Funny, sensitive, intelligent treatment of cancer-in-guy-too-young-to die story

Rating: Null/10 (2 August 2011)

Cancer movies have been done and overdone, but there's always the chance that someone will do something new and different. Here, there are several new and different angles. The super acting job by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who manages to show many sides of a particular human reacting to a particular human problem, helps take this story up several notches from the usual tearjerker. Most of the characters (cancer victim, best friend, girlfriend, novice therapist, parents) are given three-dimensional lives. Standing out, aside from Gordon-Levitt, are Angelica Huston as the Mom and Philip Baker Hall as the chemo infusion-buddy. The script, which I believe is based on a true story (that of the screenwriter's own experience), and the direction by Jonathan Levine, keeps us interested, sympathetic, and laughing, even if it also allows us to share in varieties of suffering . It's not just the disease that's a problem here; it's also the nature of the relationships between people who are close, love each other and are challenged to connect in a positive way. I only wish that Seth Rogan had more to do (or, could do more with it) than the one-note, stereotypic role he has in this film. He's the same guy in all his movies. What if it were HIS character with the cancer? Now that could be an interesting sequel.