(500) Days of Summer

First of all, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie sans the tinges of familiarity with the main characters. They are honest looks, but also stereotypical in ways.

A girlfriend and I got to talking about relationship patterns last night after class. Who we choose, who we attract, how we behave, why.

Summer Finn, in the movie, cares about one thing above others in her ill-defined, underidefined relationship with Tom: having a good time. While she tries to add disclaimers to their time together, the truth remains - one cannot manage people's emotions with disclaimers.

The film does a good job of showing the mirror to Tom, whose expectations of Summer despite her protests were off-base. We watch with some discomfort her reactions, her gentle rejections. He has an aha moment. No, not really... It all happens slowly, and in the end, we're still not quite sure if he would've preferred what he had to what he might. We leave the cinema feeling the Tom in ourselves spoken to. This movie is an homage to the desperately broken-hearted, or those who have once been.

I guess for me, having been Summer in almost every adult relationship, the movie left me feeling a little dried out. As much insight is offered about Tom and his experience, very little is offered about Summer and hers. And in the end, we ultimately pursue art because of the answers we hope it brings.