“500 Days of Summer” provides a new way to look at romantic comedies and highlights the differences between what people hope for and what actually happens. Tom and Summer’s different opinions regarding love make it easy for the viewer to recognize the different ends of the argument and the flaws in both characters views.
The film tells the story of two people who embark on a romantic adventure with one being much more invested than the other. As time goes on both characters try to deal with and understand where they stand with each other and whether or not their relationship has the chance of going any further. The characters different definitions of love, seems to have become a norm in romantic comedies, and is a major theme throughout ths film. The difference is that in most romantic comedies the skeptical character has a change of heart and then both main characters go on to live happily ever after while in “500 Days of Summer” this is not the case.
Summer and Tom serve as the two ends of the spectrum involving opinions of true love. Their ending is not what is expected in romantic comedies and their characteristics predict this. Society expects films of this genre to end with the two main characters resolving their differences and living a long happy life together. This is almost never the case in real life and the characters in “500 Days of Summer” are able to portray relationships in a somewhat more realistic way. Summer’s resistance towards falling in love and other traits conflict with Tom’s romantic hopes and feelings. Tom somehow overlooks all of these differences and seems to be more in love with the idea of a perfect romantic relationship than Summer as a person. This in no way means that Tom was using Summer, because he truly believed that he loved her and felt that they were meant to be together like the couples in the movies. Instead their numerous conflicts prove to the viewer that they are not meant to be and highlights the absurdity of the idea that love is as simple as the movies make it seem.
“500 Days of Summer” both follows and mocks the standard steps of a romantic comedy. In Tom’s mind the way that the relationship between Summer and himself develop follows the classic romantic comedy pattern and will end like movies do. However she does not see their relationship in the same way and sees the idea of love and a perfect ending as ridiculous. These conflicting views give the viewer both sides of the genre by stating what we hope for and what we know to be true.
The differences between the movies of the past and “500 Days of Summer”, which represents the films of today is evident. Changes take place constantly and after watching multiple films in the romantic comedy genre it is easy to identify the changes that occur over time. Films like “It Happened One Night” and “Pillow Talk” represent the relationship that Tom seemed to expect. Both films follow main characters who do not begin agreeing on the idea of love and realize as the movie goes on that they have fallen in love with it ending with them overcoming their differences and choosing to be together. “Woman of the Year” serves as a good example of the change in the woman’s role in romantic comedies. It represents a big step for woman in film and how they are portrayed. The idea that a woman could work and make her own conscious decisions is taken even further in “500 Days of Summer” with Summer choosing what she wants to do and breaking up with Tom even if it means being alone. She chooses to recognize what she needs in a relationship and sees that Tom is not that person even though they would “look good” together.
The film uses mise-en-scene to help the viewer understand where the characters are in their relationships with each other and their surroundings. It is clear when characters are in a public space or a private setting. The filmmakers make it clear which places and scenes are important to a character or to the plot. The cinematography is used to draw the viewers attention to certain aspects and to highlight what the filmmakers are trying to portray. A good example of these points is when Tom begins to sing and dance and there is a musical number including an animated bird. The way the scene is portrayed helps the viewer recognize that Tom’s feelings are in a sense unreal and that he sees love as a fairy tale.The way the film is edited allows for the viewer to witness a long period of time but still understand that a lot can happen in a short time. The jumping from date to date makes it like a friend is sharing a story about an experience instead of watching a fake story through a glass window.
Neither Tom or Summer were completely right about love. Both sides had positives and flaws. The film “500 Days of Summer” opens a new page in the Romantic comedy genre and prompts the viewer to reflect on their opinions regarding love and the genre itself, bringing it closer to reality than ever before.
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