For those of you who know me and now for those of you who don’t I bare a striking (most say) resemblance to the actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt.  It was a great lot early on as he rose to tv superstardom as Tommy on 3rd Rock From the Sun and teenage girls fawned after his baby face. Yes, ladies and gents I was quite the ladykiller at age 13.  Well he disappeared for a few  years and went to school, then acted in a bunch of smaller movies. Now he’s making a move to become a leading man and this summer he’s in two big movies, G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra and (500) Days of Summer. I haven’t made it to see the Joes yet, but last night I went with my friend Anne Marie to see (500), she’d already seen it and told me that I had to in part because the main character was a lot like me.

Dear God was she right.  I knew that the movie would bare some parallels to my life, like he’s a greeting card writer aspring to be an architect. Who hasn’t been there right? Oh wait, that was the one thing that WASN’T like me. First off, let me say that I loved this movie. I thought I would going in and it was just fantastic. It was funny and heartfelt and heart-tugging.

It was also sometimes painful for me to watch. I’ve never identified more with a movie on a personal level. Minor Spoilers will be coming through here, but I don’t think it’s anything that will ruin the movie.  This is going to get a little messy, so beware.
I’ve “recently” gone through, let’s call it a “relationship change.” It’s been awhile now, but it was someone who I was very close with and like all breakups do, it hurt. If I was smart and cool enough to have written this movie, it would have been easy because it so easily played out like some scenes in my life. There were several times I flashbacked to things that had happened to me, especially on the heels of this most recent breakup. It did two things for me, one it lent some strange validation to my reactions in those situations and it also was a sort of coping mechanism as well.  While it’s not rare that art imitates life, it’s rare that it so closely mirrors and deeply affects me.  It’s eerie enough to see someone who could be your twin on screen and to see someone who could be your twin playing a character that you identify with is downright creepsville.

Leaving the movie, I was flabbergasted, it felt as though someone had been listening to me or watching me as I went through the paces of the relationship and the rocky patch and the breakup. I know it doesn’t sound like a fun journey, but it really is.

There are two scenes that stick out in my mind, the first involves a record store, a smile, and a kiss on the cheek. It’s the kind of dis that I was the recipient of at the end of the relationship and it’s the worst kind. Where you know it’s not right, but you can’t believe it, so you try to make it better. Worst.  Then there’s the post-breakup talk I had with my little sister, Summer. She said the same thing movie me’s sister said “It’s easy to remember the good stuff.” And it so is. The memories you make are usually from the best times, not from the times that drove you crazy or you saw things differently, etc.  It’s a wise thing to take a step back and gain some objectivity, but it’s not easy.  This movie helped remind me that it’s okay.

As difficult as it was, it was also a bit liberating and honestly the movie is a joy to watch. It’s fun, funny, and like I previously said it handles your heart, but it gives you hope. Which is important for hopeless romantics
Have you ever felt like you were watching yourself on the big screen? Small screen? Josh McCrea, this doesn’t mean how you think you’re like the Predator, or Sly Stallone in Cliffhanger (you took ONE rock climbing class), or Keanu Reeves in Johnny Mnemonic.