500 Days
This afternoon we decided to see a movie down in Huntington Beach because we thought the 2:35PM showing would be a matinee. But, like I've learned a few times in the past, you can't rely on the theaters' websites to offer accurate information anymore so we wound up paying regular price. We didn't mind today because the movie turned out so much better than we had hoped.
In (500) Days of Summer, the story of Tom's boy-meets-girl unfolds, beginning with his meeting Summer who works as the assistant to his boss at a greeting card company in Los Angeles but almost immediately jumping to the break-up almost a year later. After that, we jump back and forth in time, watching the relationship unfold and fall apart and the havoc it wreaks on Tom's life.
Unlike other movies where we are forced to watch flashbacks, each step in time is reflected by a day counter, and the events run their course in present time. A very non-linear way to tell a story, but it never feels that way, thanks to both the screenplay from writers Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber and from the performances of Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom and Zooey Deschanel as Summer. Equally funny and sad, the relationship they bring to the screen seems more real-life than most movies are able to create. The way they talk, the things they say, how they act -- I've seen couples like that before in restaurants and just out and about. And the fact that this time, the guy is at the receiving end of all the dumping -- what a refreshing change!
Like I said, Gordon-Levitt and Deschanel were perfect in their roles, but three supporting characters also made this an enjoyable experience: Geoffrey Arend as McKenzie -- Tom's friend who's last relationship was while he was still in school; Matthew Gray Gubler as Paul -- Tom's other friend who's current relationship has lasted since 1997 with the same woman; and Chloe Grace Moretz as Tom's much younger sister Rachel, who offers advice on how a modern day relationship works. Those three try to help Tom through his the ups and downs of his time with Summer, aiding with many of the genuine laughs of the film.
And how can you not love a movie that offers a musical dance number to Hall and Oates?
We enjoyed this film, definitely one of the better ones this year. Highly recommended.
Image from Cinematically Correct.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
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1 comments:
While I don't necessarily disagree with anything in your review, I have to say that I really did not enjoy this movie at all.
* what was with the cheesy, in-and-out omniscient narrator?
* if you're going to make the case that these people think they're destined for each other because they like the same bands, you need to do A LOT better than The Smiths and The Pixies. What person-of-a-certain-age DOESN'T like The Smiths or The Pixies? It's worse than cliche - it's just plain lazy.
* though I thought the acting was good and I do like Zooey (normally), the movie didn't tell me at all what anyone is supposed to see in her, other than that she's (very) cute. And that, for some reason, just makes me angry.
* the writing and the comedy were broad as hell. It's being sold as a cute, quirky little indie-comedy, but I could just as easily picture it as a big Will Farrell-type vehicle.
Every year there's at least one or two universally loved movies that I'm either completely indifferent to or outright dislike (last year's were Slumdog and Man on Wire, if that gives you any indication). I'm counting 500 Days of Summer as the first of this year's. :(
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