Ever since It Happened One Night"" pratfell into American hearts in 1934, it seems practically everything that can be done in a romantic comedy has been. Not since the works of Woody Allen and Cameron Crowe in the late '80s and mid-'90s has there really been any evolution in the genre, leaving rom-coms at a point where their success almost entirely depends on their ability to sweet talk the audience. Fortunately, director Marc Webb definitely knows how to charm with his debut film ""(500) Days of Summer,"" in which he has created characters whom you love to spend time with and a world you love to spend time in (and considering that world is Los Angeles, that is one hell of an achievement).
Right off the bat, the film's godlike, baritone narrator declares, ""This is not a love story, this is a story about love."" While that might make ""(500) Days"" sound more original than it actually is, it is nonetheless an apt description, and in a world of cinema that feels the need to wrap everything up in a nice and tidy fashion, it is a message that is more than welcome. The movie is further established just frames earlier during the standard ""This movie is not based on any persons living or dead"" disclaimer. Webb and screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber turn the statement into a scathing jab at an ex-girlfriend that is hilarious, a little depressing and heartfelt all at the same time.
This constantly shifting emotional tone is carried on by the film's two perfectly cast leads. ""(500) Days"" stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom, an underachieving young professional who has idealized the concept of love thanks to years of exposure to popular culture. Tom falls for the titular Summer (Zooey Deschanel), a sort of manic pixie anti-dream girl who happens to hold the polar opposite viewpoint on relationships. The story covers the 500 days of Tom's courtship of Summer, jumping nonlinearly from high points to low points and everything in between.
Much like Webb, Gordon-Levitt and Deschanel are infinitely charismatic, and both of them have invested their characters with a likability and identifiable nature that makes them incredibly fun to watch. Gordon-Levitt in particular has a very John Cusack quality about him, and it wouldn't be surprising if he could reinvigorate the entire romantic comedy genre for guys. He has an excellent hold on the male lead role (even managing to maneuver around some of its contrivances, such as his job as a greeting card writer) and puts his own touch on it once ""(500) Days"" hits its hitch in Summer's failure to reciprocate Tom's feelings. Deschanel herself does an excellent job of bucking the all-too-common archetype of the idealized girl of whimsy, particularly impressive considering lesser actresses likely would have turned the role into a carbon copy of Natalie Portman in ""Garden State.""
But it's Webb's style that really steals the movie. Webb has a knack for injecting a shot of energy into the story right when it needs it. Be it with an impromptu musical number (complete with singing animated birds) or a heartbreaking scene showing Tom's expectations compared with reality via split-screen, Webb has a great directorial hand that turns ""(500) Days"" from a dull exercise on rejection into a fantastic trip with two great characters. Pining over failed relationships has been done before in ""High Fidelity"" (starring the aforementioned Cusack) or the seminal ""Annie Hall"" (from the aforementioned Woody Allen), but Webb uses enough variation and just the right amount of cinematic tricks to keep ""(500) Days"" interesting without going overboard.
The high frequency of those tricks indicates that Webb probably thinks he's more clever than he actually is, which makes some of the more clichéd moments stick out more than they normally would. Also, once the ending comes around, he comes dangerously close to crossing the line between cute and just plain tired. But Webb has such a friendly, inviting way of presentation that everything feels new, even when it isn't. And when you're working with a medium like film that is all about perception, isn't that what really counts?
