Adam Lerner (Gordon-Levitt) is a moderately self-satisfied late-20s man who loses all of his happiness when he is diagnosed with cancer. His girlfriend at the time, Rachel (Bryce Dallas Howard) promises to care for him as he struggles with the disease. Days after the diagnosis, he meets a young, aspiring therapist, Rachel McKay (Kendrick) who is kind and eventually befriends Adam on a personal level after an encounter in her car later in the film. Although he is calm with it at first, his sex-obsessed best friend Kyle (Rogen) uses Adam's disease in order to hook up with other girls. There is one thing throughout the film that Adam discovers most: What the most important factors in his life are.The film does not try to go overboard in drama or comedy and is carefully balanced to make it a more pleasurable experience without having to drag on. It clocks in at 100 minutes which is perfect for the film, as it seems more content and simple instead of boring and ostentatious. Jonathan Levine definitely took this film to heart, and the viewer will easily sympathize with Gordon-Levitt's character. Nothing presented feels unnecessary and its dialogue written by Will Reiser is absolutely top-notch.
The show-stealer in the film is the performances given by the three central lead characters. They individually represent characteristics of humans when in a crisis such as this. Gordon-Levitt embodies how much of a trouble it is to suffer with cancer and he tries to make the best of a bad situation day in and day out; he is the embodiment of optimism. Kendrick embodies tender, loving care as she tries to cheer Adam up with her therapeutic methods and later comes to be close to him and look out for him; she is the embodiment of sympathy. And Rogen embodies how a he as a best friend will always be by his side and will always be out for him no matter what; he is the embodiment of companionship.Out of all of the performances, Rogen's is by far the most fun to watch. His laughs are from his tomfoolery and his desire to get laid. Kyle is a child at heart but is aware of his limits when he is with Adam.
One scene shows the manipulation of Gordon-Levitt. There is a scene about a third into the film. When Kendrick gives Adam a list of books recommended for coping with cancer, he and Kyle set off into the bookstore and he meets a cute, blonde employee. As Kyle shows her his shopping list, he explains that it's for his suffering best friend. As she grows to sympathize for Adam, Kyle snags a date the following night (which I would dare not spoil what happens when the two go out). What I find most shocking about the scene is not that Rogen used Gordon-Levitt for girls, but how cool Gordon-Levitt is with him using his cancer. As he tells Kyle not to, he goes in for it anyways and in the end Adam doesn't look back with regret.
The film, while critically well-reviewed by critics (3.5/4 by both Roger Ebert and Rolling Stone) but didn't receive much awards attention. Whatever the case is, the film was only nominated for two Golden Globes (Best Actor - Comedy for Gordon-Levitt and Best Picture - Comedy) and won none. I am making a strong prediction that the film will become a late cult-classic on the levels that Se7en and the Big Lebowski became classics.
This film is simply fantastic. It knows how to be bitter-sweet while satisfying its audience greatly with its story, acting, and directing. It's a marvel of a film (especially for a comedy), and I have never seen any other film like it. It is a great rental and even worth a cheap blu-ray buy. 50/50 receives a 3.5/4.
