The movie “500 Days of Summer” is a romantic comedy directed by Mark Webb with stars Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt who play Tom Hansen and Summer Finn. The narrator warns the audience in the first few minutes of the film that “this is not a love story,” although Webb describes this film as a rom-com and coming-of-age movie.

The movie is very controversial, as two different types of audiences say that love should not be taken seriously and that love is only a fantasy because people get their feelings hurt. Others argue that love is a destiny, and they believe in “true love.”

In this movie, Tom falls in love with his new coworker Summer and is enchanted by their shared interests, particularly their mutual love for the band The Smiths. Later, at a karaoke night, they talk about love. Tom believes in it, but Summer does not and expresses that people get their feelings hurt and would rather save the seriousness later in life. A few days later, Summer spontaneously kisses Tom in the office although Summer is not looking for a serious relationship Tom agrees to a casual relationship. As they continue to hang out, Tom falls more in love. However, Summer’s reluctance to commit leads to a series of misunderstandings and heartbreaks.

After their breakup, Tom struggles to move on, but eventually finds solace in his passion for architecture, a field Summer had encouraged him to pursue. The film concludes with Tom meeting a new woman named Autumn in an interview for an architecture job, suggesting the possibility of new beginnings.

This film has sparked many controversies such as lack of communication and boundaries, meaning that Tom ignores Summer’s expressed desire for a non-committed relationship, leading to misunderstandings and emotional turmoil. Critics argue that the film romanticizes this lack of communication and boundaries, presenting Tom’s persistence as endearing rather than problematic. This dynamic has been seen as reinforcing unhealthy relationship patterns.

Many people agree with Summer and say that relationships aren’t that big of a deal and that people should enjoy their youth and worry about the seriousness of it later. Opposers express that when you have a chance to fall in love, take it. You shouldn’t wait and it shouldn’t be pushed away. Similar to politics, this film has caused a big controversy because it has grabbed people’s attention as it deals with sensitive feelings in which everyone has common interests. Everybody has a different background in love which causes different outlooks.

Which are you? Do you believe in love? Or do you think that people’s feelings get hurt and should not be dealt with? This film is important because it connects and speaks out to people and relays different messages and themes. I recommend this movie to others because love is something that society relates to and the film shows an understanding of love from multiple angles.