts stammering and acting like an 8 yr-old wuss. But I can't remember the last time a comedy of any description held its nerve and its tone for the full 90 minutes so I won't judge this one too harshly.
Basically, go see it. You'll be pleasantly surprised rather than disappointed. Justin Timberlake's acting is going from strength to strength and he and Mila make a fun couple. It's an interesting take on the 'this isn't really a rom-com, you know' sub-genre and the best one I've seen in a while.