February Film Club

Hey everybody, hope you survived the snow storm we just had!  First of all, let me thank everybody who made it out to our showing of Luis Bunuel's The Exterminating Angel, we had a good turn out and a good discussion.  If you weren't able to make it, we do offer it for rental at the library.  Now, on to business.
Now, as you all know, I am a fan of the romantic comedies, HUGE fan.  Ok, that's not true, not even slightly, but, there are a few romances that I don't find horrible.  For the month of February, we will be watching one of these movies.  This month's film club film will be Marc Webb's directorial debut: (500) Days of Summer.

(500) Days of Summer is a 2009 American romantic comedy-drama film written by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, directed by Marc Webb, and starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel.  The film employs a nonlinear narrative structure, with the story based upon its male protagonist and his memories of a failed relationship.  It premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and garnered critical acclaim, becoming a successful "sleeper hit".  Many critics lauded the film as one of the best from 2009 and drew comparisons to other acclaimed films such as Annie Hall and High Fidelity.  As I mentioned, the film is presented in a nonlinear narrative, as it jumps from various days within the 500-day span of Tom and Summer's relationship, indicated by an animation that includes the day's number.

The film received positive reviews from critics upon its release.  Based on over 214 professional reviews, it obtained a certified fresh seal on Rotten Tomatoes with an approval rating of 86%.  The consensus describes the film as "A clever, offbeat romantic comedy, (500) Days of Summer is refreshingly honest and utterly charming."  Film critic Roger Ebert awarded the film 4/4 stars saying this of the film, "Tom opens the film by announcing it will not be your typical love story.  Are you like me, and when you realize a movie is on autopilot you get impatient with it?  How long can the characters pretend they don't know how the story will end?  Here is a rare movie that begins by telling us how it will end and is about how the hero has no idea why."

This film is one of those rare romantic-comedies that I don't hate or find a chore to watch.  Come on out and join us for this wonderful little film.

We will be meeting Thursday, Feb. 19th at 6:15pm.  Hope to see you there!

Here's the trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsD0NpFSADM