Lemondrop

"This is a story of boy meets girl, but it is not a love story." -- "(500) Days of Summer"

Screenwriter Scott Neustadter's new film, "(500) Days of Summer," is getting love from critics and swooning indie romantics. The sweet success was born out of one of Neustadter's own bitter breakups

In the movie, a guy named Tom (portrayed by the delectable, talented Joseph Gordon-Levitt) reflects on a failed romance with a woman named Summer (played by our girl crush Zooey Deschanel). The movie flashes back on various milestones throughout the 500 days that the couple has known each other.

Scott was a massive wreck after the real-life Summer stomped on his heart, and he coped by writing the movie, which refreshingly casts the guy as the moony jiltee. We chatted with him about sucky breakups and watching one's love life play out on the big screen.

Lemondrop: How did people you know react, knowing that your story was going to be this big movie?
Scott Neustadter: When we were at Sundance and the audience was clapping, my mother turned to me and said "I'm so sorry." ... I'm a private person and never talked about anything I was going through. And then, bam, there it all is in a movie.

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Lemondrop: When you started, were you consciously creating this film, or just kind of venting?
SN: When my relationship crashed and burned, I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what had happened. Did I do something wrong? Could I have done something to keep it alive? Did I really love this person or was it just the drama? [Writing partner Michael] Weber and I had always wanted to write a relationship movie so it seemed a natural fit.

Lemondrop: Did you know so many people would relate to the story?
SN: That never even crossed my mind. We were writing about a specific, personal situation, solely for us. Were it not for the unusual structure and all of the bells and whistles that come with telling this through a warped point of view, I don't think we would have shared the script with anyone for fear that it was too un-relatable.

Lemondrop: You say this is not a love story, but come on!
SN: What we're really saying here is that it doesn't take two people to fall in love. I think the term "love story" intimates a happy ending, especially in Hollywood movies. But we intentionally start off this movie letting audiences know: If you're here to watch two people fall in love and walk off hand in hand into the sunset, you're in for a rough 90 minutes.

Lemondrop: And a romance with a male protagonist. That's pretty novel.
SN: It's still surprising to all of us that people view this as an intentional flipping of gender roles. None of us involved with the film ever thought of this in that way. My male friends sit around and talk about relationships just as much as women do. I think part of what makes this story work is that we've all been on both sides -- we've liked someone more than they've liked us.

Lemondrop: So, has your ex seen the movie?
SN: She hasn't seen the movie, but she's read the script. And, in fact, when she did her response was that she related to the Tom character. Which, when you think about it, really says a lot.

Scott Neustadter is a screenwriter (and kind of a looker!) who lives and writes in Los Angeles.