Joseph Gordon-Levitt has really come into his own....

Rating: 8/10 (27 January 2012)

Considering that I am a guy who went through cancer treatment when I was 26, this film naturally hit close to home. On top of that, I could see a lot in the film that worked--stuff that really connect with what it's like to go through this hell (such as the horribly detached way the doctor broke the news to the guy about his illness). It sure helped that the writer, Will Reiser, had gone through this himself.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt did not even register in most folks' minds until recently. He was just THAT kid from "3rd Rock"--a rather inconsequential series at that. However, recently he's blown a lot of people away given his breakout performances in "Inception". He's shown here in "50/50" that he can do well now as a star. This is quite a jump from his TV days as a scrawny kid.
The film, as many people know, is about a guy who finds out he has cancer. The film is not the deepest thing--just one guy's experiences with the disease as well as the experiences of those around him. In some cases, people really come through for them and in others, folks show their inadequacy--just as in real life--and just like what happened when I was ill. I liked this and I also liked how the character was NOT noble--he was just a guy. Well worth seeing, that's for sure.
Now I do have a few minor reservations in this excellent film. First, while I liked Rogan quite a bit (such as his using his friend's cancer to help him score with women as well as the way he reacted to THE breakup), he is VERY crude. Funny, yes....but VERY crude. Parents might want to think about this Secondly, the psychotherapist character (Anna Kendrick) is possibly the worst therapist in movie history. She apparently has no boundaries, no training and is a sweet idiot. Hopefully folks WON'T think that any of her behaviors are acceptable!! And, I cannot imagine ANY college allowing anyone that dippy to go near patients!! I used to be a psychotherapist many years ago--and I actually trained young counselors to do therapy. Even the dumbest and most inept grad student I ever met was light-years better than this goof-ball! Enjoyable but 100% unrealistic and the character should have been rewritten a bit to at least make her a bit more believable.