Plenty of movies have been made about cancer: “Terms of Endearment,” “Love Story,” “Brian’s Song,” “Life as a House.” None of them have the humor of “50/50.” You might have thought that it was impossible to make a comedy about cancer, or at least one that’s also properly sober and sympathetic. “50/50” is a special film. It takes serious illness seriously, but also recognizes that though the cliche “laughter is the best medicine” might not always be true, there’s no denying that human beings find humor a necessary escape from the darkest experiences of life.
Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Kyle (Seth Rogen) are best friends, though they have rather different approaches to life. Adam is a sweet guy, content to have a sexless relationship with girlfriend Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard), while Kyle embraces fun over security and pushes his friend to stand up for himself.
