A Different Kind of a Romcom with Quirkily Effective, Seriocomic Touches

Rating: 8/10 (2 March 2013)

Portraying mental illness on screen usually means you'll see bravura scenes set in an asylum like "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest", but iconoclastic filmmaker David O. Russell ("The Fighter") deals with the edges of emotional disequilibrium in this compellingly quirky 2012 dramedy. Based on the same-name 2008 novel by Matthew Quick, this film reminds me a bit of Russell's 1999 dysfunctional family comedy, "Flirting with Disaster", as the seriocomically volatile dynamics here are amplified by the central character's precarious psychological state. High school teacher Pat Solitano Jr. is a man with bipolar disorder who has spent eight months in a Baltimore psychiatric hospital for a violent episode caused by seeing his wife Nikki cheating with a fellow teacher. He's released into the care of his parents and determined to win back his estranged wife.
As he strives to improve himself, Pat meets Tiffany Maxwell facing her own level of mental instability since becoming widowed, turning to indiscriminate sex with her co-workers, and most recently losing her job. Eventually they strike a deal where she will help him win back his wife if he enters a dance competition with her, both coping with their disorders at the same time. At first, I really didn't buy Bradley Cooper ("The Hangover") as Solitano since his idea of showing manically obsessive behavior is to speak loudly in a monotone without much nuance, but his performance grew on me as Russell's screenplay had him show more layers to a character that has a hard time eliciting sympathy from anyone much less the audience. At 21, Jennifer Lawrence ("Winter's Bone") would appear too young to play a sex-addicted cop widow like Tiffany, but she excels with her preternatural ability to convey unforced maturity and conviction without losing touch with the character's deep-seeded vulnerability.
Perhaps the film's nicest surprise is Robert De Niro's sterling performance as Pat Sr., his best work in years after the silly shenanigans of the Fockers franchise. Exhibiting his character's obsessive-compulsive disorder in powerful, brief scenes, De Niro vividly shows how the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree. Completely submerging her Australian roots in favor of a convincing Mid-Atlantic accent, Jacki Weaver ("Animal Kingdom") effectively plays the lone voice of sanity as Pat's mother constantly fretting over her son and preparing "crabby snacks and homemades" for home viewing of the family's beloved Philadelphia Eagles. As Pat's best friend Danny, a fellow patient constantly escaping from the hospital, motor-mouthed, high-pitched Chris Tucker ("Rush Hour") is surprisingly good even if his soulful dance moves came across as a convenient plot device. Julia Stiles ("Mona Lisa Smile") shows up in a smallish role as Tiffany's patronizing, status- conscious sister Veronica. The climax induces the right emotions even if it means the uncertainties in the plot get wrapped up all too neatly.