"(500) Days of Summer" - REVIEW

There is a scene in "Shakespeare in Love" (don't worry, just go with it) in which Queen Elizabeth (Judi Dench) asks to a room of people if a play can, "truly show us the nature of love?" That film took place at the end of the 1500s and was released in 1998. Now, several centuries later in movie-time and 11 years later in our world, maybe a play hasn't shown us an honest look at love, but perhaps a movie has.

That movie is Marc Webb's "(500) Days of Summer", which is one of those rare romantic comedies that is a delight from start to finish. Though told semi-linearly, we actually open around day (290) in the relationship between Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel). Such an opening would seem to be strange, or disorienting on paper, but that's the beauty of Webb's film. Even as it jumps forward and backward and forward again, we never lose track with names or faces or plot devices; the story revolves entirely around Tom and Summer's interaction, and as such it's impossible to feel disoriented or lost. And while part of the credit goes to the editor, this lovely little film wouldn't even exist if it weren't for the screenplay, which wisely has a lot of laughs and never weighs them down, even in the less-than-happy moments. And of course, the crowning acheivment(s), even more so than the script or Webb's direction are the performances from the two leads. They play off of each other with ease, with Levitt's quiet normality and Deschanel's adorability used to maximum effect. Perhaps in the film's finest moment, we see them enter a dark period in their relationship, and we're introduced to it via a sublime parody of black and white avant garde films, topped off with a hysterical nod to Ingmar Bergman. Even in its "darkest" moments, it never become weighty or tries to make itself into something melodramatic. The levity is maintained, albeit somewhat bitter-sweetly, the entire way through. And yet somehow, it still has a feeling a reality to it, without going too far. The unpredictability of people in relationships, particularly two people as different as Tom and Summer (he believes in fate and love, she thinks it's all hogwash) is rendered beautifully, but not overdone; we aren't forced to listen to a 10 minute conversation between the two of them about whether love exists or not...we get to see it and make up our own minds.

As far as artistic and technical aspects, there's nothing much to rave about aside from the soundtrack, which is brilliantly utilized...and on a non-artistic note, the two actors who play Tom's closest friends are both very well done with what little time they have on screen (one in particular, is hilarious). But in the end it all comes down to Deschanel and especially Levitt to carry the movie, and they do it effortlessly. So effortlessly, in fact, that you may not want to leave the film's little world even when the credits start to roll. And in a summer drenched with loud special effects bonanzas and a few stuffy period pieces, that's more than a little refreshing to find.

Grade: A-