Silver Linings Playbook stars Bradley Cooper, Jennifere Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver, and Chris Tucker. Cooper plays Pat Solitano, a man diagnosed with bipolar disorder who has just finished an 8 month stint in a mental institution and is released into the care of his parents (De Niro and Weaver). Pat is trying to turn his life around and thinks he can win back his wife, who placed a restraining order on him after his violent episode that caused him to go to the mental institution in the first place. While at a dinner with two of his friends, Pat meets Tiffany (Lawrence), who also has some problems of her own. Because of this, they strike up an odd friendship.
OK no bullshit, I'm just gonna tell you all flat out: I adored this movie. This is probably one of my favorites from 2012 hands down.
The acting in this is phenomenal. Bradley Cooper gives easily the best performance of his entire career. He blew me away by going through the emotions of someone with bipolar, with his moods changing from happy to angry to sad. It blew me away by how he portrayed this character. He portrayed him as someone struggiling to adjust, but still tried to maintain a positive outlook on life. Optimisitcally, I would like him to win Best Actor (realistically it will probably go to Daniel Day-Lewis or Joaquin Phoenix) because I truly think he deserves it.
Also Jennifer Lawrence....she is excellent in this. Easily one of the best performances in the entire film. She gives it her all here, portraying Tiffany as someone who is extremely vulnerable but in order to stay strong, has a very hard exterior. There's one scene in the movie that stands out in my mind where Lawrence's emotions go from calm to angry in the span of 2 seconds. I want to see her win the Oscar come Oscar night.
The supporting cast in this is great as well. Robert De Niro and Jacki Weaver as Pat's parents are fantastic. In the movie, Pat's father is a supersititous Eagles fan who turns to bookmaking in order to earn money to start a resturant. He believes Pat is his good luck charm and De Niro nails the obessesive fandom perfectly. He plays the character so narrow minded as to having only one thing on his mind and one thing only: for the Eagles to beat the opposing team. Jacki Weaver as Pat's mom was good as well, though I wish they had given her more to do. But the biggest surprise in this movie? Chris Tucker. I mean where the hell did this come from? Keep in mind that the last three movies he's done was the Rush Hour trilogy. As Pat's friend Danny from the mental hospital, Tucker was really good in this. I hope this leads to more roles in the future that don't involve Jackie Chan.
Another thing I really liked in this movie is the writing. David O. Russell, who directed the film as well as writing it, made this film almost seem like two different genres. For a while, it's this serious drama but halfway through, it becomea a light-hearted romantic comedy. By the end of this movie, I walked out in a really good mood. Also, the film is funny. There were some genuine laugh out loud moments.
Overall, Silver Linings Playbook is a fantastic film, It is easily one of the best films of 2012 and I adored it. If you haven't seen it, check it out before the Oscars on February 24th.
Grade: A
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