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When is a love story not a love story? Capone reviews (500) DAYS OF SUMMER!!!

Published at:  Jul 17, 2009 8:33:33 AM CDT


Hey, everyone. Capone in Chicago here.

It seems like about 95 percent of all films that profess to be about romance end with the happy couple, having gone through some utterly manufactured drama that rings true on no planet but their own, come out the other side ready to be together and take on the world. Whether the film in question is a romantic comedy (as most of them are) or strictly an attempt at a love story, it's extremely rare to see a film tackle not only the entire span of a relationship but also to spend as much time examining and dissecting the demise of the coupling as it does the passionate rise. Acclaimed music video director Marc Webb's (500) DAYS OF SUMMER is that rare treat that reminds us that not only do more than 50 percent of all marriages end in divorce, but an even higher percentage of all relationships end in something other than marriage. In an alarming way, 500 DAYS is a wake-up call for people who think THE PROPOSAL is a great movie ($114 million and counting), reminding us that early-stage bliss has to be followed by something, and that something isn't always happily ever after. I don't mean to make the film sound like a downer--the happy times between Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Summer (Zooey Deschanel) are fun, hilarious, charming, and even fantastical--but every mountain has its valley, and this film refuses to let us for that. Thank god.

For those of you who love Deschanel's brand of quirky humor (yes, please), this film has wheelbarrows full of it. But Deschanel's character loses her lovable oddball sheen quickly. Guys must remember that crazy women to whom we find ourselves strangely attracted are still crazy, and not always in a fun way. The fact that Summer and Tom first bond over their love for The Smiths should have sent up a red flag illuminated by several flares shot up at regular intervals. Director Webb (working from a script by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber) is wise to let us know early that both sides of this love equation are not perfect people, and when their feelings are hurt or they just grow tired or annoyed with each other, they aren't going to hide it. Watching Deschanel turn nasty is a slap in the face, and it's kind of awesome to watch her try on something besides a baby-doll dress and tights (literally and figuratively). She's not completely breaking her own mold, but she's caused it some serious structural damage.

The real shocker in 500 DAYS is Gordon-Levitt, playing something I can only refer to as a "normal guy." After such startling and impressive performances in films like BRICK, MYSTERIOUS SKIN, THE LOOKOUT, STOP-LOSS, and HAVOC, I honestly didn't know if he had any interest in playing a character that resembles a leading man. But make no mistake, Tom isn't exactly a conventional leading man. He's a failed architect who now does a pretty bang-up job writing greeting cards, the perfect job for a sensitive man who is clearly in touch with his feelings, even if he couldn't identify most of them in a lineup. When Summer comes to work for the greeting card company, Tom notices her immediately and the countdown (count-up?) begins. You see, the titular 500 DAYS is deliberately misleading (as are the glorious trailers and commercials). It is not the length of their relationship, not exactly. It is a far more harrowing and melancholy span of time, and as the narration reminds us (or perhaps warns us), "This is not a love story."

I haven't mentioned the structure of the film yet, because I don't want you to get hung up on it like it's some kind of gimmick. As you may have heard, the 500 days are not presented in chronological order. In fact, they usually bounce back and forth between early days and end of days, and eventually meet in the middle but even that doesn't quite explain it. There are little tells about where we are in the course of their time together--Summer's hair changes a bit, moods are different, the passion levels are high and low--but by the end of the film, none of that really matters. Going into the film, I had assumed that, by presenting his movie in this manner, Webb would help us spot that exact moment when the tide turned on this coupling. Quite the opposite turns out to be true. If anything, he underscores how two separate instances in their lives only a couple of days apart can appear like night and day. So what happened in between? That's just the point. Nothing specific sets things in the wrong direction. It just happens, and that almost makes it more heartbreaking, because there's nothing that could have been prevented.

There I go again, wading into the downbeat parts of the film. But it's those parts that separate 500 DAYS from, well, everything else. But even the more conventional stuff shines. If you've watched the commercials for the film closely enough, you may have noticed there appears to be a dance number in the film, and that sequence is phenomenal and deliberately misleads the audience into thinking this is going to be just another silly rom-com that would feature such a moment. And while Webb and his cast certainly aren't making fun of such moments in standard-issue Hollywood romances, there's a gentle mocking going on that is unmistakeable. Of course, (500) DAYS OF SUMMER is a film loaded with flawed people. Tom loves too much; Summer can't seem to love enough (or at least not love Tom enough); and the people giving them advice are exactly like the idiots that give you advice. I guess it kind of goes without saying--but I'll say it anyway, so there's no confusion--I love this movie with an obsession much like Tom's for Summer: it's unhealthy, but it makes me feel so good. And it rekindled my passion for Hall & Oates music. Don't judge me, you bastards! Time to dance...

-- Capone
capone@aintitcoolmail.com






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    Readers Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:38:15 AM CDT

    sounds cool

    by southafricanguy

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:40:21 AM CDT

    something that seems to never get made, a

    by southafricanguy

    realistic romance portrayed in a realistic manner. in other words a romance for adults....

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:43:25 AM CDT

    Unfair to award brownie points just b/c a movie is bleak.

    by creasybear

    Yeah, yeah, I know, the truth of human emotion and ennui, the slap in the face to rom-com artifice and all that, but still, you can't blame movies for having happy endings when most people go to movies to see life in a way that they wish life was really like, rather than in a way that highlights the vicissitudes and hollow moments and all the actual bullshit that goes on.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:52:54 AM CDT

    CAPONE - feel no shame, dude.

    by hint_of_smegma

    Hall and Oates are the business, end of story, and anyone who disagrees can lick my crusty cheese. As to Gordon-Levitt, that guy is a diamond in the industry at the moment, I hope he has a long and fruitfull career - he's a brilliant actor. He was great as the douchebag in Killshot as well as the others you've mentioned - even his turns in 3rd Rock and 10 Things were pretty great. Haven't seen a bad performance from him yet, and he can play anything it seems. Will give anything with him in a go on principle at the moment so will try this out. Deschanel, undecided on her. Find her to be competent but wouldn't say she's exactly a stellar actress yet...still, she has that 'really needs to be fucked in a depraved way' look which is always good.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:53:23 AM CDT

    That having been said, I'd watch this before I ever

    by creasybear

    watched The Proposal. I don't usually pay my hard-earned money just to leave a theater depressed, but JGL is a great actor, and if most of the other reviews for this are also positive, I'll be able to appreciate the quality. Happily ever after's don't necessarily make a better movie. Although I will say that Children of Men and No Country for Old Men left me thinking, Why the fuck do so many people love these movies that are relentlessly, laughably depressing? Is technical merit in filmmaking enough to excuse the overall negative impression left by the dismal storyline, or are some people so miserable that they feel validated by movies that are just as morose and hopeless as they are?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:53:57 AM CDT

    Hall and Oates are the shit!

    by houston500

    fuck being embarrassed, 'Rich Girl' is the most perfect pop song of all time, and 'She's Gone' is the most perfect just been dumped of all time. Can't wait to see this film.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:56:09 AM CDT

    Creasybear

    by chaplins_tache

    I'm with you on this but i don't think Capone is neccessarily knocking those kind of movies, i think that he's knocking the frequency with which the same old story is knocked out A.K.A Matthew McConaughey Syndrome. Along with othe reviews of this movie, i think what's refreshing to see will be a movie where no one is really the bad guy/ giel, just the jouney of sometimes shit happens. Might not set the box office on fire, but then movies that remind of something that relates to your own life seldom do.
    Color me sold on this one.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:59:11 AM CDT

    This sounds like

    by drturing

    Going to a group therapy session at a whole foods. Pass.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 8:59:15 AM CDT

    Brownie Points are OK

    by crow3711

    When the "bleak" aspect is the most unique aspect. Capone is right, most movies, especially rom-coms, are completely inane, unrealistic, stupid love stories that would never happen. I think its perfectly legit to offer some extra love for actually trying breaking the mold. Doesn't happen that often these days.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:00:27 AM CDT

    CREASYBEAR - How the fuck was CoM relentlessly..

    by hint_of_smegma

    ...depressing...? The ending was hardly a downer, the guy (effectively) saved the world by getting the knocked up bint to the scientists. Not a bad thing to go out doing, I'd say. Hardly a downer, that film, it's a statement of the triumph of decency and hope over fatalism and self-centeredness. AND I WON'T HEAR A WORD SAID AGAINST IT, D'YA HEAR!!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:02:14 AM CDT

    Hall and Oates are Awesome

    by erichaislar

    I will take some blue eyed soul anytime.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:02:35 AM CDT

    HOUSTON500

    by papa lazaru

    What you said about H&O was kind of Pat Batemenesque . Bravo .

    Reply to Talkback

  • THIS is your newest story? Used to love this site... what happened?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:14:22 AM CDT

    Sorry, Hint. As far as movies about the end of the world

    by creasybear

    are concerned (I'm assuming that one baby was the only one left, so still just a future of silent, rusty playgrounds), in which at-home suicide kits are flying off the shelves, where jackbooted thugs violently overrule basic human freedoms, and where the main character's loved ones are generally all murdered, Children of Men was a real treat! ; ) Not that I'm trying to piss all over someone's favorite movie, though, especially after the respect you earned in with your posts in the Let the Right One In thread.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:41:40 AM CDT

    Please no NeilF "Posting For Attention Boy" this week!

    by vanderdeken

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:52:40 AM CDT

    The Smiths

    by morrissey fan

    Hey Capone...just so you are aware...the fact that they bond over The Smiths shows that they both have exceptional taste in music, and refuse to listen to subpar artists. I wish I could find a chick that has even heard of The Smiths!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:54:20 AM CDT

    Wow, a date movie if you plan on breaking up, eh?

    by yackbacker

    Honey, everything Summer said is what I feel towards you. ZING!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:01:10 AM CDT

    WATCH OUT BOY, SHE'LL CHEW YOU UP

    by bringingsexyback

    I'm looking forward to this. That was a damned good review, really whets the appetite. Though I'm more interested in seeing Gordon-Levitt's performance. All I know about Deschanel is from The Happening, and that's not a good thing.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:03:57 AM CDT

    SHE'S GONE ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON ON

    by bringingsexyback

    Who doesn't like H2O?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:05:32 AM CDT

    I love Zooey; Zooey don't marry a musician

    by stabby

    Don't you know actresses marrying rock stars is as much a cliche as actors marrying models. Don't do it. Wait for my film career to take off. You need to marry a nice indy director who understands you for who you really are.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:08:27 AM CDT

    "Real love" in film.

    by knowthyself

    In reality I've had some pretty good luck in love. But on film we only feel love is real when its miserable and sad. Funny.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:10:27 AM CDT

    Zoe is the most unlikeable actress.

    by knowthyself

    Her personality on screen is always just a turn off. She's dull, she's annoying, and she's never likeable. I hate her. I hate watching her. I hate hearing her talk. I wish they'd find another actress to use. Like Elizabeth Banks. More of her less of Zoe Dullshenell.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:11:03 AM CDT

    500 Days Of Chili For Lunch!

    by godovhellfire

    I had chili for lunch. Zooey had another bowl of obnoxious.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:29:20 AM CDT

    CREASYBEAR - Not my favourite film, by far.

    by hint_of_smegma

    But it is a damn fine one. I can see how people might find it depressing, but that's just the tale it's telling, and the ending relieves all that tension and says "looks like things will be ok after all" thanks to the lead character and what he goes through. I take it as a pretty positive story, overall. Plus, any film with Michael Caine repeatedly asking people to 'pull his finger' gets extra credit in my book.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:31:40 AM CDT

    A beautiful woman who turns crazy and can't be happy

    by smokingrobot

    Who needs to pay money to see that? That is real life.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:36:31 AM CDT

    Is this movie funny or not?

    by estacado1

    I don't give a shit about the love part. As long as it's funny, I'll watch it.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:42:56 AM CDT

    Starting all over again.....is gonna be rough...

    by hint_of_smegma

    ..but we're gonna make it! Hoooo-boy, now they were a fucking great band. Anyone who takes issue with Hall and Oates has obvious brain damage. And am I alone in thinking that Oates looked like a miniature Magnum, PI..?? Well I think he did, so fuck you. They get extra credit for that, too. Magnum was awesome. You think watching Zooey Deschanel go nuts in this movie is something? Wait til they remake Magnum without the original cast and then watch ME. I'll show you bugnuts that day. I'll be strapping on the pistols, slinging a rifle over my shoulder and pointing the car towards Hollywood. And can I please get back on topic now without you all making me go off on 80's nostalgia tangents? Thank you.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:44:06 AM CDT

    I think a 'rom-com' is just ahead of the curve if..

    by cellar door

    ...it doesn't end with a voluntary public embarrassment of one of the leads. How many dumbass rom-coms all end in the EXACT same way? Seems like the next genre will be breaking the genre...too bad it's only going to happen in one or 2 genre's at the most. The others, hopefully, will come around...

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:50:56 AM CDT

    And as another point - AICN regains the 'cool'

    by hint_of_smegma

    ....thanks to Capone using this movie news as a Trojan horse to bring up the very pertinent, timely and utterly important subject of "How cool were Hall and Oates?" The answer, dear readers, is cool. Very, very cool. Fonzie cool. The kind of cool that scientists strive for with 'absolute zero'. And that's pretty cool, cats.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 11:00:20 AM CDT

    Like Robert Mitchum

    by gotilk

    She always seems half asleep. But I still like her.

    Reply to Talkback

  • I saw the screening in Chicago a coupla weeks ago. It's definitely funny--the crowd laughed once before any characters even appear on screen due to a few text cards we see first. Is it also bittersweet? You bet, but that doesn't mean the ending isn't hopeful in its own way--you'll see what I mean when you watch the movie.
    Leavitt has been a force to watch for a while now and does a great job here. Zooey isn't dull or annoying at all; I guarantee I would have fallen for Summer just like JGL's character does. And she doesn't "go crazy" so much as it is that her flaws, which are explained very early on, were always there--it's just that in the excitement of The New as JGL is falling for her, he missed some of the signs. In that way, it's pretty realistic; I think a lot of us have been in relationships where we look back and say "I should have known" based on something we chose to ignore at the time.
    It's not a bleak movie, just a more realistic one that the rom-coms we're used to and can't stand. My friends and I really enjoyed it, and I'd recommend it to pretty much anybody.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 11:04:14 AM CDT

    exactly smokingrobot, it's like... the most white yuppie

    by drturing

    problem movie ever. i like gordon-levitt a lot, but seriously, i don't need to pay money to see this shit. if i'm going to pay my lacking money these days to see a movie about people with problems give me ones with real problems. and i'm so fucking sick of nerds making movies about girls they can't get over. grow up dude, shit happens, move on.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 11:08:22 AM CDT

    SleazyG. Those "I should have known" relationships..

    by hint_of_smegma

    ...are more generally known as "marriage". Or am I being to cynical? Oh, well, nothing 10 grand, a contract killer and a watertight alibi can't cure. Am quite looking forward to this movie now, has to be said. I hate to use comments like 'so and so is this generation's DeNiro" or daft things like that, but I think he has the potential for that kind of 70's and 80's DenNiro quality acting, if that makes sense. Really hope he keeps getting better and larger roles, the guy is brilliant - one of the few that really deserves the praise.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 11:09:04 AM CDT

    Looking forward to this one

    by jack burton

    Seeing as "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" and "Chasing Amy" are 2 of my favorite movies I really want to check this one out. Nice review, Capone, well done.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 11:22:41 AM CDT

    So it's like a kid's version of "Scenes from a Marriage"?

    by laserhead

  • Jul 17, 2009 11:25:25 AM CDT

    I should have know that when the last chick I dated was

    by stabby

    a bigger alcoholic than me that it would not work out. Now, that would make a great movie. Wait, they already got that, it's called Barfly.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 11:27:12 AM CDT

    Speaking of Roms, I just watched Two Lovers

    by stabby

    Jaoxim Pheonix' last film. Wow, what a shitty way to go out. That movie sucked.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:02:58 PM CDT

    ESTROGEN IS MAN'S WORST ENEMY

    by bringingsexyback

    Sometimes a bitchslap is the only path towards peace.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:08:07 PM CDT

    There's no such thing as love

    by richard_gere_raped_my_gerbil

    It's one of the oldest lies in the world which is why movies like The Proposal make money. People like the lie; it helps them live in denial. Relationships exist because of social pressure. Marriages occur for the same reason.I've been to three weddings in my life and they've all ended in divorce. My parents divorced when I was seven years old.Still, people love sci-fi movies too even though aliens don't exist. I guess that's what Hollywood is for... fantasy and dreams, and inventive marketing techniques used to sell the world lies and false hopes.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:13:59 PM CDT

    Well "movie love" is a lie.

    by knowthyself

    Companionship. Trust. Kindess. These are kinds of love. Love is action. It's not this floaty idea that can't be grasped. Love doesn't just exist. You have to make it happen. The lie is that love is what you see in the movies. Love is action.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:18:33 PM CDT

    Marc Webb Interview

    by danpersons

    Hear (500) DAYS OF SUMMER director Marc Webb on MIGHTY MOVIE PODCAST at the Huffington Post: http://tinyurl.com/HuffPost500Days

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:22:18 PM CDT

    It's not a classic, but it's pretty good

    by theneonsamurai

    check it out

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:24:37 PM CDT

    This years Garden State?

    by knowthyself

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:41:16 PM CDT

    (500) days of whining yuppies and their bullshit problems

    by drturing

    listening to the postal service and fleet foxes. meanwhile, unemployment is hovering around 14 percent nationally and the nation has a psychic thumb up its ass cause a ghoulish child predator who wrote great songs died, all the while their tax money is going to help goldman sachs become profitable as fuck. but oh no, guy liked a girl cause she liked the smiths. seriously man, that is just some bullshit episode of friends with pretensions.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:52:27 PM CDT

    I was starting to worry about this flick . . .

    by royston lodge

    . . . but this review really makes me want to see it. I didn't know that the 500 days aren't in chronological order. As such, I was really wary of entering into a flick where I KNOW it going to end in heartbreak. But I presume that presenting the days out-of-order will mitigate that by putting the shittiest moments somewhere in the middle, rather than having the movie be one long inevitable slide into despair. That would not have been at all pleasant to watch.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:56:10 PM CDT

    drturning

    by theneonsamurai

    you're kind of right, but it's a really good episode of friends.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 12:57:34 PM CDT

    So are you the Hall or the Oats

    by spiceybiscuit

    Nice Review! And don't be ashamed of loving a great 80's band, that is why the IPod is great, no one can see you playlist except you. Even falling in love through The Smiths is great, Who doesn't love the Smiths?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 1:24:43 PM CDT

    Stop Steve Urkeling over a girl and be a MAN!!

    by gibsonusa returns

    Thats exactly when Laura Winslow started to get into Steve...when he stopped drooling over her like a little boy.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 1:35:55 PM CDT

    Zooey Deschanel

    by classyfredblassy

    She should have been sent to a gulag in Siberia for her performance in the happening, and never seen from again.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 2:44:12 PM CDT

    Since when...

    by ralphiecharlie

    can we not make any movies about anything else when the economy is bad? I don't understand. Are we only allowed to make movies that reflect exactly what's going in the world? Or the prevailing sentiment? WHEN DID YOU ALL GO COMPLETELY CRAZY ABOUT SHIT?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 2:59:30 PM CDT

    Brick...

    by itsjust_notcool_anymore_baby

    was JGL's only flick I seen prior to that stupid 3rd rock show he was on. And that movie rocked my fucking day. Besides that, seeing him as 'kid with an ice-skate through the face' was also an engaging performance. Have to say I like the dude.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 3:31:38 PM CDT

    Glad to see some H&O love in here.

    by skraggo

    I was actually recently reminded (during a drunken LimeWire session) of just how many great songs Hall & Oates contributed to the 80's. Great band. It's good to see the Talkbackers uniting in our shared love of feathered blond hair and gnarly mustaches. On topic -- the synopsis of this movie makes me think of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, with its non-linear portrait of a relationship gone bad. If 500 Days is even a hair on the ass of Eternal Sunshine, I'll give it a shot.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 3:43:59 PM CDT

    Zooey

    by stifler's mom

    sucks. annoying, monotone, and not even that cute.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 4:51:46 PM CDT

    Meh

    by koyaanisqatsi

    Saw the film on two days ago and thought it was cute. That's it, just cute. No real depth, no characters resembling actual real people. Sam Mendes' Away We Go tackled much of the same material but in a much more intelligent and overall satisfying way. This movie is not great, but it's worth seeing. Just as long as you then go see Away We Go.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 5:41:28 PM CDT

    Eerie...

    by kehrageous

    This sounds eerily like my "failed" marriage. This one might hit home a little hard - i can't wait.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 5:45:12 PM CDT

    ...what to spend money on...

    by kehrageous

    i prefer to spend my money on films that give me somethign real to think about - besides, there are happy endings in real life, it's just a matter of chosing that perspective.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 6:01:27 PM CDT

    no part of movies is real. nor should it be.

    by dr sauch

    everyone talks about how the ups are fake, but so are the downs.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 6:45:13 PM CDT

    Hey Kehrageous your happy ending

    by drturing

    cost only a little more than this film at the massage parlor, right?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 6:48:10 PM CDT

    Parlor

    by kehrageous

    Well the cops just closed down the one in my town, so i have to go to the movies.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 7:05:19 PM CDT

    drturing

    by ribbons

    Your contempt for rich white people aside, I have a feeling you don't only like movies that address "real" problems. The whole point of art is that everybody in the world has a different perspective; sorry that the idea people you hate get to make movies too pisses you off sometimes, but this movie has as much a right to exist as anything else. Toodles.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:05:45 PM CDT

    CreasyBear, don't worry, this movie's not depressing.

    by flickchick85

    Yes, the romance doesn't have a Hollywood "happy ending," but the movie itself has a very satisfying one. It actually left a big grin on my face. Honestly, this seemed like a "feel-good" movie to me, even if it did have a little more brutal honesty than we're used to in this type of flick. Depressing is the last word I'd use to describe it, though.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 9:54:29 PM CDT

    Zooey is adorable.....

    by archer1949

    A cookie cutter, braindead, talent free skank like Megan Fox gets a free pass from the fanboys while an original like Zooey Deschanel gets the hate. Morons. For a better part of a decade, she has consistantly been stealing movies and Tv shows out from under the noses of the ostensible "stars" (see Weeds and Failure to Launch for typical examples of that phenomenon)and making otherwise forgettable fluff actually watchable. Yes, she has been less-less-than-stellar in rather occasionally miscast in utter crap (The Happening and Tin Man especially) but those things were screwed LONG before Zooey came on the scene.
    Oh well, there is no accounting for taste, I guess. As for me, she had me back in 2000 with "One day, you'll be cool."

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 17, 2009 10:20:46 PM CDT

    (I'm) not sure about the parentheses,

    by demosthenes2

    (but) I'll still see the movie.

    Reply to Talkback

  • They've been ticking me off for months, but just ignore them and go anyway. It's worth it.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 18, 2009 10:20:17 AM CDT

    (500) days.. a tad bit overrated....

    by midnight_fred

    I had the pleasure of watching this film at Capone's free screening, and I have to say that I did enjoy the movie, but I fear that it, like many other films, suffers of too much hype. Like I said I enjoyed the film, but I don't think it's the best thing that has come out this summer, nor do I think the film is as original as some critiques like to say it is.

    Overall I think the film is missing something in its story telling which is constructed as montage of cliches that attempted to hide within the editing.

    In addition to that the film also sends a very odd and negative message concerning homosexual relationships and love. It is constantly bombarding the viewer with messages of Men and Women needing to be together. For a film about love, they seem to have ignored and negated love between a man and a man, and a woman with a woman.

    Although there were times were it seems they attempted to be "open" minded about such sexualities, they only used "gay" and "lesbian" in a strange negative connotation.

    The use of the narrator (which sounded straight out of Pushing Daisies or Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) seems to be oddly placed and really does nothing for the film.

    Also not to ruin anything but the end also feels like an extreme cop out and too of a simple answer. The film shouldn't have shied away from the message that love doesn't always work out, and left it at that... reverting back to a Hollywood way of telling a sad story.

    In the spirit of supporting indie films, I think this one definitely is worth watching, but I disagree in proclaiming it more than a likable film.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 18, 2009 1:20:03 PM CDT

    500 days of Cobra Commander

    by jesiah

    SUMMER looks ok, but im more interested in seeing his portrayal of Cobra Commander. I hope seeing that fishbowl of a helmet on the screen is better than the extremely low expectation I have of it.

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  • Jul 18, 2009 1:35:38 PM CDT

    Jo-Go-Le!

    by billypilgrimisunstuck

    Hope that catches on.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 18, 2009 10:38:23 PM CDT

    Ribbons

    by drturing

    If I'm seeing a film about how life is tough then yes give me something socially realist about real actual problems. No one has fucking time to worry about whether their girlfriend likes the same weakass middle class bland rock as they do when they've got to feed their family or pay their bills. Hell, there are great rich white people who at least endeavor to work with the underclass and share in the problem of life. Now, if I'm going to see a movie, and spend 12.50... I either want to enter a world I cannot access otherwise, see some sort of spectacle that's unobtainable or was at least really fucking expensive, or some grasping at art with an honesty that is painful to bear. One movie I LOVE about middle class white people is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, a movie that this seems to have apparently stolen some of its conceits from. But that movie is painfully honest about the texture of a relationship. Oh and also, yes, latte sipping Harper's reading douchebags who go on and on about supporting the environment while sipping their green wheatgrass protein shake from a disposable plastic cup tend to have more annoyingly neurotic relationship problems than say Cambodian rice farmers if you ask me.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 18, 2009 10:38:24 PM CDT

    Ribbons

    by drturing

    If I'm seeing a film about how life is tough then yes give me something socially realist about real actual problems. No one has fucking time to worry about whether their girlfriend likes the same weakass middle class bland rock as they do when they've got to feed their family or pay their bills. Hell, there are great rich white people who at least endeavor to work with the underclass and share in the problem of life. Now, if I'm going to see a movie, and spend 12.50... I either want to enter a world I cannot access otherwise, see some sort of spectacle that's unobtainable or was at least really fucking expensive, or some grasping at art with an honesty that is painful to bear. One movie I LOVE about middle class white people is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, a movie that this seems to have apparently stolen some of its conceits from. But that movie is painfully honest about the texture of a relationship. Oh and also, yes, latte sipping Harper's reading douchebags who go on and on about supporting the environment while sipping their green wheatgrass protein shake from a disposable plastic cup tend to have more annoyingly neurotic relationship problems than say Cambodian rice farmers if you ask me.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 18, 2009 10:41:58 PM CDT

    archer1949 you puny weakling

    by drturing

    take off your goddamn jean shorts. you just deluosionally think that Zooey is more interesting because you think she's in your league because she's whimsical as opposed to the utter unfuckability that is Megan Fox, a woman who scares men because she has the option of sleeping with whomever she wants. And for the record, Megan Fox continually says hilariously honest and outre things that reek of a wit and penchant for the truth, whereas for all the hype about Deschanel I have never heard her say a single thing in any interview ever that was interesting in the slightest. Please, please paste anything she's ever said in an interview that was anywhere as funny as Megan Fox's description of HIgh School Musical. Also, that was real smart of her husband to make fun of Jared Leto for being an actor and a musician. Duh. Let's also not forget: Zooey Deschanel was in that fucking awful Jimmy Fallon music video.

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  • Jul 18, 2009 10:42:56 PM CDT

    Great great great yuppie film vs bad one

    by drturing

    Great yuppie film: Eternal Sunshine. Bad one: Be Kind Rewind

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 18, 2009 10:46:19 PM CDT

    btw archer1949

    by drturing

    that zoeey deschanel song "i kissed a girl" is such bullshit

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  • Jul 18, 2009 11:09:22 PM CDT

    ^^^^Katy Perry^^^^

    by drmorbius

  • Jul 18, 2009 11:14:08 PM CDT

    irritating

    by scratcher

    Me and the 3 others I saw this with came out of the theater, looked at each other, and started laughing about just how bad it was. I'd choose rewatching Humpday a dozen times over watching (500) again. A seriously flawed film is more frustrating when you can see that the filmmaker was actually trying to do something interesting, but somehow got totally distracted from the core of the film. There are some really intriguing elements, but they're lost in all the gratuitous gimmickry. 16mm b&w (in 2009?) character interviews, a "parody" of Bergman, a dance scene out of Ally McBeal, etc.. The "erasing" of the scenery following the devastating emotional low-point of the film just killed its impact. The only effect that served any purpose was the split-screen, which made the Graduate bus ride more poignant. The filmmaker obviously loves The Graduate, but he'd have been better off imitating Nichols' focus on the film's emotional core and cut all that fluff.

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  • Jul 19, 2009 11:36:33 AM CDT

    500 Days of Starscream

    by gibsonusa returns

    His love is to become Decepticon commander. Lets take a look at what he goes though, in random chronological order.

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  • Jul 19, 2009 8:41:51 PM CDT

    You pussies lack a heart

    by billypilgrimisunstuck

    This will mark the first time I have ever used the word 'pussy' on this site. I am now one of you. A troll.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 20, 2009 6:54:42 AM CDT

    If you get your butt dragged to one "romantic comedy" this year.

    by mangopositive

    ... then this is the one to see. I liked it and I haven't seen a romantic comedy since the wife and I started dating 8 years ago. Usually, they make me feel dumber afterward. This one was good... it's not the best movie I've ever seen, but if you want to give your significant other the gift of a "romantic comedy" that won't irritate you like anything with Jennifer Aniston it it, this one will do the trick.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 20, 2009 11:30:29 AM CDT

    50% of marriages end in divorce?

    by maddox

    I always see this figure thrown around, and I always wonder where it came from. Are you talking world-wide?American marriages are estimated to end in divorce around 40% of the time. The difference in 50% and 40% may not seem like alot, but you are talking about a difference of 6,300,000 divorces. Even the 40% figure is misleading because 53% of all divorces involve a partner that has been divorced at least once before. The fact is, roughly 84% of all American marriages between two people [b]that have never been married before[/b] stay married for life.I think that "50%" figure gets its roots from statistics that do not include re-marriages by people whose previous spouses died. Anyway, just wanted to throw my two cents in and say, "It's not as bad as all that".

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  • Jul 20, 2009 3:05:28 PM CDT

    MangoPositive

    by drturing

    you're such a plant. i mean shit you're named after a fruit, and your rave review is just way too over the top in its praise for me to take it seriously.

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