Another Exciting, Solid Effort from David O. Russell

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2016)

JOY is another exciting, solid effort from David O. Russell. The energy this time around is less chaotic compared to his last two films (Silver Linings Playbook, America Hustle), but it felt, strangely enough to me, more structured and focused; even though Russell these days is mostly attracted to characters advancing stories over plot. But my bias is that I don't care much for "plot", as I want films where characters dictate forward movement, even if that movement is less of a straight narrative line, and more of a squiggly kind of progress. Jennifer Lawrence, as usual, is delightful- this may be her best role in the Russell universe, though I will need to see it again to be for certain.