(500) Days of Summer is a 2009 American romantic comedy film. It was written by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, directed by Marc Webb, produced by Mark Waters, and stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel. Principal photography began in April 2008 in Los Angeles, California.
The film made its debut at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and was a hit with festival audiences. It was picked up for distribution by Fox Searchlight Pictures and opened in US and Canadian limited release on July 17, 2009, later expanding to wide release in the US on August 7, 2009.[3] The film was also released on September 2, 2009, in the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom, and opened in Australia on September 17, 2009.[4]
Plot
On January 8, Tom Hansen meets Summer Finn, the new assistant to his boss. Tom trained as an architect but works as a writer at a greeting card company, living in Los Angeles. Following a karaoke night, Tom's co-worker, McKenzie, lets slip that Tom is attracted to Summer. Over the next few months Summer and Tom grow closer, despite Summer making it clear to Tom that she does not believe in true love, and does not want a boyfriend.
Tom shows Summer his favorite spot in the city, which looks out over a number of buildings he likes, although the view is spoiled by parking lots. After a few weeks dating, Tom gets into a fight with a guy chatting up Summer, and they have their first argument. On day 290, Summer and Tom split up after they see The Graduate, a film which Tom thinks shows true love. Tom does not take the break up well and Tom's friends call his younger sister, Rachel, to calm him down.
Summer quits the greeting card company and Tom's boss moves him to consolations, as his depression is not suitable for happier events. Months later Summer and Tom attend the wedding of a co-worker, they dance at the wedding and Summer catches the bouquet. They sit next to each other on the journey home and Summer invites Tom to a party at her apartment for the Friday. Tom attends the party and sees that Summer is wearing an engagement ring. Realizing what is being celebrated, he leaves the party. Tom enters a deep depression, only leaving the house for alcohol and junk food. After a few days, he returns to work drunk and quits his job. He sets about re-applying himself to architecture, makes a list of firms, and begins to attend interviews.
On day 488, he meets Summer at his favorite spot and they talk; he wishes her well. Twelve days later, on Wednesday, May 23, he attends a job interview and meets a girl, who is also applying for the same job. Before entering the interview, he makes a date to have coffee with her afterward. He asks her for her name, and she replies, "Autumn."
Cast
Production
Writing
The style of film is presented in a nonlinear narrative. Each scene is introduced using a title card showing which of the 500 days it is.
The film begins with a disclaimer: "Any resemblance to people living or dead is purely accidental ... Especially you, Jenny Beckman ... Bitch."[5] Co-writer of the film Scott Neustadter, admitted the film was based on a real romance. Neustadter explains that when he met the real girl who inspired the character Summer as a student at the London School of Economics in 2002, he was rebounding from a bad breakup back home, and promptly fell "crazily, madly, hopelessly in love" with the girl who "returned his kisses but not his ardor." The relationship ended "painfully and unforgettably awful," which prompted him to co-write the film with Michael H. Weber. When Neustadter later showed the script to her, she said she related more to the Tom character.[6]
Locations
David Ng of the Los Angeles Times describes Architecture as a star of the film.[7] The film was originally set in San Francisco but was later moved to Los Angeles and the script rewritten to make better use of the location.[8] Buildings used include the Los Angeles Music Center (which includes the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion) and the towers of California Plaza.[7] The older Fine Arts Building is featured in the film, in a scene where Tom shows it to Summer, describes it as "his favorite building" and mentions its builders, Walker and Eisen.
Christopher Hawthorne of the Los Angeles Times describes the film as having "finely honed sense of taste" to include the Bradbury Building where Tom goes for his job interview.[9][10] The famous building has been used for many films before but is probably most famous for "Blade Runner".
Marketing
To help promote the film, Gordon-Levitt and Deschanel starred in the debut episode of Microsoft Zune and Mean Magazine's "Cinemash" series. In the episode, they "mash" the characters from the film Sid and Nancy with story elements from 500 Days of Summer.[11]
Marc Webb created a music video as a companion piece to the film, titled "The Bank Heist". It features Deschanel and Gordon-Levitt dancing to "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?", a song by Deschanel's folk group She & Him.[2]
Release
The film opened in U.S. limited release on July 17, 2009,[3] September 2, 2009 in the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom, and was released in Australia on September 17, 2009.[4] In Europe, 500 Days premiered in Switzerland as the opening film of the 62nd Locarno Film Festival.[12]
Reception
Critical reception
Critical reception has been positive. It received an 88% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 169 reviews, with the consensus describing it as "A clever, offbeat romantic comedy."[13] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 76 based on 36 reviews.[14]
The film's reception in the American press was overwhelmingly positive. Film critic Roger Ebert, in a cover story for the film pages of the Chicago Sun-Times, gave the film four stars out of four.[15] Michael Ordoña of the Los Angeles Times[16], Dana Stevens of Slate[17], Lou Lumenick of the New York Post[18] and A.O. Scott of the New York Times[19] also gave the film positive reviews. Entertainment Weekly critic Owen Gleiberman gave the film an "A," calling it: "enchantingly original and romantic."[20] Film Threat called it "the best romantic comedy since Love Actually."[21] The A.V. Club gave the film a "B-,"[22] and Rolling Stone three and a half stars (out of four): "Boy meets girl, boy loses girl. It's been done to emo death. That's why the sublimely smart-sexy-joyful-sad (500) Days of Summer hits you like a blast of pure romantic oxygen" and concludes: "(500) Days is otherwise a different kind of love story: an honest one that takes a piece out of you."[23]
NPR was more dismissive: "For all its rhetorical whimsy and hipster dressings, (500) Days of Summer is a thoroughly conservative affair, as culturally and romantically status quo as any Jennifer Aniston vehicle."[24] The British press also gave the film a colder reception: Toby Young of The Times wrote, "It is hardly the freshest romantic comedy of past 20 years. Taking the best bits from other movies and rearranging them in a non-linear sequence does not make for an original film."[25] The Guardian film critic Peter Bradshaw also opined that the film was "let down by sitcom cliches, and by being weirdly incurious about the inner life of its female lead."[26]
Box office
By September 8, the film had taken in $2 million from 318 screens in the United Kingdom. This was regarded as a successful five-day opening by Fox Searchlight, earning around half as much as the science-fiction blockbuster District 9, which took in $3.8 million.[27] As of November 22, 2009 the film has grossed $32,391,374 domestically and $46,602,613 worldwide.[1]
Awards
Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber received the 2009 Hollywood Film Festival's Hollywood Breakthrough Screenwriter Award on October 26, 2009.[28] They were also nominated for the Satellite Award for Best Original Screenplay
The film was named one of the ten best movies of the year by the National Board of Review Awards 2009.[29] and nominated for four Independent Spirit Award and a People's Choice Award.
Music
The film features a musical sequence after Tom and Summer spend the night together. As Tom walks to work, he is overjoyed and struts down the street in a grand musical number set to the Hall & Oates song "You Make My Dreams" and others join his dance.[2]
Soundtrack
The soundtrack for the film was released on July 14, 2009. The soundtrack peaked at #71 on the U.S. Billboard 200.
- "A Story of Boy Meets Girl" - Mychael Danna and Rob Simonsen
- "Us" - Regina Spektor
- "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out" - The Smiths
- "Bad Kids" - Black Lips
- "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" - The Smiths
- "There Goes the Fear" - Doves
- "You Make My Dreams" - Hall & Oates
- "Sweet Disposition" - The Temper Trap
- "Quelqu'un m'a dit" - Carla Bruni
- "Mushaboom" - Feist
- "Hero" - Regina Spektor
- "Bookends" - Simon & Garfunkel
- "Vagabond" - Wolfmother
- "She's Got You High" - Mumm-Ra
- "Here Comes Your Man" - Meaghan Smith
- "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" - She & Him
Additional tracks
- "Here Comes Your Man" - Joseph Gordon-Levitt
- "Sugar Town" - Zooey Deschanel
- "At Last" - Kevin Michael
References
- ^ a b c "(500) Days of Summer (2009)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 2009-09-03. http://www.webcitation.org/5jW8eMEnL. Retrieved 2009-08-26.
- ^ a b c Fung, Lisa (August 15, 2009). "A new dance video from '(500) Days of Summer' director Marc Webb" (video). Los Angeles Times. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/08/500-days-of-summer-director-marc-webb-.html. Retrieved 2009-11-10.
- ^ a b "500 Days of Summer". Fox Searchlight Pictures. http://content.foxsearchlight.com/taxonomy/term/375. Retrieved 2008-12-14.
- ^ a b "Release Schedule June 2009." (PDF). Press Release. Fox Films. Archived from the original on 2009-08-05. http://www.webcitation.org/5io4gs7Cf. Retrieved 2009-08-03.
- ^ "500 Days of ... Jenny Beckman?". Cinematical. Archived from the original on 2009-09-21. http://www.webcitation.org/5jxwVCdh1. Retrieved 2009-09-22.
- ^ "Suck on it, Jenny Beckman". Salon.com. Archived from the original on 2009-09-21. http://www.webcitation.org/5jxwVeJ5z. Retrieved 2009-09-22.
- ^ a b David Ng (June 09, 2009). "Downtown L.A. architecture stars in '(500) Days of Summer'". LA Times. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/06/500-days-of-summer-frank-gehry-architecture-joseph-gordonlevitt-zooey-deschanel.html. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ Monday, June 8, 2009, by Marissa Gluck Screenwriter explains '500 Days' Focus on Architecture, Downtown LA
- ^ http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/arts/la-et-500days-2009jul31,0,3332091.story
- ^ Christopher Hawthorne (July 30, 2009). "500 Days of architecture". Los Angeles Times. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/07/500-days-of-architecture.html. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ Billington, Alex (July 7, 2009). "Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Sid and Nancy" (video). Firstshowing.net. http://www.firstshowing.net/2009/07/07/zooey-deschanel-and-joseph-gordon-levitt-as-sid-and-nancy/. Retrieved 2009-11-10.
- ^ Kemp, Stuart (2009-07-16). "A 'Summer' start to Locarno". The Hollywood Reporter: p. 3. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/news/e3i8f47259d49cc886b051fe5948cf73cf7. Retrieved 2009-10-07. (subscription required)
- ^ "500 Days of Summer (2009)". Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/500_days_of_summer/. Retrieved September 7, 2009.
- ^ "(500) Days of Summer". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 2009-09-27. http://www.webcitation.org/5k746PDwr. Retrieved 2009-09-22.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (2009-07-17). "500 Days of Summer". Chicago Sun-Times: pp. Movies section, pp. 1, 5. Archived from the original on 2009-08-16. http://www.webcitation.org/5j5GYJveX. Retrieved 2009-12-13.
- ^ Ordoña, Michael (2009-07-17). "'(500)' reasons to fall in love". Los Angeles Times: pp. D1, D8. http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-et-500days17-2009jul17,0,4389736.story. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
- ^ Stevens, Dana (2009-07-16). "(500) Days of Summer". Slate. http://www.slate.com/id/2223021/. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
- ^ Lumenick, Lou (2009-07-17). "Bittersweet symphony: '(500) Days' is a clinic of chemistry & classic rom-com". New York Post: p. 37. http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/movies/bittersweet_symphony_dHYmAYL3jBkPmlug2EqmIP. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
- ^ Scott, A.O. (2009-07-17). "Love at the Greeting Card Company: Best Wishes on Your Breakup". The New York Times: p. C10. http://movies.nytimes.com/2009/07/17/movies/17five.html. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
- ^ "EW Review Movie Review (500) Days of Summer". EW.com. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20291403,00.html EW Review. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
- ^ Film Threat, August 10, 2009. Accessed 2009-08-10. Archived 2009-08-13.
- ^ "The A.V. Club Review". The Onion. http://www.avclub.com/articles/500-days-of-summer,30422/. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
- ^ Rolling Stone Review, August 10, 2009
- ^ "500 Days of Summer review". NPR. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106480238. Retrieved 2009-09-30.
- ^ "(500) Days of Summer review". Times Online. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/film_reviews/article6820319.ece. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
- ^ "(500) Days of Summer". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/sep/03/500-days-of-summer-review. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
- ^ Segers, Frank (2009-09-08). "'Final' knocks off 'Basterds' overseas". The Hollywood Reporter: p. 13. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i418c5bc24c7b68c516e4ed18998a353b. Retrieved 2009-10-07. (subscription required)
- ^ ""Hollywood Fest Honors Carey Mulligan, Jeremy Renner, Lee Daniels, Gabourey Sidibe, and Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber"". HollywoodAwards.com. http://www.hollywoodawards.com/news/2009/breakthroughrelease.html.
- ^ http://www.nbrmp.org/awards/
- ^ "500 Days of Summer Soundtrack". 500DAYS.com. http://www.500days.com/500-days-of-summer-soundtrack.html. Retrieved 2009-06-02.
External links
