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Being released to DVD this week is the critically acclaimed and Golden Globe-nominated, 50/50, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt ((500) Days of Summer) and Seth Rogen (Knocked Up).
Inspired by actual life experiences of the film’s screenwriter Will Reiser, Gordon-Levitt plays 27-year-old Adam, who is diagnosed with spinal cancer. 50/50 tells the story of the young man’s journey of coping with a life-threatening illness and handling the reactions of his best friend Kyle (Rogen) and his overprotective mother (Anjelica Huston). The cast also includes the fantastic Anna Kendrick as Katherine, Adam’s therapist.
50/50 takes the heavy topic of cancer and really infuses it with a combination of real life and comedy, which brings laughter, as well as tears. It’s an honest, yet humorous and telling look at how people experience things, such as news about a friend/son having cancer, differently from one another, for better or for worse.
The cast of 50/50 is simply stellar. The onscreen pairing of Gordon-Levitt and Rogen is absolutely hilarious. Huston really delivers a fantastic performance as a mom that just wants to try and be there for her son. Also, the progression of chemistry between Gordon-Levitt and Kendrick’s characters really fit the tone of the movie. All of these actors really pulled out all the stops to tell this inspired story.
The DVD version of 50/50 includes hilarious special features, such as deleted scenes and audio commentary with Rogen, Reiser, director Jonathan Levine, and producer Evan Goldberg.
The featurette “The Story of 50/50,” you hear from the screenwriter, producers, and actors about the genesis of the film. Rogen tells the story of how he learned that Reiser had cancer, and Reiser talks about how the experiences he went through during that time of his life inspired him to write the film. During the “Life Inspires Art” featurette, Reiser talks about the actual events that inspired specific scenes in the movie.
Easily one of the most entertaining and moving films of 2011, 50/50 on DVD is not to be missed.
Photo credit: Summit Entertainment
