(4.5 out of 5 stars)

This movie grabs you before any action even begins. Stating that the all characters are fictional in case of coincidence, except for Jenny…bitch. Hilarious in a subtle and chuckling way, it sets the tone for the entire movie. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel are perfect as the fated couple.

It shows its indie roots, by giving us quirky timelines, showing us all 500 days in a back and forth order. If they would have showed us day 1 thru 500, it would have lost its edge and quirkiness. It gives us a narrator from time to time; it gives us a split screen ‘reality’ vs. ‘expectations’ that has continued subtle hilarity; it even gives us a musical number with the actor dancing with the passers-by on screen. And it’s this quirkiness that makes this so much more than a typical romantic comedy.

I suppose this movie gets classified as a rom-com, but usually those types of movies have pratfalls or utter sweetness, but 500 gives us reality, the way it really happens, the way it actually is, so often between guys and girls, not saying what we mean, and never meaning what we say. It’s this reality that allows the movie to connect to its audience.

As you start to love to hate Summer, you also root for Gordon-Levitt’s Tom. He is such a romantic. They seem so right for each other. Maybe they will end up together, maybe they will not, but it is worth the wait to spend the 500 days with them in a short 90 minutes and see what Autumn has to bring.