500 Days of Summer (2009) (PG-13)
Directed by Marc Webb
Starring: Zooey Deschanel, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Clark Gregg, Minka Kelly
Daughter Says:
500 Days of Summer is exactly what the previews say it is. This movie is not about a love story. It's about a boy and a girl. 500 Days of Summer is about a man named Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who falls in love with a girl named Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel). But Summer is not looking for anything serious. If anything she hardly believes in love at all. Surprisingly Tom does believe in love and destiny. He happens to find this beautiful girl who likes the same strange things he does except that one thing; she doesn't find this to be destiny. Sadly they break up and Tom just can't get over Summer. (Who ever wants summer to end?) That's when Tom tries to win her back.
I won't give the whole movie away, but I really loved it. This movie was told out of sequence which made this movie just that much more interesting. I have always wondered what would the movie be like if you were to watch it in order, but I've decided it would not be as good as it is now. I really wouldn't have changed this movie at all. Loved everything about it. (Now I've got "She's Got You High" stuck in my head.)
That's another thing. I love the movie, music, and other references in 500 Days of Summer. At one point Tom and Summer are sitting at a pancake place. They have been going through a rough patch in their relationship, so Summer declares that their relationship had been Sid and Nancy for a while. Tom disagrees by exclaiming that Sid stabbed Nancy five times with a butcher knife, and he hardly thinks he has been anything like Sid. That's when Summer denies Tom of being Sid but of her being Sid. Tom automatically answers, "So I'm Nancy."
I highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes odd movies. You don't have to be a romantic/comedy lover to enjoy this film. In fact, I highly suggest you don't watch 500 Days of Summer with a romantic/comedy in mind. Give this movie a try. You'll either hate (like my mom) or you'll love it (like me).
Rating for 500 Days of Summer: *****.
Daddy Says:
Anyone who knows me knows that romantic comedies just aren't my cup of tea. It takes something really special for me to like a film in this genre. Guess I'll have to add 500 Days of Summer to this very short list.
I loved that the story is told non-sequentially. I've actually seen someone write out the plot in sequence and the character of Summer comes off really poorly this way. By showing the scenes out of order, we get to see her through Tom's eyes, with her shortcomings and flaws not being obvious. It's only later, if we think about it at all, that we realize that she was really a very selfish person. The non-linear script, and because she's played by the always-charming Zooey Deschanel, keep her bad behavior disguised from us.
The film reminds me of a really good Woody Allen movie, the kind he used to turn out many years ago, but not as self-deprecating. It feels honest, even when the characters are being less than honest with themselves. It gives meaning to the phrase "it is better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all". And if your kids don't already know about it (mine did), it will teach them a wonderful game they can play in public to cause you no end of embarrassment. You'll know the scene I'm talking about when you see it.
Rating for 500 Days of Summer: ****1/4.
Directed by Marc Webb
Starring: Zooey Deschanel, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Clark Gregg, Minka Kelly
Daughter Says:
500 Days of Summer is exactly what the previews say it is. This movie is not about a love story. It's about a boy and a girl. 500 Days of Summer is about a man named Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who falls in love with a girl named Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel). But Summer is not looking for anything serious. If anything she hardly believes in love at all. Surprisingly Tom does believe in love and destiny. He happens to find this beautiful girl who likes the same strange things he does except that one thing; she doesn't find this to be destiny. Sadly they break up and Tom just can't get over Summer. (Who ever wants summer to end?) That's when Tom tries to win her back.
I won't give the whole movie away, but I really loved it. This movie was told out of sequence which made this movie just that much more interesting. I have always wondered what would the movie be like if you were to watch it in order, but I've decided it would not be as good as it is now. I really wouldn't have changed this movie at all. Loved everything about it. (Now I've got "She's Got You High" stuck in my head.)
That's another thing. I love the movie, music, and other references in 500 Days of Summer. At one point Tom and Summer are sitting at a pancake place. They have been going through a rough patch in their relationship, so Summer declares that their relationship had been Sid and Nancy for a while. Tom disagrees by exclaiming that Sid stabbed Nancy five times with a butcher knife, and he hardly thinks he has been anything like Sid. That's when Summer denies Tom of being Sid but of her being Sid. Tom automatically answers, "So I'm Nancy."
I highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes odd movies. You don't have to be a romantic/comedy lover to enjoy this film. In fact, I highly suggest you don't watch 500 Days of Summer with a romantic/comedy in mind. Give this movie a try. You'll either hate (like my mom) or you'll love it (like me).
Rating for 500 Days of Summer: *****.
Daddy Says:
Anyone who knows me knows that romantic comedies just aren't my cup of tea. It takes something really special for me to like a film in this genre. Guess I'll have to add 500 Days of Summer to this very short list.
I loved that the story is told non-sequentially. I've actually seen someone write out the plot in sequence and the character of Summer comes off really poorly this way. By showing the scenes out of order, we get to see her through Tom's eyes, with her shortcomings and flaws not being obvious. It's only later, if we think about it at all, that we realize that she was really a very selfish person. The non-linear script, and because she's played by the always-charming Zooey Deschanel, keep her bad behavior disguised from us.
The film reminds me of a really good Woody Allen movie, the kind he used to turn out many years ago, but not as self-deprecating. It feels honest, even when the characters are being less than honest with themselves. It gives meaning to the phrase "it is better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all". And if your kids don't already know about it (mine did), it will teach them a wonderful game they can play in public to cause you no end of embarrassment. You'll know the scene I'm talking about when you see it.
Rating for 500 Days of Summer: ****1/4.
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