Should be a 9/10
Beautiful film.
shareI gave it a 9 as well!
Amazing movie. :)
MovieChat Forums > (500) Days of Summer (2009) Discussion > Should be a 9/10
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I would give it an 8. I felt it was slightly too heavily focused on Tom's point of view , which could potentially make it easy to miss what I saw as the true message of the film.
It was also slightly boring at times and I would have liked it to be a bit more , I don't know upbeat I guess. A few more jokes or something to that effect would have got it a higher ranking from me.
I agree with you on this one. I gave it an 8 the first time i watched it. But I gave it a 9 this time because i had more of an emotional connection, and i had fallen in love with the soundtrack.
It really isn't a great film to be have a "9" rating, but I think it was really good and not your typical romantic comedy. :)
From the number of negative comments about Summer on the this board, I guess you are right, but persaonlly I like the myopia of having it shown from Toms perspective. Its easy to be seduced by his point of view, but on subsequent views, the film is clearly a well balanced examination of unrequited love. On the first viewing I sympathized more with Tom, but on subsequent viewing, saw how annoyingly pathetic he was. I think that's a strength of the film; the fact that it hits you differently each time you watch it.
I like the film the way it is.
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
No, it should be a 6/10 at best, I gave it a 3/10, one of the worst ratings I have ever given any film. EVER.
It is one of the mosy annoyingly over-rated movies of the last DECADE. IT SUCKS. Cheesy story and dialogue, annoying cliché characters, an unlikeable robotic female lead and an annoying wimpy male lead that wont stop babbling about nothing.
Then the friend character another cheesy cliché lifeless character that adds nothing, and the cliché sister character. There is not 1 thing in this film well-done enough to call it great, or even "good". Not to mention the ending, where he picks up a girl at a JOB INTERVIEW. OK. It could have had a truly emotional ending where he ends up like lonely and you might actually feel something for him but he goes on a new job interview and meets a new girl that likes him in FIVE MINUTES. WOW. WHAT A POWERFUL FILM. TOTALLY OVER-RATED CLICHE GARBAGE. 3/10 TERRIBLE.
Its one of the least clichéd films I've seen in the past 20 years. I don't actually know of any other film that approaches the topic of unrequited love in the same manner what-so-ever. By definition that rules out your complaint about clichés!!! Even if one or two characters are stereotypes of some kind, the whole is unique and highly original. So your opinion is non-sense... ok if you believe it is clichéd, name 10 other films that tell a story about unrequited love in the same manner with the same honesty and the same depth... If its clichéd you should have no difficulty rattling off a whole bunch of films that have done this theme to death... or perhaps you don't know the meaning of cliché so I've supplied a definition below from Wikipedia:
"an expression, idea, or element of an artistic work which has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning, or effect, and even, to the point of being trite or irritating, especially when at some earlier time it was considered meaningful or novel"
I'm sorry you don't like the hopeful ending, but it allowed the film to be in the end a comedy (rather than a tragedy), it was a good ending to the overall theme of unrequited love in that it shows that eventually one does move on and even grows from the experience, and it showed that the character had grown and learned from the his previous relationship and was no longer being passive about relationships. While the name of his new girl is a bit silly, its a cute joke that ties up the story in a manner that is hopeful, but not sappy...
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
Ummm, no. If it had a sad ending then it might actually be taken seriously because that is what unrequited love is about. Indecent Proposal did a better job of it then this garbage, and that gets like a 5.6 rating or something.
If your saying its not a love story and that's why its great, well when it ends with a cheesy cliché happy ending that ruins that. Watch Atonement, a great love story where BOTH CHARACTERS ACTUALLY DIE AT THE END. That film is a worth a 9, this garbage is worth a 3. Or try To Die For, where the kid MURDERS SOMEONE for the girl he likes. Another much much much better film about unrequited love, and none with a cheesy clichéd garbage ending like this piece of trash over-rated dumb movie. Anyone that thinks this movie is great has no idea what a great film is and probably like Transformers and Avengers lol...I guarantee the people that rated this more highly also gave higher marks to Transformers and Avengers...or clueless movie goers pretty much. Those 3 films all get low 3-5 range while actual good movies get 8's and 9's...this is isn't even in the same discussion.
What makes this movie great is exactly what you point out: it does not involve both characters dying at the end; it does not involve someone murdering someone for the girl he likes. 500 Days is about us. It is about the 99.999% of us who live normal lives, yet are confronted with human relationship issues that are every bit as powerful, as passionate, as perplexing, as intellect-sapping, as anything Shakespeare, Tolstoy, or Nabokov ever wrote -- but existing in the world of modern America -- where the norms of our society constrain us to deal with human issues in ways that all 99.999% of us very likely have encountered, or will encounter, at some point. This movie is "news we can use". There are very few Jovan Belcher's out there who really need to know what Hamlet meant in his soliloquy. But we all need to understand the Toms and Summers of this world because, in all likelihood, we are them.
It's a beautiful movie, beautifully told and photographed.
Uh, no, that was one of the dumbest posts I have ever read in my entire life. Its like saying a tennagers mediocre high-school poetry scribbled in a notebook is akin to keats. Its not. This film is like that scribbled poetry. Not good at all, but some people think it is.
shareUh, no, that was one of the dumbest posts I have ever read in my entire life. Its like saying a tennagers mediocre high-school poetry scribbled in a notebook is akin to keats. Its not. This film is like that scribbled poetry. Not good at all, but some people think it is.
shareBeautifully said... I agree it is a great film.
Don't pay any attention to brain dead trolls like johncg25.
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
I agree. Beautiful movie. I gave it a 9... and I'm a 30 y/o dude...!
As for me it's one of the most realistic rom-com i've ever seen insofar as it's one of the few movies which depicts what happens most of the time in real life: non-reciprocal love and the pain and obsession that inevitably ensue.
That said, i agree with some others on this board mentioning that the encounter at the end with another beautiful woman at the job interview seems a bit far-fetched and cheesy. I'm not saying that such an encounter is impossible, just that in real life nothing happens that fast and that perfectly. It just seemed too convenient.
The ending would have been much more powerful if it had ended with maybe Joseph finding a new job, still hurt about Zoey, but hoping for the best and looking towards the future with a positive state of mind or something... It should have stayed true to reality, where love hurts and most of the time ends badly and when it does, it's really over forever. I'm not saying it's always the case, but let's be honest, it is in say 95% of the time.
It should have been more in the lines of Romeo & Juliet with the most terrible and heartbreaking ending ever to be a truly game changing movie.
So yeah awesome movie, if it wasn't for the ending it would be perfect as for me.
People who don't like their beliefs being laughed at shouldn't have such funny beliefs
I hate it when people confuse their personal egocentric taste preferences with quality.
This is better film because it handles the unrequited love in a more mature manner... it shows that love goes on. I personally felt that Indecent Proposal was a stupid film on so many levels, but chief amongst them was in the obnoxious moralism of it, the silly notion that he would offer that much for sex in a town where really good looking hookers go for $600 per hours, and the ridiculous idea that she would fall in such a creepy rich man.
You appear to have a bias against romantic comedies.
Also you have not shown how this film has any clichés in it. The happy ending is highly original. A chessy happy sappy ending would have been to have the Tom and Summer get back together or a clichéd nasty ending would be to have him kill her or to commit suicide (those would be clichés).
The ending is not a cliché by definition, because its not been done before.
It always annoys me when people use technical words they don't understand. I've challenged you to list 10 movies that are just like it. If you cannot do that, you cannot call it a cliché.
Instead it illustrated that life goes on and on moves on. If it had a unhappy ending it would have missed that key element of the theme... that one can grows and move on... Excellent film.
"Anyone that thinks this movie is great has no idea what a great film is and probably like Transformers and Avengers lol"
LOL. No. What this shows is you don't know what a great movie is and are self obsessed and conceited. No similarity between this film and a super hero action film if you'd bother watching it.
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
lol..again...no. This movie was just bad and nothing you say will make it "good". Ever.
shareStill not willing to prove your "cliché" thesis. You have not cited a single example from other films of how any element in this film is so overused that it is now devoid of originally (e.g., a cliché). Your unwillingness to do so illustrates that you are wrong about this film.
As an example, I can't off hand think of another film that has the main character start a new relationship at the very end of the film (thus elegantly tying the themes together). I won't say that its never been done before, but I can't recall a single example... certainly not enough to call that a cliché.
The closest you've come is to say it has a happy ending, but merely having a happy ending does not make it a cliché (no more than having an unhappy ending). But the key issue is the novelty about how it achieved that ending that makes it highly original.
A great film.
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
I did already lol..enjoy your nonsensically poor movie vision. List your favorite movies and then I MIGHT go over it again, even though I already did.
shareNo you haven't. You haven't listed a single film that illustrates that anything in this film is overused in other films and thus makes its use in this film a cliché. All you've done is listed a few mediocre films you think are better. That doesn't support your contention that this film is filled with clichés. I've issued a specific challenge. Name another film where the main character meets a new woman at an interview at the end of the film? If you can't do that, then by definition you CANNOT call that a cliché. Now I realize you don't like the ending but you cannot claim that it is a cliché because it is highly original and I happen to think it is the perfect ending for this film... Brilliant film.
Don't see what my favourite movies has to do with anything but ok... Humm... well... but not in any particular order...
Ran (Akira Kurosawa), The Godfather, Lawrence of Arabia, Midsummer nights dream (1999), Lost in America, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, The Usual Suspects, Barry Lyndon, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Gone with the Wind, The Tales of Hoffman, Annie Hall, The Tailor of Panama, The Empire Strikes back, Fellowship of the Rings.
Recent films that I've particularly enjoyed: Mr. Nobody, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Inland Empire, Barney's Version, Burn After Reading, The Invention of Lying, 500 Days of Summer, Lost in Translation, Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind.
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
OK, since you listed those I will respond...AGAIN. Its an issue in semantics. You aren't understanding why the movie is "cliché". I feel it is, you feel it isn't. Its not about meeting the girl at the interview physically, of course no other movie ends with that exact ending, the point its its a HOLLYWOOD CHEESY HAPPY ENDING, which is why it is then cliché. Most Hollywood romantic comedies have A HAPPY ENDING. VIRTUALLY. EVERY. SINGLE. ONE.
So this movie is NO DIFFERENT. The writing was bad, the characters dull, and the ending was terrible. I already listed movies that deal with "loss of love" better, and "unrequited love" better. I just saw "The Center of the World"...much better film dealing with unrequited love and it was like a low budget indie film and that a 5.8 rating. WAY BETTER.
In Atonement BOTH CHARACTERS DIE AT THE END after they briefly connect. There is no happy ending, and it was nominated for a bunch of Oscar. This garbage over-rated movie I don't think was nominated for 1 Oscar, for a reason.
Moulin Rouge, again, guys paramour DIES AT THE END, also nominated I believe for a number of Oscars, MUCH better film dealing with loss of love. 500 Days of Summer is simply a cliché, poor, "indie" film that is well liked by some young people, but has never been nominated for a single Oscar award, and never will be ever. Even more telling, is that it was only nominated for a Golden Globe as a "comedy" but yet people that love it claim its some "deep, impactful" movie lol...its a mediocre comedy that has almost no value.
I give The hangover an 8 rating, it was funny, but I am not proclaiming it some kind of sentimental masterpiece. If you thought this movie was funny, fine, I didn't, and most comedies never get above an 8 rating, and this is no exception. For the people that liked it fine, but its nothing great, and its no cinematic masterpiece lol
OK, since you listed those I will respond...AGAIN. Its an issue in semantics. You aren't understanding why the movie is "cliché". I feel it is, you feel it isn't. Its not about meeting the girl at the interview physically, of course no other movie ends with that exact ending, the point its its a HOLLYWOOD CHEESY HAPPY ENDING, which is why it is then cliché. Most Hollywood romantic comedies have A HAPPY ENDING. VIRTUALLY. EVERY. SINGLE. ONE.
So this movie is NO DIFFERENT. The writing was bad, the characters dull, and the ending was terrible. I already listed movies that deal with "loss of love" better, and "unrequited love" better. I just saw "The Center of the World"...much better film dealing with unrequited love and it was like a low budget indie film and that a 5.8 rating. WAY BETTER.
In Atonement BOTH CHARACTERS DIE AT THE END after they briefly connect. There is no happy ending, and it was nominated for a bunch of Oscar. This garbage over-rated movie I don't think was nominated for 1 Oscar, for a reason.
Moulin Rouge, again, guys paramour DIES AT THE END, also nominated I believe for a number of Oscars, MUCH better film dealing with loss of love. 500 Days of Summer is simply a cliché, poor, "indie" film that is well liked by some young people, but has never been nominated for a single Oscar award, and never will be ever. Even more telling, is that it was only nominated for a Golden Globe as a "comedy" but yet people that love it claim its some "deep, impactful" movie lol...its a mediocre comedy that has almost no value.
I give The hangover an 8 rating, it was funny, but I am not proclaiming it some kind of sentimental masterpiece. If you thought this movie was funny, fine, I didn't, and most comedies never get above an 8 rating, and this is no exception. If you were telling me the Hangover was some profound movie, I would tell you your opinion is idiotic. 500 Days of Summer is about on par with the Hangover. Or Wedding Crashers. Wedding Crashers has a nice love story and I love that movie, I think I gave it a 9. But again, its not some kind of cinematic masterpiece, just a very good comedy.
Ok, so you in general have a bias against happy endings. The fact that it has a happy ending does not make it a cliche, it makes it a comedy (rather than a tragedy). What is clever about the ending however it that it acheives this happy ending WITHOUT resorting to the traditional cheesy getting back together ending that is all too common. So that makes it highly original.
Its comedy in the traditional sense... a story with a happy ending. Shakespearean comedy for example always had elements of near tragedy as does this film where after the engagement party he wallows in self pity for a whle. Its actually a comedy-drama, not a laugh filled comedy; but a thought provoking examination of suffering and growing through unrequited love.
"yet people that love it claim its some "deep, impactful" movie lol."
If the writing is a bad as you believe, why do people claim that is a deep impactful movie? Apparently it did impact them even if it didn't impact you... so its a matter of taste; not truth. Ok, you didn't like it but you parade your views around as if your little opinion is the only one that matters. And when asked to actually justify your opinion that it is a cliche, you continuously fail to list the cliches that you hate so much, other than your argument that it has a happy ending... but as stated merely having a happy ending doesn't make it a cliche... and given that it acheieved that happy ending in a novel way, it is by definiiton not a cliched ending. I also like it because it is hopeful, but uncertain. We don't know if he will get the job or if this new relationship will happen, but either way it shows that he has moved on both in terms of his career and his love life, in particular taking charge rather than being passive, so it achieves a hopeful ending that is unique as far as I know to this film.
"DIES AT THE END"
Personally I love tragedies and we see too few tragedies in film, but I appreciated this film because its not about dying for a love that didn't happen, its about being hurt and growing from the experience. That is the story that is original. I guessing you only like films about being hurt in love when someone dies. But thats a key, surviving and growing and moving on is a story that is rarely told in Hollywood. And as such his heartbreak, and his career change and his new potential relationship are vitally important to the story and keys to what makes this a really good film.
"much better film dealing with unrequited love"
Dying at the end isn't dealing with the loss at all... surviving and growing is dealing with the loss. Dying at the end has it place if one wishes to see a tragedy, but this film had a very differen approach to unrequited love and it was quite nice to see it treated differently for a change.
"The writing was bad, the characters dull, and the ending was terrible"
Thats all your opinion. In my opinion, the writing was brilliant with a lot of intricate detail that makes the film very re-watchable. The characters are interesting and the ending was novel. Another thing is that at no point in this story did I have any idea of what was going to happen next.
I haven't seen "The Center of the World" or "Atonement" so I can't comment on them, but again citing other movie that are totally different does not make this movie a cliche; to prove that it is a cliche you need to cite previous movies that are the SAME!!! For example you could list Annie Hall as a story of a failed romance. Although Annie Hall and 500 days of summer do share some elements in common one key difference is that only Annie shows any growth in the film, Alvy does not. In 500 Days of Summer both character are altered by their relationship. Also Tom is much more strongly hurt by Summer than Alvy was, and the relationship was more asymmetrical, so the break up is more emotional than in Annie Hall. You could list the Eternal Sunsine of the spotless mind as an example of a failed romance (Great film by the way), but in the end they get back together in spite of the brain reprogramming (a happy ending)... though I wonder for how long given their fundamental relationship problems unresolved. Perhaps Gone with the Wind, but they do get married even though Scarlet does not love Brett, and in the end it is Brett that leaves Scarlet because she doesn't love him, so its his choice to end the marriage and who knows what might happen next (because "Tomorrow is another day"). The end of the affair (the book, sorry haven't seen the film) is a great example of a tragic story of unrequited love, but its very different because she leaves him not because she doesn't love him, but because she prayed for his safety and can't tell him because of his strong aetheist beliefs (tragic irony). In no case are these film anything like 500 Days of Summer, and thats a good thing.
"never been nominated for a single Oscar award"
I didn't say the film was perfect... actually I'm not fond of the narrative (but can't think of how else it could have been done)... but since when does not getting an Oscar equate to low quality. Many great films have been past over and some pretty mediocre films have won Oscars (e.g., Titanic).
I will note that it did win a number of awards.
The "Hangover" was a chessy hollywood crap fest with little humor and no content -- its just NOT funny (in my opinion). Its substitutes stupidity for humor; acting stupid it NOT funny; nor is waking up from a drug binge and finding out how stupid you were the night before. Maybe the first time anyone acted stupid on film it was funny but why must we suffer so much of that junk in films; talk about cliches. There are just toooo many of that non-sense sort of films made, how can you possibly hold that out as a film worthy of an 8!!!! It was also misnamed given that they didn't have a hangover, they had taken a drug. And by the way, that one did have a cliched cheesy Holywood ending you hate so much.
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
I didn't read all that...you wrote way too much. But the last paragraph sums it up. You did not like the Hangover because you didn't find it funny. I did not like this movie, in part, because I didn't find it funny. They are both rated a 7.8.
So no, Your dumb 500 Days of Summer is no masterpiece, it has an equal rating to what you call a "dumb comedy"...they are equals. Neither is anything great emotionally or otherwise. So don't pretend like it is, thinking so is just stupid lol
Actually the Hangover probably has just a good a story as "500 Days of Summer" and actually has a better love story with more feeling in my opinion. Wouldn't you be annoyed if someone told you "The Hangover" was a classic love story ? That's how I feel. So lets agree to disagree.
The difference is that 500 days of summer is a well scripted cliche free film that is both amusing and allows you to think. The Hangover is a filled with stupidity, no humor, has a lousy script, and is filled with cliches. And I suppose if the hangover is your concept of a great comedy than you wouldn't like this film, but then just admit that its a taste preference and nothing more. You like cliche filled cheesy films with stupidity as the basis of its humor. This film isn't stupid enough for you. Admit it! Don't describe this film as garbage or cheesy or filled with cliches... especially if you are not prepared to back up that cliche statement by pointing out the cliches in it.
Also I haven't gone over the board of the Hangover and lorded my opinion about that film on the fans of that film and pretended to be a superior film critic, told the fans how its so filled with cliches (without actually listing a single cliche), or looked down my nose at those people who enjoyed it. In fact I haven't even rated it because it is not a film that interests me what-so-ever, and, a key point here, I have no objections to the existence of the film; obviously such things have an audience... not me..
However, yes we can agree to disagree.
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
I agree with every word you say and I cannot believe I wasted time and watched this movie because of the rating. Total, waste, of my precious time! So cliche and dull, there's absolutely nothing special about it.
shareWhat's your obsession with sad ending?
YOU POOR BOY. WHO LEFT YOU? ;)
The film actually portrayed how ZD changes the vision about life,love of JGL in a good way.
And you were expecting a sad ending?
OH!!! POOR BOY!!! ;)
Hey, thanks for spoiling Atonement, asswipe.
shareOmg. You think those who like this film equals liking tranformers and avengers??? OMG x2.
You literally have no idea about films.
Oh and saying incident proposal is better than this film, calling it cliche while it's obvious that you have little experience in films and (had a look to some of your ratings) giving '10' to films like due date, the great gatsby ...well you better be a troll kiddo or you have a really bad taste in films and thus should stop watching immediately cuz it seems you're just wasting your time.
Plus the ending isn't just about hope, it's playing on the notion of fate. That there's someone out there for everyone. I think at the end, when Tom hears that the girl's name is Autumn, it's basically the movie's way of telling him that there are no coincidences and that the universe, so to speak, is giving him a sign that he's found "the one." Whether or not you buy into that notion, it's still done in a fun way that's consistent with the themes of the film.
shareAlso an 8 from me :)
''They are shaping me into something gaudy. Something lethal.''
Actually I prefer current rating to the rating of 8 or 9. It is simply because of my point of view on those top 250 movies. People do expect a lot from movies of top 250 list. They expect everything perfect in top 250- the perfect screenplay, the perfect acting. Therefore they surely forget perfect doesn't actually equal to real life. "(500) days" actually resembles the real life situation very well.
Not because I don't like this movie.
"(500) days" stands as the top movie of my favorites under "Romantics, Comedy, Drama" genre.
I just want "(500) days of Summer" as a sweet, little movie. I don't want people think this movie as heavy drama like "Before Sunrise" series which used to be in top 250 of imdb.
People who can relate to "Tom and Summer's situation" will surely love this film.
Overall, just 7.8, 7.9, at most 8.0 is enough.
Love this film, and love the soundtrack.
Totally agree, 6 is too much.
shareMy 8.5 rounds up to a 9 :)
share10/10
shareAbsolutely amazing film. It's a 10/10 for me. It indeed gave a lot of mixed feelings, for both Tom and Summer. I felt sad for both, though! If it were real, they would both be missing each other some way or other, for the rest of their life! Yeah?
shareShould be a no more then a 6 out of 10. I gave it a 3. Even if a film is dissapointing I will usually at least give it a 5 or 6. I reserve a 3 for only the most horrible films.
This movie is so over-rated it is disgusting. The movie was not really funny and niether moving, or even remotely interesting. Thats a problem. The supporting characters were annoying and stupid, the male lead was annoying and going on and on about how he likes some girl and the female lead has less personality then a broken robot. Dumbest most over-rated film I have seen in YEARS. HORRIBLY BAD.
from a guy who loves magic mike.
share9 is probably too high. 8 is more like it.
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"People only want to hear what they want to hear"
This is one of few movies that I gave 10/10 :
500 days of summer
Gone Baby Gone
Silver Linings Playbook
Shawshank redemption
Gave it a 9 myself. The ONLY romantic comedy that has gone against the tide. And how.
EDIT: The fact that johncg25 gave The Hangover an 8/10 seals the fact that he will not be able to appreciate a film like this. So ntsci, I think there's no point in arguing with him. Johncg25 simply doesn't like the film. Let's leave it at that. But even with people like him this movie should at least get a 5.5/10 for it's cinematography and soundtrack alone. Those two aren't even a matter of opinion. Of course, johncg25 would deny all of this so why bother?
I may be on the side of the angels. But do not think for a second that I am one of them.
yeah, but hopefully he'll never try to get away with misusing the word "Cliché" anymore!!! If for that alone, it was worth it.
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RIGOLETTO: I'm denied that common human right, to weep.
I agree. It's probably the best romantic comedy I have ever seen.
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