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# MOVIE REVIEW: (500) Days of Summer (2009)
- URL: https://www.bensmovieguide.com/500-days-of-summer-2009-review/
- Published: 2026-10-27T15:42:24.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-27T15:42:24.000Z
- Description: A hopeless romantic falls for a coworker who has very different expectations. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel give this funny, bittersweet relationship story its appeal, while a shuffled timeline lets us question the romance its leading man remembers.
- Author: Ben
- Tags: #title-only, #movie, Movie: (500) Days of Summer (2009), romance, comedy, drama, 2000s, Rating: PG-13, #Runtime: 95, #Rated For: sexual material and language, #Verdict: Rent, #Watch: Major Platforms, #Eyebrow: READ THE SIGNS, TOM

Having the same taste in music is a good start. Whether it means you’re supposed to spend the rest of your lives together is a different matter.

*(500) Days of Summer* follows a man who gets a bit ahead of himself on that second part. It’s funny, occasionally uncomfortable, and particularly good at showing how we can turn a promising connection into a whole future the other person hasn’t agreed to.

**What It’s About**

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Tom Hansen, a greeting-card writer who believes there’s one person out there who will make everything fall into place. When Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel) starts working at his office, he begins to think he’s found her.

Summer enjoys his company, but she doesn’t share his enthusiasm for serious relationships. Tom hears that. Whether he actually accepts it is another matter.

The movie jumps around their 500-day history, moving between the excitement of getting close and the confusion of trying to understand what happened. A happy afternoon can sit right beside an unhappy conversation, giving us a chance to compare the relationship Tom remembers with the one unfolding onscreen.

**Who It’s For**

You'll love 500 Days if you like romantic comedies that leave room for people to misunderstand each other without making either person a complete idiot or an obvious villain.

The quirkiness can feel a little calculated, and seeing everything largely through Tom’s perspective leaves Summer harder to know. But that limited perspective also gives the movie something worth examining. Watch it for the humor, the chemistry, and the gap between liking someone and understanding them.

Being perfect for someone in your head doesn’t necessarily make them perfect for you in real life. This movie finds plenty of humor (and some uncomfortable recognition) in that distinction.

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