This is a movie that I only love more as I get older and become more mature. I had a very similar failed relationship where I went through mostly the same arc as Tom. I definitely think that there is no "bad guy" in this movie, just two people who didn't work out with each other and had to process what they learned from their time together.
My favorite lines: “I’m not comfortable being anyone’s *anything*”- Summer “Robin’s better than the girl of my dreams. She’s real.”- Paul “[You were] right. It just wasn’t me that you were right about.”- Summer
I actually have another take on the ending, when he walks back and asks autumn out. When he first saw summer, he never just outright asked her out or told her how he felt, he was incredibly passive. He assumed that when you meet the love of your life it just sort of happens. But the reality is, that "fate" or the universe gives you an opportunity, nothing more, and it's up to you to seize it. Summer said as much when she talked about how her husband approached her at the deli. So Tom walking back and not letting the moment pass without seizing it shows his evolution and how his view on love matured because of summer. It's not just a feeling that "you just know", you have to make the move.
Yes! Thank you! He tried a lot of things with summer, but was her taking the initiative all the time. With autumn, he's trying to be more real, and didn't wait for the perfect moment or opportunity to act.
Good video essay. I like the parallel you made with The Graduate. It's so much fun to hear different perspectives on the film. You get so much more with every pass. 1. Notice how bland Summer's character was? The story is the unreliable narrator trope. It tells it from Tom's skewed perspective. 2. Tom was not in love with Summer. He loved the way she made him feel when she made him feel good and he hated the way she made him feel when she made him feel bad. He didn't love her essence. 3. Tom was self centered. He didn't get cues when Summer was in tears or even seem to care what she was feeling or saying. Not to diss on his character. I love Tom. He's flawed and had to learn a hard lesson. 4. A vital development in the middle of the movie was after the bar fight and Tom lays it all out how he feels. Summer could have let him go but she came to him and wanted to give it another try and open up. She seemed to consider being in a relationship with Tom. 5. There was a character arc with Summer, she became a romantic. 6. Summer wore blue and Tom wore neutral fall colors. Autumn also wore Tom's brown color palette. That gave me hope in their future relationship. I'm sure there is more that I missed but it is such a beautiful film on so many levels.
When you said we have all been summers and Toms, I thought I’ve been more Tom than summer but then immediately walked it back. Cause summers unless they really think about it, don’t know that they person they were just spending time with loved them.
500 Days of Summer is the one of the most real relationships I’ve ever seen in media. Didn’t realize that until I became Tom and had my own 730 days of someone (rough estimate). Both were flawed people who weren’t ready for each other but affected each other so much for their next relationship. They helped each other grow although I am skeptical on how much growth either person made but Summer realized Love was real and Tom grew more realistic expectations although he does somewhat revert to his previous state.
Something about Tom and Summer’s final interaction feels surreal. She seems to have manifested on that park bench, exactly at the moment, when Tom put himself back together. Summer’s remarks about destiny and Tom’s calling out her lead-on behavior may have occurred. Conversely, it simply could have been a figment of Tom’s subconscious, where he had the chance to critique Summer in a dignified manner (probably a far cry from what he truly wanted to say).
People want to keep taking sides with this movie or paint these characters as negative or positive. Truth is that attraction is complicated and your hormones can warp your brain. And these are basically young kids in this movie trying to figure themselves out and who they are and what they want etc. Its clear tom is coming from a low place in his life and wants intimacy so he latches on to summer because again beauty is fucking powerful. And summer is guarded and saying no from the outset, which means she is probably recovering from a bad relationship, but also wants to feel something so she continuously breaks her own boundaries and doesn't stick to her own words. Its all a bunch of mixed signals from her and he just goes along like a love sick puppy. They are both just people who don't have the tools to navigate this relationship at this time and they are both immature in their own way. Such is youth.
This movie offers us two manic pixie dream characters. As you pointed out, Tom and Summer needed each other to learn about themselves. Would be interesting to see a cinematic counterpoint, with Summer as the main protagonist, and how she goes through life before starting work at Tom’s company
If a similar Japanese-language rom-com were filmed, the love interest’s name could be Haru (spring) or Natsuko (summer child). The new girl would be Aki (autumn)
Amazing video, it really described how I also felt watching this movie. I first watched it by accident and it hit really hard. At the time I was recovering from a bad break up, where I was the Tom of the relationship, a one sided love. I was really delusional, just having enough contact with other women to get what I wanted, then I would just go away looking for another temporary connection. I was for many months like this, until I watched this movie. It showed me that I was not alone and that I could learn more from that failed relationship. I opened up my head and was able to see my own "Autumn" in the middle of all the people. Now we are almost 10 years married and have a daughter. And, looking back, I can see the best thing that girlfriend did to me was breaking up. She enabled me to find a better person for myself.
so so so eloquently put. enjoyed it from start to end. love is tricky. its funny and it's so contextual. nobody is the villain to me because at the end both tom and summer were doing what they wanted to do and what was best for them and isn't that what we'd all have done?
When someone shows you who they truly are, believe them. My experience has been that most women don't seem attracted to men who are not on their purpose, who don't follow their purpose.
I think if a summer was not sure about herself, Tom should not of spend time in anything, in those situations instead of jumping fully into relationships, he should of leave her alone and focus on in his own life, he can check up after 3 or 6 month what's been happening in their lives but nothing more. As I am saying it's very hard to do because your feelings are so strong for the person. I can not say she was leading him on because sign was there from the beginning that she is figuring it out her life. I guess it's best to stay away from these kind of people straight away it's not worth the pain. I have been there done that exactly.
This was a great movie. It gives so much intentional ambiguity and open endedness that the audience gets to think for itself. The audience gets to decide if Tom got a happy ending with Autumn. I think he did not. Tom being an unreliable narrator lets us decide how much of Summer we see was accurate and how much of the Summer we see was only in Tom's mind and misremembering. Tom was a lot like Ted Mosby that way. Tom and Autumn must have watched How I Met Your Mother together.
Chapter 8 is the best, also loved wolfmother since before I saw this movie. Gotta love the rest of the message about love/relationships but the depiction of Tom's evolution combined with the depiction of his flaws that remain is still so raw. He's still just starting to get it kind of and where he'll be next but he's still stuck to the past even with as far as he comes. It also never really gives insight to if he ever got over her truly after that even though he got a lot more closure while on the bench and while we're given a hopeful glimpse that he may see a relationship where he gets what he needs at the very end right before his architect interview, it's just as possible that it still goes bad, but he's got more experience now and maybe he'll at least have better luck and be more wise about his relationship.
This movie matures with you. I can relate to Tom's character as my idea of love is shaped by bollywood movies, music and poetry making me a hopeless romantic. This idea of people meant to be always together and will do whatever it takes to be with each other is unrealistic. In a real world love is different and this is scary for me.
This was me and my girl Ale In the year of 2020 The world felt like it had more color when we were together Everything a bit brighter When she disappeared Like the white stripes said “Dead leaf on a dirty ground when I know you’re not around” I miss us
Paul is my favorite in the film. He’s the essential beta character to Tom’s alpha. Tom and Summer (alpha) are more fun to watch, but Paul and Robin (beta) are the aspirational duo
Pwrhaps it's not necessarily that he starts to believe in destiny again (although that's what the director is trying to convey) but that life is what you make of it.
I love this movie. Just imagine it as a gender swap: a girl is fixated on a guy to commit while he is determined to stay friends with benefits who do not see other people but do not make promises either. Harder to imagine, isn't it?
Tom wanting to be an architect could use more analysis. Tom was selfish in his career goals. He quit a really good job with great pay and a boss most workers wish they had because it was not his dream job. He projected all his expectations on that profession without learning the reality of the job market. He only liked the idea of being an architect because it is popular in romantic movies.
ahhh so good bro. Make more movie ones please
This is a movie that I only love more as I get older and become more mature. I had a very similar failed relationship where I went through mostly the same arc as Tom. I definitely think that there is no "bad guy" in this movie, just two people who didn't work out with each other and had to process what they learned from their time together.
Summer was selfish and inconsiderate. If you don't want to give someone else what they need then don't play with their emotions and waste their time
My favorite lines:
“I’m not comfortable being anyone’s *anything*”- Summer
“Robin’s better than the girl of my dreams. She’s real.”- Paul
“[You were] right. It just wasn’t me that you were right about.”- Summer
Probably been mentioned in multiple comments, already, but *expectations vs. reality* is one of the coolest scenes in modern cinema
I actually have another take on the ending, when he walks back and asks autumn out. When he first saw summer, he never just outright asked her out or told her how he felt, he was incredibly passive. He assumed that when you meet the love of your life it just sort of happens. But the reality is, that "fate" or the universe gives you an opportunity, nothing more, and it's up to you to seize it. Summer said as much when she talked about how her husband approached her at the deli. So Tom walking back and not letting the moment pass without seizing it shows his evolution and how his view on love matured because of summer. It's not just a feeling that "you just know", you have to make the move.
I really like this
Yes! Thank you! He tried a lot of things with summer, but was her taking the initiative all the time. With autumn, he's trying to be more real, and didn't wait for the perfect moment or opportunity to act.
Good video essay. I like the parallel you made with The Graduate. It's so much fun to hear different perspectives on the film. You get so much more with every pass.
1. Notice how bland Summer's character was? The story is the unreliable narrator trope. It tells it from Tom's skewed perspective.
2. Tom was not in love with Summer. He loved the way she made him feel when she made him feel good and he hated the way she made him feel when she made him feel bad. He didn't love her essence.
3. Tom was self centered. He didn't get cues when Summer was in tears or even seem to care what she was feeling or saying. Not to diss on his character. I love Tom. He's flawed and had to learn a hard lesson.
4. A vital development in the middle of the movie was after the bar fight and Tom lays it all out how he feels. Summer could have let him go but she came to him and wanted to give it another try and open up. She seemed to consider being in a relationship with Tom.
5. There was a character arc with Summer, she became a romantic.
6. Summer wore blue and Tom wore neutral fall colors. Autumn also wore Tom's brown color palette. That gave me hope in their future relationship.
I'm sure there is more that I missed but it is such a beautiful film on so many levels.
When you said we have all been summers and Toms, I thought I’ve been more Tom than summer but then immediately walked it back. Cause summers unless they really think about it, don’t know that they person they were just spending time with loved them.
500 Days of Summer is the one of the most real relationships I’ve ever seen in media. Didn’t realize that until I became Tom and had my own 730 days of someone (rough estimate).
Both were flawed people who weren’t ready for each other but affected each other so much for their next relationship. They helped each other grow although I am skeptical on how much growth either person made but Summer realized Love was real and Tom grew more realistic expectations although he does somewhat revert to his previous state.
Something about Tom and Summer’s final interaction feels surreal. She seems to have manifested on that park bench, exactly at the moment, when Tom put himself back together. Summer’s remarks about destiny and Tom’s calling out her lead-on behavior may have occurred. Conversely, it simply could have been a figment of Tom’s subconscious, where he had the chance to critique Summer in a dignified manner (probably a far cry from what he truly wanted to say).
People want to keep taking sides with this movie or paint these characters as negative or positive.
Truth is that attraction is complicated and your hormones can warp your brain. And these are basically young kids in this movie trying to figure themselves out and who they are and what they want etc.
Its clear tom is coming from a low place in his life and wants intimacy so he latches on to summer because again beauty is fucking powerful. And summer is guarded and saying no from the outset, which means she is probably recovering from a bad relationship, but also wants to feel something so she continuously breaks her own boundaries and doesn't stick to her own words. Its all a bunch of mixed signals from her and he just goes along like a love sick puppy. They are both just people who don't have the tools to navigate this relationship at this time and they are both immature in their own way. Such is youth.
This movie offers us two manic pixie dream characters. As you pointed out, Tom and Summer needed each other to learn about themselves. Would be interesting to see a cinematic counterpoint, with Summer as the main protagonist, and how she goes through life before starting work at Tom’s company
Love this movie, I have only cried to two films in my life. When the (500) turns to (1) right at the end. man.
Just watched it over a few weeks ago, and it has become one of my favourite "love" stories thus far, and this really is such a beautiful analysis.
If a similar Japanese-language rom-com were filmed, the love interest’s name could be Haru (spring) or Natsuko (summer child). The new girl would be Aki (autumn)
Or would their names be Haruko and Akiko?
Amazing video, it really described how I also felt watching this movie.
I first watched it by accident and it hit really hard. At the time I was recovering from a bad break up, where I was the Tom of the relationship, a one sided love. I was really delusional, just having enough contact with other women to get what I wanted, then I would just go away looking for another temporary connection.
I was for many months like this, until I watched this movie. It showed me that I was not alone and that I could learn more from that failed relationship. I opened up my head and was able to see my own "Autumn" in the middle of all the people. Now we are almost 10 years married and have a daughter.
And, looking back, I can see the best thing that girlfriend did to me was breaking up. She enabled me to find a better person for myself.
The Graduate’s ending is heartbreaking, in hindsight. Elaine ran out on her husband-to-be with the guy, who slept with her mom
It made no sense for Elaine to go for Ben. I didn't see why she left her wedding for that creepy stalker.
so so so eloquently put. enjoyed it from start to end. love is tricky. its funny and it's so contextual. nobody is the villain to me because at the end both tom and summer were doing what they wanted to do and what was best for them and isn't that what we'd all have done?
fantastic video bro. 500 days of summer is literally what im going through rn
Incredible analysis. Thank you for reminding me why I love this movie and why I need to dive into it again.
When someone shows you who they truly are, believe them. My experience has been that most women don't seem attracted to men who are not on their purpose, who don't follow their purpose.
500 days of summer is so close to Romeo and Juliet where it shows that young love is immature, selfish and tragic but with a good ending.
I think if a summer was not sure about herself, Tom should not of spend time in anything, in those situations instead of jumping fully into relationships, he should of leave her alone and focus on in his own life, he can check up after 3 or 6 month what's been happening in their lives but nothing more. As I am saying it's very hard to do because your feelings are so strong for the person. I can not say she was leading him on because sign was there from the beginning that she is figuring it out her life. I guess it's best to stay away from these kind of people straight away it's not worth the pain. I have been there done that exactly.
This was a great movie. It gives so much intentional ambiguity and open endedness that the audience gets to think for itself. The audience gets to decide if Tom got a happy ending with Autumn. I think he did not. Tom being an unreliable narrator lets us decide how much of Summer we see was accurate and how much of the Summer we see was only in Tom's mind and misremembering. Tom was a lot like Ted Mosby that way. Tom and Autumn must have watched How I Met Your Mother together.
Chapter 8 is the best, also loved wolfmother since before I saw this movie. Gotta love the rest of the message about love/relationships but the depiction of Tom's evolution combined with the depiction of his flaws that remain is still so raw. He's still just starting to get it kind of and where he'll be next but he's still stuck to the past even with as far as he comes. It also never really gives insight to if he ever got over her truly after that even though he got a lot more closure while on the bench and while we're given a hopeful glimpse that he may see a relationship where he gets what he needs at the very end right before his architect interview, it's just as possible that it still goes bad, but he's got more experience now and maybe he'll at least have better luck and be more wise about his relationship.
This is the best analysis ever for this masterpiece... thanks
Beautiful analysis
Best explanation and beautiful background song. 👌
This is so good. Well done, sir.
This movie matures with you. I can relate to Tom's character as my idea of love is shaped by bollywood movies, music and poetry making me a hopeless romantic. This idea of people meant to be always together and will do whatever it takes to be with each other is unrealistic. In a real world love is different and this is scary for me.
I just had to let you know…this video is incredible
Thanks broski 😗
This video deserves wayyyyy more views
This was me and my girl Ale
In the year of 2020
The world felt like it had more color when we were together
Everything a bit brighter
When she disappeared
Like the white stripes said
“Dead leaf on a dirty ground when I know you’re not around”
I miss us
Paul is my favorite in the film. He’s the essential beta character to Tom’s alpha. Tom and Summer (alpha) are more fun to watch, but Paul and Robin (beta) are the aspirational duo
So spot on…
Its too late.. theyre all dead..
this video is super amazing thank you a lot
Man I could’ve used the lessons learned from this when I was younger.
Beautiful vid my guy. Big up!!!!!!
Pwrhaps it's not necessarily that he starts to believe in destiny again (although that's what the director is trying to convey) but that life is what you make of it.
how does this have less than 5k views i legit thought u were like a channel with 2mil subs with this quality content
Appreciate you 🙏
What background/ambient music did you use (outside of the soundtrack cuts)? It was incredible
we're not in boston anymore
how do you not have more subs
Ah, man.
I love this movie. Just imagine it as a gender swap: a girl is fixated on a guy to commit while he is determined to stay friends with benefits who do not see other people but do not make promises either. Harder to imagine, isn't it?
Tom wanting to be an architect could use more analysis. Tom was selfish in his career goals. He quit a really good job with great pay and a boss most workers wish they had because it was not his dream job. He projected all his expectations on that profession without learning the reality of the job market. He only liked the idea of being an architect because it is popular in romantic movies.
That awkward moment when you sympathize with Summer but you're a man.
Selfish either way. Many guys will lead on a girl for a steady piece even though they know they don't want her as a girlfriend
I guess i'll blame all the indie songs and all these romantic movies , wong kar wai , eric rohmer ... for fueling this sh!t on me ... and move on
Gonna watch the movie then come back to this
Excited to hear ur thoughts 🤞