Film Post Mortem: 50/50

Adam (Joseph Gordon Levitt) decides to be proactive in this scene
from the film 50/50. 

A comedy about Cancer.  That is how the writers and director of the film 50/50 describe it.  I would say that is an accurate, albeit incomplete description. 

50/50 is a film about Cancer but it is more about how we each individually approach death.  Each character in this film reacts differently to the news that Adam (played by Joseph Gordon Levitt) has been diagnosed with cancer in his spine ( I would give you the medical term for it but it would be unnecessary). 

His best friend Kyle (played by Seth Rogen, who also served as a producer on the film) reacts with humor intially joking with Adam, upon news that the latter has a 50/50 survival rate, that if he were a casino he would have the best odds. 

His Girlfriend Rachael (played by Bryce Dallas Howard) reacts with sympathy and vows to help Adam through this.  His mother, Diane (played by Angelica Huston) is deeply upset upon the news and sets into motherly mode offering to be Adam's live in nurse, to which he refuses. 

As far as Adam himself, well he handles the news as if the whole thing was a minor bump in the road.  He does not get overly emotional and just coldly and calmly decides to do what is necessary to defeat the cancer.  But what is interesting is that Adam's true emotions, those of anger and rage, are always just festering underneath the surface waiting to be unleashed.  And they are as the film progresses.

One of the things I liked quite a bit about this film is that no one is a villain in this.  Rachael does something shortly after Adam is diagnosed that could have been played within the film as a horrible act of betrayal.  It is addressed but quickly brushed aside and Rachael herself disappears from the film shortly after it is exposed. 

You can understand why Rachael may have done what she did and you can equally understand Adam's raction to it.  This film does a good job of making every character within it fleshed out and three dimensional.  They all feel like real people you would know and by being such you understand fully why they make the choices they make in the film. 

Joseph Gordon Levitt is particularly good in this film.  He makes Adam very likeable almost right away, which is important as we are asked to not only follow him through his journey but also to care.  If there is no connection between us, as the audience, and Adam early on then I think the film kind of falls flat.  Thankfully Gordon Levitt is a strong enough of an actor to reel us in and make us care about Adam right away.  His Adam could have been your best friend in college, the shy brother of your best girlfriend, or the quiet guy who is well liked at work.  He is just a nice, quiet guy who is loyal to his friends and forgiving to those who wrong him, almost to a fault. 

Adam gets screwed quite a few times in this film and he handles each time with a reserved anger. Of course as the film progresses, Adam begins to let go of his reservations and lets his real emotions go unchecked. 

Seth Rogen seems to be playing the same character in this film as he has been playing since Knocked Up- The man-child.  I like Rogen quite a bit and he is good here.  But he is also not blazing a new trail either.  His Kyle is a frat boy at heart who initially uses Adam and his cancer as an avenue to getting laid.  However,  we come to learn that he is also a loyal friend and is there for Adam through everything.  You can tell that despite his macho routine, Kyle cares about Adam and is scared for him. 

One character I failed to mention is Katherine (played by Anna Kendrick).  Katherine is a clinical psychologist in training who is assigned to help Adam cope with his cancer.  She is green and we find out just how much when she confesses to Adam that he is her third patient.  With that aside, the scenes with Adam and Katherine are some of the strongest in the film.  There is alot at play in these scenes as Katherine tries to chip away at the facade Adam is putting up to those around him.  It is fun to watch her fumble at times and Adam offer advice to her on better ways to approach things.  In their scenes you can see two people trying to find the right way to communicate with one another.  It is very much like courtship as each one tries to be honest with the other and learn who they are. 

Overall, I would recommend this film.  It is a comedy about cancer, as I had stated at the top.  But it is also a movie that tries to portray something honest and true.  It's characters are real, the drama is real, and ultimately you come to care for not only Adam but all those in orbit around him.  It is a sad movie at times as my wife wiped tears on several occasions.  But it is also a hopeful movie and a film that explores how we react to death, which is a subject I think is important to address head on from time to time. 

Rating: B+