50/50 (2011)

Seth Rogen spends a good chunk of 50/50 using his best friend’s diagnosis as a pickup line, and the scary part is how well it works. That’s the movie’s whole approach: Adam is terrified, and the people around him keep being exactly who they were. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Adam as a careful guy whose careful life just flipped, and he sells the panic without a single big speech. The head-shaving scene with Kyle is funny, then sad, then funny again. Anna Kendrick plays a brand-new therapist who is clearly nervous too, and their awkward sessions are the sweetest thing in it. Bryce Dallas Howard’s girlfriend is written as a villain on arrival, and the therapy romance wraps up far too neatly. Anjelica Huston, as the mom who calls constantly, gets one late scene that hits like a truck. Critics gave it 93% on Rotten Tomatoes. A 7.8 because it’s honest about fear and still finds the jokes. $1,948 says you text your most loyal friend something nice tonight, and they immediately ask if you’re okay.

What works: Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s understated panic, Seth Rogen’s loyal loudmouth act, and Anna Kendrick’s nervous rookie therapist.

What doesn’t: Adam’s girlfriend is written as a cartoon villain from her first scene, and the therapist romance wraps up far too neatly.

Who it’s for: Anyone who copes with hard news by cracking jokes, and the friends who put up with them.