50/50: Laughing Through the Pain

50/50

Directed By: Jonathan Levine

Written By: Will Reiser

Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Bryce Dallas Howard, Anjelica Huston, Philip Baker Hall, and Matthew Frewer

Director of Photography: Terry Stacey, Editor: Zene Baker, Production Designer: Annie Spitz, Original Music: Michael Giacchino

Rated: R for naughty language and situations.

            There’s no way around it: cancer sucks. No one likes cancer, cause no one likes dying, or losing their hair, or feeling like you need to vomit all the time. It’s an easy enemy for the cinematic machine that characters must fight through and come together to beat. But what if we had a laugh along the way as well?

            That’s the new angle in the new comedic drama, 50/50, about a young man who finds out he has a rare and ugly type of cancer. The film is written by Will Reiser, who wrote this screenplay on his own experiences with battling cancer (sorry, I may have just gave away the ending) at a young age and the comic absurdities he went through. Mr. Reiser, an alum of Da Ali G Show, would often joke during his time about writing a comedy about the tragic disease with his then roommate Seth Rogen. As it turns out, 50/50 is a little more serious than bizarre, anchored through both its antics and pathos by a standout Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Paul: He Not Only Comes In Peace, His Weed is Great Too!

Paul

Directed By: Greg Motolla

Written By: Simon Pegg and Nick Frost

Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, the voice of Seth Rogen, Kristin Wigg, Jason Bateman, Bill Hader, Blythe Danner, and a slew of cameos worth the surprise

Director of Photography: Lawrence Sher, Editor: Chris Dickens, Production Designer: Jefferson Sage, Original Music: David Arnold

            Creating alien beings for films has made for some of the most unique and glorious creatures in our culture. The double-mouthed, gigantic and sleek black monster of Alien, the cute and cuddly brown midget of E.T., and the hairy beast that will always beat all other hairy beasts—Chewbacca. And then there’s the titular character of Paul. Gray-color skinned, with a large head, and fashioning slacker shorts and sandals, Paul is perhaps the strangest character of the bunch, especially when you consider he is voiced by Seth Rogen. But a stoner, pop culture obsessed alien fits perfects in the world of Paul, which is more or less a stoner road trip movie.

            What makes Paul different from the world of Superbad (Directed by Paul’s helmer Greg Motolla) or the like is that it has a sci-fi element, and its extremely nostalgic toward some of the classics of the genre, including but not limited to Star Wars, Star Trek, Alien, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and Predator. And what makes Paul a decently enjoyable, if not perfect ride, is the nostalgia and heart at the center of this comedy.

Get the Raid: 'Green Hornet' Trailer Debuts

            When a gang of 88 crazed soldiers working for O-Ren Ishi in Kill Bill: Volume I showed up wearing Kato masks: Bruce Lee fanboys only thought one thing—a Green Hornet film would be awesome. And soon enough, production began on a Green Hornet movie, working with a script from none other than Superbad scribes Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen. While the production went though a number of changes—Kung Fu Hustle director Stephen Chow was originally set to direct and play the Hornet’s sidekick Kato—the line up of cast and crew was certainly formidable: Rogen in the lead, Taiwanese superstar Jay Chou as Kato, Inglourious Basterds phenomenon Christoph Waltz as the villain, and none other than Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) in the directing chair.

            Well, despite all the amazing talent both in front and behind the camera, the first teaser trailer, released today, shows off none of that talent. The trailer might become the new definition of generic. Nothing in this trailer is necessarily bad (Chou seems pretty amusing), but there’s nothing to separate Hornet from other superhero films being released. Gondry’s magical touch seems to be void from this project (was he really that in need of a paycheck after Be Kind Rewind?).

            The January release date and promotion of 3D don’t seem to bode well for the picture, which right now just looks like a bad combination of Spider-Man and Batman. Judge for yourself below.