An Emotional Roller-coaster

Rating: 9/10 (13 December 2011)

Films that deal with sensitive issues in a comedic fashion run the risk of being to trivial and not giving enough light on the dark matter that is at hand. 50/50 however takes this risk and succeeds in it's efforts. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Adam, a young, healthy individual who is shocked to find he has a rare type of cancer with only a 50/50 chance of survival. Finding a comedic side of this is hard but director Jonathan Levine makes it so the characters bring a comical side to how they deal with the situation, rather than poking fun at the tragic event itself.
Going into this film I had reservations having the memory of watching Adam Sander in 'Funny People' which failed to make me laugh, cry or feel any emotion at all. It came to my surprise however how 50/50 managed to change the emotion I was feeling within in minutes but doing so in a seamless way. This was mainly due to the central performance by Levitt who blew me away with how calm he kept his character throughout despite the desolate situation he is in. It's also worth noting that Seth Rogan, who plays Adam's best friend, Kyle, managed not to bring the obnoxious, drugged up performance he usually does but a realistic and touching approach to a friend who tries bring his friend through this time.
50/50 is one of the best films I've seen this year. It deals with a dark issue while managing to keep a smile on your face throughout. It never minimalises the seriousness of cancer and never over exaggerates it. It keeps it on a perfect balance and is a film that's message is it's all going to be okay.