You remember that feeling. It was 2009. The Smiths were playing in the background of a bright, indie-saturated clip, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt was looking at Zooey Deschanel like she was the only person who ever mattered. The (500) Days of Summer trailer promised us a quirky, lighthearted romantic comedy about a boy meeting a girl. But honestly? It was a bait-and-switch. A brilliant, calculated, and slightly cruel one.
Most people who clicked play on that trailer back in the day—or find it on YouTube now—think they’re settling in for a story about finding "The One." The marketing lean was heavy on the "Adorkable" energy. You see the IKEA date. You see the playful banter about Ringo Starr. It feels safe. It feels like Garden State but with better haircuts.
But if you look closer at that original teaser, the narrator literally tells you: "This is a story of boy meets girl, but you should know up front, this is not a love story." We just didn't listen. We chose to ignore the warning because the aesthetic was too tempting.
The Anatomy of a Perfect (500) Days of Summer trailer
The trailer works because it mirrors Tom Hansen's own selective memory. It’s a rhythmic montage of the "best hits" of a relationship. It uses the song "Us" by Regina Spektor to build this crescendo of emotional inevitability. It’s fast. It’s punchy.
Marc Webb, the director, came from a music video background. You can see that influence in every frame of the (500) Days of Summer trailer. He knew exactly how to sync the visual of Summer Finn laughing with a drum beat to make your brain release dopamine. It’s a masterclass in editing. It creates a narrative of soulmates out of what are actually just moments of shared interests.
Why the "This is not a love story" line failed to warn us
It’s kind of funny, actually. The trailer is incredibly honest if you actually pay attention to the voiceover. The narrator, voiced by Richard McGonagle, is dead serious. Yet, the imagery of Tom and Summer dancing in a park or shouting in a movie theater is so powerful that it overrides the literal words being spoken.
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We are conditioned by decades of cinema to believe that any obstacle in a trailer is just a third-act hurdle. When the trailer shows Tom looking depressed on a bus, we think, "Oh, they're having a fight, but they'll make up at the airport." The trailer weaponized our expectations of the genre against us.
The Hall & Oates Effect: Marketing Joy vs. Reality
There is a specific shot in the (500) Days of Summer trailer where Tom is walking down the street and everyone starts dancing to "You Make My Dreams" by Hall & Oates. It’s arguably the most famous scene in the film. In the context of the trailer, it looks like a celebration of a new relationship.
In reality, that scene happens when Tom thinks he’s "won." It represents his absolute delusion.
The trailer also leans heavily into the "Manic Pixie Dream Girl" trope that critic Nathan Rabin coined around that time. By focusing on Summer’s quirks—her birthmark, her love for Magritte, her vintage clothes—the trailer frames her as a prize to be figured out. It doesn't show her perspective because the movie isn't about her. It’s about Tom’s obsession with her.
The music that sold the lie
You can’t talk about this trailer without the soundtrack. It wasn't just Regina Spektor. It was the hint of The Smiths’ "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out." By including that specific track, the trailer signaled to a whole generation of "indie" kids that this was their movie.
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- It established "Cool Girl" credentials for Summer.
- It made Tom feel relatable to anyone who ever felt like an outsider.
- It used music as a shorthand for soul-bonding.
But as the movie later proves, liking the same "bizarro" music doesn't mean you're meant to spend your life together. The trailer purposefully confuses "common interests" with "compatibility."
Does the trailer hold up in 2026?
Looking back at the (500) Days of Summer trailer now, through a modern lens, it’s almost a psychological thriller. We’ve had a decade of discourse about "nice guys" and emotional labor. Today’s viewers see Tom’s behavior differently.
When you watch the trailer now, you might notice the red flags. The way Tom ignores Summer when she says she doesn't want anything serious. The way he projects his needs onto her. The trailer is a document of a very specific era of filmmaking—the late 2000s "Sundance" style—but its core trick is timeless. It shows us what we want to see.
What the trailer gets right about memory
The non-linear structure of the film is hinted at in the trailer with the "Day 1," "Day 240," and "Day 480" counters. This is actually the most "honest" part of the marketing. It tells you that the story is fragmented.
Memory doesn't work in a straight line. When you’re heartbroken, you jump from a memory of a great breakfast to the memory of the final argument. The trailer mimics this. It’s a collage of feelings.
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Actionable insights for fans and filmmakers
If you're revisiting this film or looking at the (500) Days of Summer trailer for inspiration, there are a few things to keep in mind.
First, watch the "Expectations vs. Reality" sequence again. It’s the soul of the movie and the antithesis of the trailer. While the trailer sells the "Expectations," the movie is purely about the "Reality."
Second, pay attention to the color palette. Notice how the trailer is bathed in blues. That was a specific choice—Zooey Deschanel has blue eyes, so the production design used blue to highlight her presence in Tom's world. When she leaves, the blue fades.
Finally, use the trailer as a lesson in perspective. If you find yourself sympathizing entirely with Tom while watching it, try to watch it again while focusing only on Summer's expressions. She’s often looking uncomfortable or trying to maintain boundaries that Tom is pushing through.
Next Steps for Deep Diving:
- Compare the Teaser vs. the Full Trailer: The teaser is much more experimental, while the full theatrical trailer leans harder into the romantic comedy tropes.
- Watch the "Mean Girls" parody: There is a famous fan-edit that recuts the trailer to be a horror movie. It's surprisingly easy to do because the "love" Tom feels is so borderline obsessive.
- Analyze the Voiceover: Read the script of the narration. It is a cynical, dry commentary that perfectly balances the sugary visuals.
The (500) Days of Summer trailer remains a fascinating piece of media because it succeeded in its job: it got people into theaters. Whether they got the movie they expected is a different story entirely, but that’s the power of a well-cut 150 seconds.