Big Daddy Gouda

I’m sure back in 1987,  girls all over America dragged their boyfriends (kicking and screaming) into the theaters to see the latest romantic comedy, Say Anything, starring a just getting started John Cusack.

Now 2o + years later, the story of Lloyd Dobbler and Diane Cord is a whole lot more of a guys movie than it is a “chick flik”. I mean, come on, what guy didn’t sympathize with Cusack’s Lloyd? A good looking, witty, kickboxing slacker with a heart.

So, my advice to any dude out there who may be dragged to the new film 500 Days of Summer:  Go willingly and keep an open mind. The reward is a great film. A Say Anything for present day, and,  possibly the best film I’ve seen this year.

The title, (500) Days of Summer,  comes from the name of the girl in the film, played by Zooey Deschanel, and the 500 day period during which she is a part of the main character’s life. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Tom Hansen, an architect working a crappy job at a greeting card company who becomes smitten by the new intern, Summer Finn. After some awkward attempts to catch her attention, he eventually wins her over and they have a whirlwind romance. Before long, however, the tide changes, and Summer starts to wonder if Tom is really the right man for her, which sends Tom spiraling into depression.

The film works best when the relationship is clicking and Tom is happy. The montage where Tom “struts” to work while dancing to Hall & Oats could become a classic.

When things go bad it’s hard not to hate Summer and sympathize with Tom, but don’t forget the movie is shown from Tom’s point of view so it’s kind of hard not to feel for the poor guy.

Thankfully, at the end of the film Tom sees things more clearly and, as expected, so do we as audience members. And, as I walked out of the theater I couldn’t help think that a sequel could possibly be filmed someday. (500) Days of Autumn, perhaps?

The term “romantic comedy” is not particularly well-regarded nowadays, thanks to years of formulaic and sappy love stories manufactured specifically as light entertainment for couples who are out on a date. But movies about relationships don’t always have to be cheesy and predictable.

This entry was posted on August 3, 2009 at 3:11 am and is filed under Movies . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.