First things first: f@!k cancer.

As someone who has come to terms with the idea (or is it fact?) that cancer is a real possibility to myself, and whose loved ones and friends have been directly affected by it, both for the bad and for the worst, this film was both one I was excited to see, but also dreaded to see.

The cast drew me in first of course: Seth Rogen, the ever-excellent Joseph Gordon-Leavitt, Anna Kendrick (who was great in Up In The Air) and supporting roles by Bryce Dallas Howard and the always-classing-things-up, Angelica Huston.

I saw few trailers — one or two perhaps and just enough to know what the subject matter was. The film's poster makes is pretty clear.

The film is subtle — the kind of subtle that sneaks up on you and makes you feel like these are people you know, people you care about and people who could be you. In a word: (utterly, truly, sadly) realistic.

It's a film that's engaging from the beginning and has no Hollywood-ness about it. Setting the film in Seattle helps ground it and sets a tone that's not quite bleak and not quite sunny. The entire film has no high-highs (though there's plenty of getting high) and low-lows in a tidal sense. There's a wave to ride but it's not a tsunami. It's a small set of steady waves that you ride out with the characters in the film but builds into something that makes the bottom drop out.

It's also a story of redemption and love and how the emotions that are interwoven with the mundane, the tragic and the humourous appear in us daily.

It's a *quiet* film that goes deep but never forgets that we're all just people, trying to be human.

50/50 is an apt title in more ways than one, not only referring to Adam’s chance of surviving cancer, but also the way the film is split between broad buddy comedy and traditional cancer drama. It is to the film’s credit that the two halves complement each other surprisingly well. Cancer films conjure memories of those terrible exploitative made-for-TV films that force inspirational life lessons down the audience’s throat in increasingly manipulative ways. 50/50 hits the familiar beats (it is probably impossible to ignore them when dealing with such a story) but at any point where it appears to be veering too far down a morose path the film will either throw a curveball or a well timed joke to bring things back on an even keel.

Despite every character fulfilling well worn roles (the crude and sex obsessed best friend, the worried mother etc.) they each serve the story, to a point. Anjelica Huston is brilliant in a very small role and Anna Kendrick delivers another fine performance bringing warmth and humour to an underwritten role. Unfortunately, I’ve always disliked Seth Rogen’s shtick and he is in full-on Rogen mode here. In truth he dominates the film too much when the pairing are together which makes it seem less like a friendship than it probably should. However, away from Rogen’s sizeable shadow, Joseph Gordon-Levitt delivers a strong performance that rarely falls into melodramatic cliché.

The film ends up being touching but never cloying and funny but rarely contrived. The film’s diagnosis is healthy and its chances end up being much stronger than 50/50.

Dealing with a heavy subject matter in a Hollywood film is always going to be a risky decision for both the filmmakers and the audience. Some people often see the sugar coating, claiming the authenticity is up for debate. To be honest, rarely, if at all, do you go to see a Hollywood film for realism. With 50/50, the filmmakers aren't making a documentary about one's handling of having cancer. Instead, they opt to show us a more positive outlook on the effects cancer has on the patient and those around him.

Why the film works so well is largely due to the casting. Everyone in the film has a specific role to play and does so effectively. The filmmakers will often throw in a lot of comedy to help alleviate the reality of what is happening but then throw in some truths to remind us it isn't all roses. Not everyone will 'enjoy' this film but I think it has a lot of heart and enough realistic moments to take away from. The material is handled with care and respect and to be honest, that's pretty rare in Hollywood.

What a fantastic surprise 50/50 was. A stellar cast truly led by JGL & Rogen (I know, right?). Heart-wrenching at times, caustically funny at others, but overwhelmingly smart and grounded where it could have easily lapsed into hopeless melodrama, 50/50 is less a film about 'The Big C' than how we let those we care about 'in' and accept help when it is most needed. Never before have I rooted so hard for a couple in a film than with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Anna Kendrick. Who'd have thought a film about the most destructive and life-destroying disease could put such a big smile on your face. Take that, cancer.

I must have been craving some kind of emotional battering sitting down to watch this immediately after The Descendants, but despite the weight of the subject matter I was glad I did so as 50/50 managed to lift my spirits with a genuinely touching and funny script that convinced me that I wasn’t quite over Seth Green’s schtick after all. He’s a guy that seems to only have one mode, and having seen him play stoner after stoner in films of drastically varying quality I was longing for him to do something different. Here though he does exactly the same, but somehow it just works, proving there’s a time and place for everything, and sadly probably encouraging him to ignore that fact and use the accolades for this performance to keep the persona rolling for another half dozen films.

Levitt has proved himself in recent years as a real talent, admirably casting aside 3rd Rock From the Sun to the point I have to be reminded that’s where he got famous, and he’s doing a good job of moving from indie darling to box office draw, and this performance will only help that happen.

I was disappointed in the marketing campaign which not only trotted out the guy that inspired the film to prove this young people getting cancer thing really happens and unnecessarily tug on the heartstrings but also gave away far, far too much of the good stuff. I suspect I’d have enjoyed this a lot more if all the best jokes hadn’t been in the trailer, but (and I suspect this is because it’s based on a true story, and the writer’s no less) the drama felt real, and I could all too easily see myself in the shoes of this young man rocked by news he’d never expected, or equally in the shoes of the best friend not really knowing how to support someone through the toughest time in their life, and that grounding stopped this tipping into melodrama for me.