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50/50- nf  A 27 year old single guy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt)  gets a diagnosis of cancer with a 50/50 chance of survival. His girl friend (Bryce Dallas Howard) gets him a boney dog but can’t handle the situation and they break up. His mother (Angelica Huston) as usual tries to smother him. His best buddy (Seth Rogen) sticks by him and decides that this will be a great pick up line to get girls. Rogen’s comedic style carries the movie and allows a painful subject to be appreciated in a more palatable manner. Admittedly as a psychiatrist and a social worker who have trained medical students and physicians how to talk to patients, it was disappointing to see the cancer specialist as being quite insensitive. It also was a little disheartening to see the student therapist (Anna Kendrick) who was supposed to help him deal with the situation, act out a romantic crush that she developed for him. But it was done in good taste and, after all, it is only a movie. On the other hand the back-story for the film is quite authentic. As shown in the bonus feature of the DVD, the script writer (Will Reiser) actually lived this story and his best friend who stood by him through this ordeal was Seth Rogen. (2011)

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500 Days of Summer – sp – Boy meets girl and both like each other. Boy falls in love with girl but girl doesn’t believe in true love and just wants to let the relationship happen. The film crisply directed by Marc Webb in his first feature film, weaves some of older Los Angeles architecture into the story. It is focused completely on this charming young women played by Zooey Deschanel but through the eyes of a love struck and terribly disappointed guy played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. It should resonate with the modern 20s and 30s crowd going through the trials and tribulations of trying to find true romance when both parties always aren’t on the same page. Other than a good music background sound track, it doesn’t have much more to offer although the off-beat take on the familiar well told story may be enough for many viewers. (2009)