Step 1: Smell that sweet, sweet Summer air. This is a simply heartfelt, totally engaging and refreshingly realistic romance – a perfect antidote to that OTHER Summer-type movie.
Step 2: Ask yourself this question: When is love ever easy? Um, never. Not if you live in the real world anyway. And this is exactly where Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Summer (Zooey Deschanel) exist – two people, working at a greeting card company in L.A., who meet cute, hang out casually then get semi-involved. Well, actually it’s Tom who gets more involved even though Summer tells him from the start that she doesn’t believe in love and isn’t ready for any kind of commitment. And she means what she says, although you can see her struggling with her feelings. Tom doesn’t have any problems with how he feels; it’s pretty cut and dry for him, so when she leaves, he’s blindsided, devastated – and determined to get her back.
Step 3: Ask yourself this other question: When is Zooey Deschanel NOT as delectably adorable as a piece of French toast? Yes, in my world, French toast can be adorable, especially with butter and syrup. What I mean to say is Zooey is one of those actress that is endlessly fascinating to watch. She plays Summer both beautifully honest and full of life but also conflicted and jaded. You don’t know whether to admire her or hate her for breaking poor Tom’s heart. Because Joseph – equally as tantalizing as his co-star – makes you feel every joyful moment, every ache and pain. And Joey and Zooey most assuredly have that certain “It” factor, so let’s just get these two wacky kids together again – soon.
Step 4: God bless the offbeat sensibilities of relative first-timers, who don’t give a rat’s ass about box office numbers and just make really good movies. Co-writers Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber hit the nail on the head with their astute take on the boy-meets-girl, etc. scenario. You know right away these guys have been jilted, particularly when a title card states at the beginning that this is a fictional movie and any semblance to real people is coincidental, “especially to you Jenny Beckman. Bitch.” Then director Marc Webb takes the familiar material and creates something fresh and wonderful, jumping back and forth in time, depending on which of the 500 days we happen to be watching. I just wish all movies with similar themes could present it this much out of the box.
Level of difficulty in watching (500) Days of Summer: Incredibly easy, like sitting on the grass on a breezy summer day with someone you really like. A pure delight from beginning to end.