Does it get more indie than a romantic comedy starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel that’s packed with Smiths references galore and moves to the music of Regina Spektor? In short, the answer is no, but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. 500 Days of Summer does very well being exactly what it’s meant to be: a bittersweet, off-beat take on hipster love. Now, you might roll your eyes or scoff because hating on hip youth is really in right now, but this film isn’t like the others; it’s actually quite smart and charming.
500 Days of Summer tells the story of greeting card writer Tom Hansen who believes in soul mates and thinks he’s found one in the form of his boss’s irresistable new secretary, Summer Finn. Trouble is Summer doesn’t believe in love. What ensues is a reversal of common silver screen gender roles: he becomes the overzealous lover who wants to know what their relationship status is, while she’s busy being the heartless narcissist.
While calling it off with Tom over pancakes, Summer explains her reasoning: “We’ve been kind of Sid and Nancy lately.” Tom protests, “Yes, we have arguments, but I hardly think I’m Sid Vicious,” to which Summer twists the knife: “No, I’m Sid.” Not only is she breaking his heart, but she is emasculating him in the process. Tom exhibits other typically feminine responses throughout the movie — endlessly wallowing over his unrequited love, smashing plates, idealizing an imperfect lover in a cartoonish way, etc. If you ask me, men in the movies could use more of this treatment. Machismo is just so boring.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays the role of the heartbroken wannabe boyfriend so well that it’s hard not to spend the entire movie falling for him. It doesn’t hurt that he’s so dreamy either. (A fellow movie-goer came out of the theater gushing, “He looks just like Heath Ledger, but hotter!”) I’ll have to agree with her on that, even though it’s an unfair comparison considering the other dude is dead. Zooey Deschannel doesn’t disappoint either as she brings intelligence to Summer’s bitchiness and provides a subtle layer of depth underneath the character’s hypocrisy. She’s not too bad on the eyes either, as many drooling indie fanboys will affirm.