So I think it's time I talk about another favorite movie of mine.
(500) Days of Summer [2009]
I loved Marc Webb's direction, I loved the cinematography, the art direction, the editing, the screenplay, the cast, the main characters as well as the supporting characters, and the music especially....and, Summer Finn's hairstyle, wardrobe, and pretty much all of her. But let me first go back to when I saw this indie movie for the first time...
I saw this movie the first time when I was 18, in the first semester of university, in 2009. Man, I just got it, like, it really got me, totally. I was literally inside Tom Hansen! Not, literally, of course, but anyway, that expresses as much. I could feel all the things that Tom felt for Summer -I could like, literally absorb everything that the movie offered, I felt like I was literally sucked into this wholly alternate universe. Zooey Deschanel as Summer was adorable and I could completely understand how Tom felt around her. I know I've been using the expression 'literally' wrong but let's just ignore that. The point is watching this movie I felt the same things as when watching Pride and Prejudice (2005).
Okay, so I think this is one of those movies where you have to see it more than one time, to actually get more than what you've gained on the first watch. So, it's like, the first time I saw this movie, I was seeing it entirely from Tom Hansen's point of view, like I was the victim and all that. That first time, I was really, really unhappy with Summer, I mean I didn't understand her...I almost hated her.
It was disappointing to me that he didn't end up with Summer, to be honest, on the first watch, but then if it had ended otherwise, it would be too typical and predictable...it would be a love story. And the narrator said upfront that it was not a love story.
But the second time and so forth, I was able to start seeing from Summer's point of view as well and I learned to actually forgive her. I know that there are a lot of people who don't like the movie, and I'm guessing it's the Summer factor, but let's look again. We all know Summer said she didn't want a serious relationship, so they didn't make it serious and they didn't define their relationship anyhow. Tom played along with that. But what Summer really is, is a fragile-hearted girl whose heart was broken when her parents got divorced. What more could she ask for than reassurance, someone who could overrule her own belief that 'there's no such thing as love, it's fantasy.' Tom and Summer had that so-called casual relationship for an approximate time of, what was it, nine months? That's quite a long time, I'm guessing Summer's been waiting for reassurance from Tom, but he didn't show it. Instead, he kept holding things as they were when they began, and she started losing that feeling of certainty, in other words...she started getting bored, but once again it was not because of Tom, but because he wasn't able to make her feel sure about him, make her feel secure...when she already felt that thing she never believed existed. Remember what Alison, Tom's blind date, said? Well, hinted, more like, but drunk-Tom wasn't able to catch the hint.
When I look at Tom again, he's a bit childish at times... Like that time he hit that guy in the bar, when he didn't have to do it for Summer's sake, but he did anyway to get her attention. Tom didn't have this certainty about him, a courage to act, something that could reassure Summer. Tom couldn't read Summer that well nearing towards the end, I mean, it was time he shifted his game, but he couldn't see that, he couldn't see that Summer was starting to lose the 'it'-ness of their relationship. Like, he easily believes one thing and gets destroyed by the other -in this case he's also a fragile little thing, and a bit naive. Summer needed someone to make her feel certain so she wouldn't end up in a divorce like her parents, and Tom didn't give that, while the guy who became her husband did. Summer explained in the end, didn't she? That she discovered the feelings she was never sure of with Tom in another guy, the one who was now her husband. I mean, nine months is quite a long time for a 'casual' relationship, Summer did feel something for Tom since the relationship held on till that long, but she wasn't sure, and she was scared, and she left. So, Summer's not a cold hard b*tch after all. :)
So, those were the observations I made on both Summer and Tom, which I hope can suffice. I understand how the audience tends to take sides with the victimized in movies, without trying to look from other perspectives, like feeling sorry for Tom, and hating on Summer, making it all her fault. I did too, but that's the point, you just have to see it one more time. One. More. Time. And discover more.
*Just for your information, I found a Facebook page just now titled "I hate you Summer Finn (500 days of summer)" - For those who really hate that cold hard bitch, I can't believe what she did to Tom - er, to those, I take it you're not happy reading about her in this post..., so, sorry!*
Memorable scenes in the movie? Well, the scene where Tom draws on Summer's hand is one of them.
The scene in the elevator...the beginning of everything. "The Smiths? I love the Smiths. You have great taste in music. To die by your side is such a heavenly way to die... I love 'em."
Let's see. There are a lot of memorable scenes from the movie. There's the 'penis' scene, the 'do you like me?' scene, the scene where Summer explains her feelings in the end, and a whole lot more.
Once again, I really love this movie, I don't get how some people can hate it. The screenplay, the characters, the supporting characters especially Tom's two best friends, the performances, the editing, the music, love it all. I can actually say that this is a typical me movie. And now...Summer Finn.
I think Summer Finn totally passes as one of the memorable female characters in contemporary film. Give it thirty-forty years and the future generation might see her as how we see Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's today -well, might, I don't know if other people see her the way I do, might. I, personally, adore how she dresses in the movie and how she does her hair. I recently tried to get a Summer-haircut, yeah that sort of 60s haircut Tom mentioned, and it worked on the first day, but it didn't last long since I was forced to tie my hair up most of the time due to the heat of the weather here. Anyway, here's Summer Finn...(as if you didn't know already)
Okay, that's all from (500) Days of Summer! (All images were googled) :D
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