(500) Days of Summer (2009).

"This is a story of boy meets girl." Boy: Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). Girl: Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel). Last time I saw Levitt was when he was all fresh-faced and looking about 15 in "Ten Things I Hate About You". It was a surprise seeing him suddenly pop up in the trailers for this, still looking about 15 but acting slightly older.. Deschanel is perfectly cast as a quirky indietastic girl that pays "on average 9.2% less than the market price for every apartment she's rented". I was actually reluctant to watch this Rom Com, as I am with all others of the same genre (starting lately). Probably because it's a genre that's been done to death and I dislike being led to think that life will be like they are in the movies. It's all lies! Regardless.

Regina Spektor - Us playing in opening credits. LOVE. The film starts off with the end of the story: Day 488. They're sitting on a bench, Summer's engagement-ringed-hand is holding Tom's, they're smiling. Happiness. The story continues to skip between days.. almost randomly as it starts to piece parts of their relationship together. Each "day" is separated by a wonderful vector graphic, acting as page turning time in what seems like a photo album you are flicking back and forth through. The story telling is done so well in this film. Despite the non-chronological order of things, it's easy to piece everything together, and along with that the realisation that there's more to the ending than was first revealed. In this story, the boy is the girl, and the girl is the boy. Tom is a hopeless romantic, believing in fate and true love, and living to meet "the one". After studying architecture, he ended up at a firm writing greeting cards. Where he meets Summer. He falls in love. And when she breaks his heart out of the blue, he suffers like a girl. It was nice watching a guy go through all that for a change. Summer, on the other hand, is never looking for something serious, much to the frustration of Tom; as she is behaving as if they are a couple but never wanting to put a label on what they have. Thus begins the gruelling task of getting past that barrier. Probably something that everyone can relate to. There's so many lovely moments between them though.. my favourite is when they are on the train, just having a coffee, with the sunset behind them. Other great scenes included the musical-esque performance from Tom after sleeping with Summer for the first time; the great karaoke that occured; and of course the final time he sees Summer, on day 488. There was so much bitter-sweetness flying around that it's sad but so real that you don't wish there was a different ending.

One of my favourite characters is Tom's younger sister.. who gives him the best advice he gets. Just the simple mind of a ten year old or something stating the obvious. Just shows how rose-tinted glasses screws with the mind and makes it so stupid. In the end, the irony in the film is that the non-believer goes through all the fate and true love.. leaving the romantic cynical about it all. I can't really explain what this film left me feeling.. Except that I can agree that nothing really happens.. just life.

Featuring Regina Spektor, The Temper Trap, The Smiths, Doves and Mumm-ra to name a few, this brilliant soundtrack couples so well with the characters and the bitter-sweet feel to the film. Nothing I like better than awesome sounds to accompany delightful sights. I think that the reality of this film is what sets it apart, though the ending kind of ruined the lack of Hollywood feel slightly.. I loved this film though. Something nice to ease into my film writing again.