50/50

  4 STARS

From the first time I saw the trailer I wanted to see this movie but I really didn't know what to expect.  I mean, a comedy about dealing with cancer and one of it's stars is Seth Rogen.  Well, for all of you who have not seen this movie of course, the casting was very solid.  Joseph Gordon-Levitt is at the top of his game (and lately he has definitely been playing in the majors) in a performance that should win multiple awards.

He portrays Adam, a guy living it up in Seattle with a great job at a radio station, a great girl in Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard) and of course, he has his best friend Kyle (Rogen) by his side.  Kyle's best friend duties are certainly put to the test after Adam is suddenly diagnosed with a rare form of cancer (he has a tumor on his spinal chord).  Right after the diagnosis, the audience is immediately transported into Adam's world of despair as everything he knows starts collapsing.  Well before he realizes this is all happening to him, he has to tell people starting with Kyle.  Seth Rogen was the perfect choice for this role.  50/50 is ultimately a dramedy with Rogen providing most of the comic relief as he normally does.  As I was watching the movie, I thought most cancer patients would love to have someone like that by their side while going through chemo and wondering if they were going to die.  Adam's mother is played by the great Anjelica Huston, whose portrayal is so heartfelt and intense that you may sometimes not notice her extreme domineering, except that quality of hers would fill the Panama Canal.  Bryce Dallas Howard plays Adam's girlfriend. She's a scank and I hate her but she plays the part well.  The adorable Anna Kendrick plays Adam's therapist.  She is so endearing in her part, you just want to put her in your pocket and take her home.

This movie has its funny parts.  You will laugh out loud several times.  However, the drama is intense.  It has to be, the subject matter is cancer.  I of course chose this as my next blog since it is following The Big C blog which is very reminiscent.  I think it is very brave for these movies and television shows to be made, finding the humor in possibly dying, but I also believe that these movies and shows are helpful to people going through this in real life.  There maybe a fifty fifty chance that Adam will or will not survive his illness, but the movie is a 100% helluva good time.

Thank you and see you at the next blog.