It’s Official, I Love Summer!
I don’t think it’s a huge secret how in love I am with 500 Days of Summer. It’s one of my favorite films of the year thus far and I think one of the greatest romantic comedies of the past decade or so. Therefore when I found out about an event that Fox Searchlight was putting on via their twitter (@foxsearchilight) I was beyond excited! Everyone that has seen the film knows about THE BENCH. It’s like the staple of the film and it just happens to be in the heart of downtown LA. In one of my previous blogs about the film, I vowed that I would find the bench by the end of the film. Little did I know that I would not only be able to see finally find the bench which showcases the most beautiful view in Los Angeles but I’d be able to see the most beautiful girl in the world right by it
The actual event was advertised as Zooey Deschanel receiving a “key to the city” and the ceremony would conclude with them putting a plaque on the bench honoring the film. The event was scheduled from 11:30 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. My brother gave my best friend Chelsey and I a ride to downtown. At 11:10,a.m. we were still stuck in traffic in Hollywood. Finally we got off the freeway and it was 11:45 a.m. We arrived at 3rd and Olive– where the directions said to go– and jumped out of the car. We looked all around and saw absolutely no media circus like I had imagined and had no idea where the bench was. We were puzzled for several minutes. Then I looked to my left and recognized the view from the film. I turned my head and was greeted by a giant hill with a bench on it. The only way to get to the top of the hill was to climb 50 flights of the steepest stairs of all time. My adrenaline kicked in and I sprinted up the stairs. Chelsey took her time…to say she went slow would be giving her too much credit. I made it to the top and looked across the park to see a crowd of people and a child yellow piece of cardboard cut in the shape of a key. We sprinted towards the crowd which was awkwardly silent……probably because everyone was so mesmerized.
Once the ceremony concluded, we had the opportunity to go meet Summer. There she was the most beautiful girl in the world Katy Perry, Summer Finn, Zooey Deschanel standing right beside me. She smelt like rose water and fresh laundry. She’s slightly awkward in real life which makes her 10 x’s more attractive. As I stood in front of her, I confessed my love for her, telling her, “Zooey, I think I’m in love with you!” She answered, “Aww you’re so sweet! Are you really?” And I said, “Yeah but I think everybody is.” She’s not nearly as intimidating as she is in 500 Days and is genuinely sweet and nice. I promise you! For some reason, I just assume that any role someone plays is automatically a reflection of the actual person therefore I’ve always been afraid of meeting that neo-Nazi Edward Norton.
We looks like an awkward hipster Christmas greeting card!
Tom’s best friend Geoffrey Arend from the film was also there…..holding the “key”
The best part of the whole day was actually being able to sit at the bench and experience the same view that they speak so highly about in the film. Chelsey and I did are only re-creation of it!
Also on hand was an ice cream truck which allowed you to get customized ice cream sandwiches. You get to pick what type of cookie you want and there were about 10 different choices. I live on the wild side so I picked chocolate chip. You then choose what ice cream you want. Instead of getting vanilla, I decided to try dirty mint chocolate chip ice cream because I LOVE mint chocolate chip ice cream. Each ice cream sandwich is freshly made and you have to wait several minutes for them to make it. I was so excited because it came wrapped in edible 500 Days of Summer paper. YES….edible! I took a huge bite and instantly started gagging….turns out the mint chocolate chip ice cream had whole pieces of actual mint leaves in it. YUM!!!! It was repulsive. Luckily, I still had the edible paper to wash out the taste from my mouth.
After the sandwiches we decided to bust out of there but before we left we toured downtown and visited a few of the other landmarks from the film. The sexual fountain and the dance sequence path.
All in all it was an AMAZING day! I highly recommend anybody that loved 500 Days of Summer to go visit the bench and the other locations from the film. You get to view Los Angeles from a different perspective and it helps erase a lot of the negative connotations many Angelenos have about the city. I think the main point of the event as well as the film is to help make downtown Los Angeles accessible and hip one day like New York City. Still a loooooooong way to go but everything little thing counts.
