“(500) Days of Summer” is a delightful romantic comedy. It offers an unconventional take on love and relationships which many viewers enjoyed. This movie has an 86% on rotten tomatoes and a 7.8/10 IMDb rating. It was released on July 17, 2009 and since then has grossed $60.7 million in box office.
Background
“(500) Days of Summer” follows a man named Tom Hansen, he works as a greeting card writer for a living. One day a new worker joins his job and her name is Summer Finn. Summer is very quirky, free-spirited, but she does not believe in true love. They first met in the elevator together where they bonded over a shared interest in music. He quickly fell head over heels for her. The two characters engage in many “couple-like activities” and are very flirtatious throughout the start of the movie.
One day they get into a big argument. Tom wants to make things official but Summer is scared and does not believe in love. They end things on bad terms and Tom is left heart broken. He returns to work drunk and constantly has emotional outbursts until he is asked to take a break from his job. While Summer moves to a different location, never really thinking of Tom for a while.
Plot
Tom is finally beginning to forget about Summer but one day, they randomly stumble into each other. They were both invited to a former co-worker’s wedding in which they spent the whole time together. During the day, Tom began to realize that the love he felt for Summer never dissipated. All of Tom’s feelings came rushing back. However, the same as everyday, it came to an end.
Days later, Tom receives a message from Summer. She invited him to a party at her home, but Tom does not know that Summer is newly wed. Tom comes into the party having very unrealistic expectations about their relationship getting rekindled. The director gives us a beautifully executed split-screen moment that captures Tom’s hopeful anticipation versus the reality of how things unfold at the party. Tom then returns home after the party, completely devastated.
Ending
Tom and Summer meet up at a park where they spent lots of moments when they were together. They sit together on a bench and talk for almost an hour. Tom claims that it’s funny that “a girl who never believed in love is now someone’s wife”. Summer tells him that she truly did believe in love but her husband gave her something that she never felt with Tom.
Overall, I think this is a very good movie that perfectly captures both sides of the story. Lots of viewers of this movie like to have a debate over who was right/wrong between Tom and Summer. Many people have diverse opinions on love and this movie is incredible at capturing multiple perspectives. There was plenty of mesmerizing and heartfelt scenes that really stuck with me.
