50/50 (2011)

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Adam Lerner	Joseph Gordon-Levitt	½
Kyle	Seth Rogen	½
Katherine McKay	Anna Kendrick	½
Rachael	Bryce Dallas Howard
Diane Lerner	Anjelica Huston
Richard Lerner	Serge Houde
Dr. Ross	Andrew Airlie
Mitch Barnett	Matt Frewer
Alan Lombardo	Philip Baker Hall

Review

An impressively realistic and nuanced chronicle of a 27-year-old cancer patient enclosed in a somewhat Hollywoodized wrapping which includes the goofy (albeit warm) comic-relief friend and the customary (albeit sweet) romantic ending. Joseph Gordon-Levitt excels in the lead; he plays Adam with a sensible level of understatement, not falling for the temptation of frequent and loud emotional outbursts. It is Gordon-Levitt's performance which gives the film the authenticity to balance its otherwise lightweight comedy and predictable structure. I have no doubt that Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Anna Kendrick could make a cute couple, but their romance here is too plot-driven and convenient to befit the film's otherwise intelligent handling of a serious subject matter that most people will be able to identify with in one way or another. The ever-charming Seth Rogen gives us another hour-and-a-half of his now familiar on-screen persona. And considering the fact that 50/50 evidently is loosely based on writer Will Reiser's own battle against cancer, accompanied by real-life friend Rogen, I suppose we must now conclude that Rogen's just being himself in front of the camera. I'm excited to see how long his 15 minutes will last.