Stephanie's Film Festival Diary for Thursday, March 26

It's a shame that both scheduled showings of (500) Days of Summer were tonight, because unless this film ends up slotted for Festival Favorites, you might not get a chance to see it for a while. But whenever it hits theaters, whether it's a festival encore or wide release, go see it. Billed as an anti-romantic comedy, this film is enormously appealing if, like me, you think relationships are more trouble than they're worth and love is an illusion. That said, even hopeless romantics will be charmed by this engaging story.

The impossibly adorable Zooey Deschanel is Summer, that beautiful, effortlessly cool girl that guys want and girls want to be. She's also a longtime cynic who's sworn off relationships. So, naturally, Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, looking oddly reminiscent of Heath Ledger) falls for her. What ensues is a painfully funny look at the ups and downs of dating as the two try to navigate their way through a non-relationship.

Well-written and featuring humor that runs the gamut from deadpan to puns, (500) Days of Summer elicited more laughter from the audience than any film I've been to recently. The soundtrack was a perfect compliment to the action, especially the random choreographed musical number complete with a marching band and cartoon bluebird. And believe it or not, that number isn't even the strangest scene in the movie.
Festival Rating: Excellent

Image Credit: Flickr user pedrosimoes7.