Odds are much better than 50/50 that you’ll really like 50/50. It is, hands down, one of my favorite movies of the year. You’ll cry a little and laugh a lot.
The premise may sound off-putting… a buddy movie about a guy with cancer. But it works. Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer, 3rd Rock from the Sun) plays Adam, a 27-year-old public radio producer whose life is turned upside down when he’s diagnosed with a rare form of spinal cancer.
The movie finds its heart and humor in Adam’s relationships with his crude but caring best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen), his conflicted girlfriend (Bryce Dallas Howard), his uptight mother (Angelica Huston), and his novice but well-meaning therapist (Anna Kendrick). It’s all very real and raw and poignant and funny, and the performances are first-rate across the board. 
50/50 is loosely based on the real-life experiences of its screenwriter, Will Reiser, a cancer survivor and real-life buddy of Rogen’s. Writers are often encouraged to “write what you know” and Reiser knows cancer and comedy. The result is a remarkably moving, entertaining, and ultimately uplifting film that should appeal to a broad audience.
50/50 is rated R for language, sexual content and drug use that is never gratuitous and definitely serves the story. It’s a great movie for adults, so don’t let the premise scare you off. I’m counting on word-of-mouth to help this movie succeed at the box office. It deserves a positive outcome.
I don’t completely agree with Mainstream Chick on this movie. I thought 50/50 was an ok movie. I didn’t think it was great…or awful. It held my attention and pulled at my heartstrings. Acting was great!
This is one of my favorite movies of the year as well. I loved the humor and the heart. It was nice to watch a movie about cancer that made me laugh more than cry. I’m loving just about everything JGL does these days and Seth Rogen was a surprise to me. Frankly I didn’t think he could do much more than stoner comedies (although to be fair he does enjoy getting high in this movie too). Definitely put this one on your list to rent if you haven’t already seen it.
[…] too hard, and stars one of my favorite actors, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (if you haven’t seen him in 50/50, put it on your list!). I was a bit afraid that Gordon-Levitt might have phoned this one in, […]