Originally written October 15, 2011

50/50 is one of those rare special movies that takes common subject material and just does something unique with it. The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen, both actors that I love. Joseph plays Adam, and Seth plays Adam’s best friend, Kyle. Adam is diagnosed with cancer early on in the movie, and the movie is about his struggles to deal with it and possibly fight through it. Also, it should be noted that the title refers to Adam’s chance of survival.

Now, like I said, 50/50 takes a common subject (cancer), and makes it something wonderfully different. It somehow manages to blend both comedy and emotion into a way that can’t quite be explained into words. It somehow manages to be funny and lighthearted in the way that you get attached to the characters, but then it also puts in the really emotional parts that have even more impact just because of how much you love the characters. There’s quite a few moments where you just really feel a lot for Adam. I’ll admit, there were parts where I was laughing through tears (and they weren’t tears of happiness).

It also just honestly shows one of the most realistic approaches to cancer I’ve seen. The movie doesn’t just give you the hopeful approach or the deep sorrow approach that you see in other movies of this kind. It just gives it straight, and how Adam deals with it all just felt so real (and this had a lot to do with Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s awesome performance). I don’t normally do this, but I’d like to quote Adam here just to show it…

“See, but… that’s bullshit. That’s what everyone has been telling me since the beginning. ‘Oh, you’re gonna be okay,’ and ‘Oh, everything’s fine,’ and like, it’s not… It makes it worse… that no one will just come out and say it. Like, ‘hey man, you’re gonna die.'”

I don’t know, 50/50 is just one of those rare movies that comes around and surprises you. It’s got a whole lot of heart, and it’s one of those movies I’d just recommend to anybody. Whether you can relate to the subject matter or not, it’ll still tug at your emotions. One of the best movies of the year.

5/5