10 Beloved Movie Heroes Who Are Actually Trash

4. Tom Hansen - (500) Days Of Summer

(500) Days of Summer was an instant critical and commercial hit on release, winning much praise for its "authentic" and unexpectedly complex depiction of human relationships.

Our hero is Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a hopeless romantic who quickly finds himself infatuated with Summer (Zooey Deschanel). But their "happily ever after" wasn't meant to be, and after warning Tom that she wasn't after anything serious, she eventually dumps him.

The movie unfolds from Tom's perspective, and for many audiences - especially young men - it appears to depict Summer as cold-hearted and difficult, breaking poor Tom's heart and positioning him as an easy-to-root-for romantic hero.

Except, that's not what (500) Days of Summer is really about.

Tom may be an initially charming chap thanks to Joseph Gordon-Levitt's inherent likeability, but he's also a textbook example of a "nice guy" - placing Summer on a pedestal, refusing to accept her on her own terms, not listening to her clear terms for the relationship and entering a self-imposed depression when his unrealistic expectations aren't met.

Gordon-Levitt himself said as much in a tweet last year, and though this reading was clearly intentional on the part of writer-director Marc Webb, it's an aspect of the movie that flies over the heads of so many viewers.

And considering how many fellow "nice guys" may watch the movie and use Tom's plight to fuel their own demented underdog narrative, it's arguably a little bit dangerous, too.