500 Days of Summer, written by Scott Neustadter
and Michael H. Weber
9 out of 10
Notes and
thoughts on other books are available at:
- https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEVa4_CsRStSBBDo4uJWT8BSWtTTn0N1E
and http://realini.blogspot.ro/
500 Days of
Summer is a very entertaining film.
Notwithstanding
the sad moments, it is a refreshing, enjoyable comedy.
It was nominated
for two major Golden Globes, Best Motion Picture and Best Performance by an
Actor…
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
is indeed marvelous as the loving, creative, loyal, subdued, patient and
resilient Tom.
I have
noted on another film with this remarkable actor, wherein he had to portray a
totally different personality:
in Don Jon,
the protagonist is a superficial, rather uneducated man, with an obsession for
pornography, even when he is blessed with as beautiful a companion as Scarlet
Johansson, who is granted an overbearing, quite obnoxious girlfriend at times.
With this
film, I have learned that the excellent and beautiful actress in the leading
role, Zooey Deschanel is named after a J.D. Salinger story:
-
Franny & Zooey
Zooey Deschanel
has a challenging task in her role as Summer- for the 500 days of Summer mean
the time spent with the heroine of the film.
Summer is
both the lovely girl that we enjoy seeing with the hero, sharing his feelings
and the one who ends it…
I do not
think a spoiler alert was needed before talking of the end, for it is clearly
stated in the title which specifies:
-
500 Days of Summer…only, even if at
first I thought this is about a particularly long summer, perhaps in a place
where there is no other season…
The dialogue
in this moving picture is wonderful.
Funny at
times, witty for the most part and even when it is somewhat awkward, it still
feels natural in some manner.
Like when
Summer Finn starts shouting penis in the park where she sits with Tom, who
tries hard to stop her…
Or when they
have this exchange:
-
“Summer: We've been like Sid and
Nancy for months now.
-
Tom: Summer, Sid stabbed Nancy,
seven times with a kitchen knife, I mean we have some disagreements but I
hardly think I'm Sid Vicious.
-
Summer: No, I'm Sid.
-
Tom: Oh, so I'm Nancy...”
The professional
side of Tom’s life may have had some influence, perhaps a big one on Summer’s
decision to leave.
Even if
trained as an architect and in love with beautiful buildings that he admires at
Angela’s Plaza, tom works in a company that sells…cards.
He is using
self-deprecating humor about it and is evidently a real positive hero, with his
generosity, love for Summer, gentle manner, persistence and acceptance of the
other’s flaws and shortcomings, grit, but still this is one side of him that is
less than heroic:
-
“I guess I just figured, why make
something disposable like a building when you can make something that lasts
forever, like a greeting card.”
The film is
sophisticated, smart, with references and images from The Graduate (by the way,
I am reminded of a humorous take on the final scene of this classic, offered in
Barcelona, where one character, maybe Frank, is very upset with “oh Elaine,
Elaine” and how everybody allows this jerk- as he sees the personage- to run
off with the bride), The Seventh Seal, Henry Miller, Bruce Springsteen and many
more.
-
“Tom: [the girl at the job interview
agrees to meet Tom for coffee afterward] We'll figure it out. My name's Tom.
-
Girl at Interview: [Last lines of
the film] Nice to meet you. [Shakes his hand]
-
Girl at Interview: I'm Autumn.”
Perhaps every
cloud does have a silver lining after all…
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