After directing the impressive horror film All The Boys Love Mandy Lane (which sadly never got a theatrical release here), and then the pot comedy/drama The Wackness, director Jonathan Levine is back with 50/50, formerly known as I’m With Cancer. Although it doesn’t hit until the fall, Summit Entertainment has been screening the film for select critics and I’ve heard nothing but over-the-top positive reactions. The comedy/drama stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Anjelica Huston. Check out the fantastic trailer below via Apple, with a quick personal introduction. Judging from the early reactions, you’ll want to bring some tissues come September.
Synopsis:
Inspired by personal experiences, 50/50 is an original story about friendship, love, survival and finding humor in unlikely places. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen star as best friends whose lives are changed by a cancer diagnosis. Rogen also serves as producer, along with Evan Goldberg and Ben Karlin. Jonathan Levine directs from a script by Will Reiser. “We worked with Will on Da Ali G show, and it was shortly after that we learned he was sick.” Rogen recalls. “As shocking, sad, confusing and generally screwed up as it was; we couldn’t ignore that because we were so ill-equipped to deal with the situation, funny things kept happening. Will got better, and when he did, we thought the best way to pull something good out of the situation was to get him to write a screenplay. Ideally we wanted to make a film that would be as funny, sad, and hopefully as honest as the experience we went through. As soon as the script was completed, it quickly became a passion project for all of us. It helped us come to terms with Will’s struggle as well as our own experiences.” 50/50 is the story of a guy’s transformative and, yes, sometimes funny journey to health. 50/50 draws its emotional core from Will Reiser’s own experience with cancer and reminds us that friendship and love, no matter what bizarre turns they take, are the greatest healers.
50/50 hits theaters September 30th, 2011.