Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Despite a daring performance from Jennifer Aniston (though ultimately one-note) the movie fails to take off. It's the screenplay. It's the unrelenting darkness and pessimism. Maybe fewer hallucinations and more flashbacks to happier times would have helped.

Like many others who have commented on this piece before, I was never a fan of Rachel, and that dislike naturally affected my perception and judgment of -- as well as expectations toward -- Aniston and her work. The portrayal of Claire caused some massive adjustments, which makes me really joyous. Aniston's character in Cake is interesting and convincing in so many ways, and it gives food for thought in so many aspects -- it makes you wonder what alternative path(s) as an actress she might have taken in the absence of Friends. But never mind all that. Here's hoping (and now also very much expecting -- yeah, revealing one's talent can be a real curse) that we'll get a lot more of THAT actress in the future.The development of Claire's character, and thus the film as such, progresses at a good pace. Don't be turned off by claims that the first half is too slow, it absolutely isn't. Portraying the many facets of pain that represent Claire's reality couldn't possibly be done more quickly, it would be entirely inappropriate. In fact, I assume the director had a lot more material in that section which he was forced to cut to appeal to a broader audience (which is a real shame).Similarly, don't be misled by claims that much of the first part of Cake is a '(self-)pity party'. Whoever spouts such nonsense simply lacks any experience of what chronic pain is like. In a sense, such people are to be admired and congratulated because they seem to have lived rather luckily. On the down-side, lack of personal experience comes with lack of true understanding and empathy, which is unfortunate. If anything, it's rather amazing that Claire manages to operate as well as she does. Many, perhaps most, others in her position wouldn't. That she is snarky and short in her interaction with others cannot possibly surprise, constant pain does that to a person.I also liked that the full spectrum of pains was not revealed immediately. We slowly learn that chronic bodily misery is not the only part of Claire's hell. Rather, psychological pains -- and here too, not just one kind -- represent key aspects of the character's daily experience of 'life'. Over the course of the film, more and more agony gets packed on, making you wonder how she's even able to manage anything other than a crawl. In this respect, I actually found the weakness of her suicidal tendencies (as portrayed) quite unconvincing. How could anyone not strongly wish to put an end to this kind of suffering?? (Religion certainly didn't seem to play a preventative role.)One key question that I wish the film would have had time to consider is how relatively lucky Claire is despite her personal hell. Imagine the same fate had affected not Claire -- who's obviously materially well-off -- but rather her housekeeper Silvana. If Claire's life is agony, what would the existence of an immigrant be like?All in all, much applauded and recommended.

Aniston did an excellent portrayal of a woman in big, chronic pain. Both emotional and physical, and when the meds were and weren't working. She should win awards for her acting. I hope others who see the film, think of the people in their lives that have chronic pain, and understand even just a bit of what they are going thru. The scenes where she can barely breathe because of the pain are bang on, or when in bed and can hardly move due to the pain. Even the sounds she makes "when in pain" are exactly right. The way she turns without moving her head and the way she stands up are perfect. The weariness of dealing with the pain is so real looking.

I wanted to watch this movie for a long time because of all the reviews and i didn't regret it at all. To me this was a movie which successfully touched the human soul in all possible ways. On Aniston I have to say this. I liked her on friends, and i always categorised her as a comedian but this once she proved she got more than just the looks. With this movie she proved she got the talent too. And truth is that as she started as a series actress it should be very difficult for her to enter the movie business as most series actors never make it there. I may admit that this was her most challenging role and she nailed it.On the negative parts(there are always negatives) I may say that the movie could be faster. Also it could declare the story better, we had to guess parts of the plot, which is interesting but you still have to declare everything in the end. At times the plot didn't let us relate to Claire and I personally didn't feel her pain. And lastly supporting characters could be better, the only well rounded characters were Claire and silvana the rest were superficial.On the whole this was not a masterpiece, but to me it was one of Aniston's best and a movie worth watching. I would gladly re-watch it some time.