(500) Days of Summer - the film and the soundtrack

'Juno' seems to have sparked a trend. Kooky, introspective, happy/sad, indie-wannabe film with teenagers uses oh-so-tasteful indie soundtrack, creating a huge hit and a spike in sales for the associated bands. 'Juno' was the first, there have been lesser others, but '(500) Days of Summer' is the idealogical successor.

I saw the film yesterday and it is good. The story is a well known one. Boy meets girl, boy falls in love, girl doesn't. Well known in life but not, to be fair, in major-release films. There is no happy ending here, the girl, Summer (Zooey Deschanel....Ellen Page presumably, wasn't available) marries someone else and the boy, after something of a nervous breakdown (quits job, turns to archeology), eventually embarks on a new relationship. The film deals with the question of whether there is 'a one' for us all and whether fate plays a hand in us meeting that person. The boy meets his new girlfriend by chance and we are encouraged to think that this girl is his 'one', but many will leave the cinema thinking that this relationship is clearly doomed to failure as he will always love Summer. This stuff happens. So how much of a 'happy ending' it is really depends on your outlook. For me, it was pretty bleak stuff, but a well made, thoughtful film.

It won't be to everyone's taste, it is undoubtably very American and Zooey Deschanel is as kooky as the most kooky thing you could possibly imagine on Planet Kooky. She plays Summer as being very detached and slightly robotic, offering little hint of what is going on in her head, meaning that your sympathies are usually with Tom (played by Joseph-Gordon Levitt). Maybe this is how it was meant to be, it just felt a little odd to have such an undefined lead character.

One aspect of the film is that Tom and Summer have similar taste in music. "Sad English music" apparently, although I saw little evidence of this. The Beatles...sad? The Clash....sad? Does anyone still think of The Smiths as sad (ok they were listening to 'There is a light that never goes out' not 'Frankly Mr Shankly' but still). This is lazy and a bit cliched. The selection of songs used in the film is an exercise in making a mix tape of tasteful indie. It is more notable to look at what was missed off. I was surprised there was no Sufjan, Belle & Sebastian were mentioned but not used ('Another Sunny Day' would have fitted in well) and I was surprised not to hear 'Fade Into You' by Mazzy Star at some point).

This is all well and good but there will be none of this type of songs left to use soon. Its a positive thing if it encourages people to check out The Pixies or Regina Spektor for the first time though.

Oh and She and Him's version of 'Please Let Me Get What I Want' just reinforces what I have always thought...there is no point in covering The Smiths. You can't out-Morrissey Morrissey and a straight cover just sounds...boring.

Go and see the film though...