"50 / 50" is being marketed as a comedy about a guy who has cancer. It's actually much more complex than that, and it's certainly not a straight comedy (more on that shortly). It's difficult for me to form an objective opinion on it right away because I've seen many people close to me battle cancer--some of them beat the disease; others didn't--but I'll do my best.
"50 / 50" is inspired by the true story of a friend of actor Seth Rogen's who battled cancer. Rogen has a chief supporting role in the film (more or less playing himself I guess). He's also one of the producers and was instrumental in getting the film made. The film is the story of Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a 27-year-old guy who lives in Seattle with his girlfriend Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard) and works for a public radio station. His life is turned upside down when he finds out he has spinal cancer. From this point on, we watch as he battles the disease and witness the affect it has on his life--most notably in his relationships with others, including Rachael, his best friend Kyle (Rogen), his mother Diane (Angelica Huston) and his 24-year-old therapist Katherine (Anna Kendrick).
While "50 / 50" is marketed as a straight comedy, that is most certainly not the case. It toes a fine line between comedy and drama for much of its length, but as the film progresses and Adam's situation becomes more dire, the comedic aspects are mostly left behind. Writer Will Reiser and director Jonathan Levine make sure that the film never makes fun of cancer or treats Adam's situation lightly, and I think the comedic aspects are actually fairly realistic, at least in terms of Adam's initial reaction and his ways of coping with the disease early on.
The driving factor to the whole film is Gordon-Levitt's performance, which is just about perfect. I can't imagine how hard it would be to tap in to the mindset of a person who believes they are dying and present every emotion in such an authentic way, but he absolutely nails it. We've all heard about the different phases that people go through when something cataclysmic happens in their life, and we see Adam go through this process. It's a role that requires an extraordinary range, much more so than many others, and Gordon-Levitt never misses a beat, whether it's the comedic aspects early on or the increasing despair as the film progresses.
The supporting performances are solid as well. Howard and Huston stand out in particular, especially Huston, who probably only has about ten minutes of screen time but probably gives the best and most heartbreaking performance after Gordon-Levitt. Rogen does his usual crude-but-likeable schtick, but as he's shown occasionally (particularly in "Knocked Up"), he has the ability to hit the right dramatic notes when the situation calls for it. Kendrick has just about nailed the perky, eager-but-naive young professional role down between this film and her Oscar-nominated turn in "Up in the Air." She's good here, but I'd like to see some more range from her. Philip Baker Hall and Matt Frewer both have scene-stealing performances as two older gentlemen who Adam goes through chemotherapy with.
"50 / 50" is a difficult film to recommend. If you've known someone (or many people) who've battled cancer, it may hit too close to home, as it did for a certain extent to me. But I can say that it's a very well executed comedy-drama. It has some very funny moments, some of which are quite crude, but it's certainly not the straight comedy that it's made out to be by the marketing. It also has one of the year's best performances from Joseph Gordon-Levitt. So take that information and do with it what you will.
"50 / 50" is rated R for language throughout, sexual content, and some drug use.
Running time: 99 minutes.
Released domestically on September 30, 2011, by Summit Entertainment.
3 stars out of 4.
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