500 Days of Summer takes the trite, overdone romantic comedy and delightfully turns it on its head. Even thought the characters seem happy go lucky – the story contains love, laughter, heartbreak and deception. Right and wrong are irrelevant … when it comes to matters of the heart, our hero and heroine can only be true to themselves.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Brick, Stop-Loss) plays Tom, a would-be architect who has somehow ended up writing greeting cards. He falls head-over-heels for new employee and polar opposite, Summer (Zooey Deschanel, Gigantic, Elf). She’s a quirky free spirit. He’s a straight-laced romantic … opposites attract!
The movie begins with Tom relaying his devastation at their breakup and proceeds with a beautiful narration of the 500 days of their relationship – the good, the bad and the ugly. The writers have used an ingenious flashback and flash forward sequence to tell their story.
Viewers jump with Tom and Summer from their first encounter to the ensuing relationship. We are able to get a glimpse of the two leads both as individuals and as a couple.Director Marc Webb uses numerous cinematic tools – ranging from dance numbers, cartoon characters and visual drawings – that make the movie visually charming. The film also manages to appeal to both men and women. Anyone who has been in love and survived a breakup will appreciate the humor, and wisdom, in this story.
Even though the ending seems a bit too optimistic, riding this romantic roller coaster is a treat.
Grade: B+
