Can cancer be...
funny?
In the new film 50/50, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen, the answer is yes…and no.
The film is based on the real-life experience of screenwriter Will Reiser, a close friend of Rogen’s in real life, concerning his battle with a rare form of spine cancer when he was 24. Reiser is quick to point out that the film is fiction, but it deals with the reactions of people to friends/family diagnosed with cancer as well as the cancer patient’s struggles. Seth Rogen, on NBC’s Today, reflected on going through this experience with his friend saying, “We’re comedians. We used humor to deal with it.” Ergo: funny film. But the story also highlights the physical and emotional suffering of the patient and those who care about him.
In the film, Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a 27-year-old man living in a hip, trendy city (Vancouver B. C. standing in for Seattle), working at a hip, trendy job (public radio), when he learns of his cancer. He reacts in disbelief: “I can’t have cancer. I don’t smoke, I don’t drink, . . . I recycle!” His character represents what I like to call the Great American Denial. In American culture today, the biggest taboo is acknowledging death. We like to think that if we just eat the right foods and do the right things, that Death won’t come a-knockin’. That goes double for young people. In real life, Reiser did not undergo chemotherapy, but much of Adam’s experience revolves around chemo. His “chemo group” includes Mitch (Matt Frewer) and Alan (Philip Baker Hall). These two characters provide some of the film’s funniest scenes, but also some of the most poignant. Bryce Dallas Howard portrays Rachael, Adam’s beautiful, but self-absorbed, girlfriend. When the film opens, they are close to living together – she has her own drawer at his place -- but it’s easy to sense her emotional distance. It’s obvious that Adam is the one who makes all the concessions in the relationship. Does she have the guts to stand by him? I’ll leave that to you to discover.
Adam keeps most of his feelings inside. He’s the kind of guy who likes everything in its place -- he’s a rule-obeyer. The only time he really communicates honestly is with his best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen). Rogen does his usual man/boy schtick. He’s stuck in a kind of endless adolescence and thinks any problem can be solved by having a few beers and getting laid. Adam’s doctor refers him to a psychotherapist, Katherine (Anna Kendrick), who turns out to be a doctoral student completing her clinical studies. She’s very green and mainly uses textbook phrases and recommendations to try to help Adam. He is only her third patient, and most likely her youngest one, based on her obvious distress about his condition. Adam is quick to call her hand on her “recitations”, and it’s clear that these two are more like peers than doctor/patient. Unexpectedly, however, they help each other. She realizes that textbooks can’t prepare her for real-patient situations, and he begins to get in touch with his long-suppressed feelings.
Anjelica Huston makes the most of her screen time as Adam’s mother as she tries to tailor her reactions to appease her son. Her anguish is palpable, but she quickly picks up that Adam will not be receptive to it. She is also dealing with a husband (Serge Houde) who’s stuck in the perpetual fog of mid-stage Alzheimer’s Disease. All of the people in Adam’s life will be greatly affected by his illness, some in unexpected ways. Adam himself will discover much about them as well as much about himself in the process.
50/50 is quite a likeable film. I have just a couple of little complaints. In interviews, Seth Rogen has said that Kyle is an exaggerated version of himself. Kyle is indeed exaggerated -- too much so. Rogen’s over-the-top performance becomes annoying even in the midst of its comedic intent. Adam’s recovery, which his surgeon explains will be long and very painful, is glossed over. The audience never sees that. One minute he’s lying in his hospital bed doped up on morphine, and the next minute he’s at home doing just fine. A bit of a transition would have been welcome. Don’t let these little complaints stop you from seeing this film. I’m a huge fan of Joseph Gordon-Levitt -- he just keeps getting better and better. It’s his film to make or break, and he definitely makes it!
