8. (500) Days of Summer (2009)
Marc Webb's outstanding romantic comedy tells us right from the opening narration that, "This is a story of boy meets girl, but you should know upfront, this is not a love story", making it clear that when Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) locks his eyes on Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel), it's not going to end well. And it doesn't, but Webb is more interested in portraying the journey - via non-linear narrative - and the notion of perspective, of how two people can view a relationship so differently, coloured by their pasts and their life experiences. Tom, a happy-go-lucky sort, is keen to throw himself into a relationship with Summer, but Summer, tainted by her parents' divorce, doesn't believe in love, and prefers not to put a boyfriend-girlfriend label on it. After things cool off following an argument, Tom meets Summer months later, and the two appear to reconnect, with her inviting him to a party. However, when he gets there, hoping to get her back, he sees that she's wearing an engagement ring, and is thrown into a crushing depression. Tom sees her by chance some time later, asking for clarification about what happened, and she asserts that, yes, true love does exist, and she found it with her husband who, in a smart move by Webb, we never see, helping fill us with the same curious anxiety as Tom. The two have a pleasant goodbye, and that's that. Resolving that "there are plenty more fish in the sea", Webb closes the film by having Tom applying for dream jobs and striking up a conversation with a like-minded woman, and organising a coffee date. Her name? Autumn. Slightly cheesy perhaps, but it's a cute way to end a wonderfully honest, heartfelt film. It's hopeful and realistic at the same time.