full of Oscar worthy performances, Silver Linings Playbook excels past the romantic comedy stereotype to be a beautifully strong and smart film

Rating: 9/10 (14 November 2012)

When I heard that Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert DeNiro, Jacki Weaver, and Chris Tucker were all going to be starring in David O. Russell's new film (a director that has lead some great ensemble casts in The Fighter, Three Kings, and I Heart Huckabees), I was pretty excited. But everything changed when I saw the first trailer. Check it out yourself. It looks like Silver Linings Playbook is destined to be a cheesy and predictable romantic comedy that would be more fit for a March release date.
So you could imagine my joy in finding a movie that is deeper than I could have ever expected. A moving and romantic film that doesn't simply deal with skin deep love connections, but dares to dive further into the lives of the troubled characters that inhabit the film. And, most importantly, Silver Linings Playbook contains some of the best acting performances this year from top to bottom of the cast.
Destined to be nominated for Oscars with the quality of the film and the name Harvey Weinstein attached, Silver Linings Playbook tells the story of Patrick (Cooper), a former teacher who spends eight months in a mental institution after violently beating a man he caught having an affair with his wife. Released from the mental institution early, Patrick hopes to win his wife back and must find a way to cope with his everyday life due to his struggles with bipolar disorder. Coming from a family with a father that has obsessive compulsive disorder, Patrick's home life is a major challenge after being released from the hospital, and he must find a way to cope with his illness.
Enter Tiffany (Lawrence), a girl with struggles of her own. Tiffany's husband, Tommy, died recently and she was fired from her job after sleeping with 11 different co-workers while in a deep depression. The sister of Patrick's best friend's wife, Tiffany is set up on a dinner date with Patrick shortly after he is released from the hospital (a date neither realized they were being set up on). What seems like a match made in hell slowly turns into a friendship in conversations over prescription drugs.
Eventually, Tiffany and Patrick go out to dinner together at a diner where they start to find out a bit more about each other. During the dinner, Tiffany agrees that if Patrick writes a letter to his wife, she will deliver it for him (breaking the restraining order between the couple, but not something Tiffany is worried about helping with). But soon Patrick starts to screw up the conversation, having no filter on the things that comes out of his mouth, and Tiffany storms out of the diner, angry with him. Patrick tries to chase her down, but ends up in a confrontation in front of a theater and starts to have a breakdown. Tiffany realizes how bad Patrick's condition is and gets him out of the jam. She agrees later on to give Patrick's wife the letter, but only on the condition that Patrick participate in a dance contest with her.
This is where Silver Linings Playbook really excels. The film's two main protagonists are both troubled, confused, and ill souls, but with each other they find their purpose. Patrick struggles constantly with his bipolar disorder and Tiffany's depression is constant, but when they are with each other, it is easier for them to thrive and be their best selves. The romance that starts to build between them is always close, but distant with Patrick's desire to return to his wife. And on top of all of this, Patrick must also deal with his father (De Niro) begging him to watch the Eagles with him as he is a betting man and believes Patrick is good luck. The disorders these characters deal with are not hidden and not dealt with easily, and that is what makes these characters much more dimensional than something from a Nicholas Sparks book.
To read the rest of the review (IMDb form too short) visit: http://custodianfilmcritic.com/silver- linings-playbook/