Movie Review: Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook (2012): Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence star in David O. Russell's film about two people with various mental and social problems who are put together for a dance competition as Cooper tries to win back his ex-wife. And of course a relationship between them grows in an intriguing fashion.

On paper this movie shouldn't work. When the climax of your movie is a dance competition mixed with a football game, it shouldn't work at all. But David O. Russell is a master at filmmaking and figures out a way to make this into a good movie. Notice I said good. Many people who saw this movie said it was unbelievably great and that they were incredibly moved by the end. I was not one of those people. It's a good movie, yes...it made me laugh quite a bit, it had some great bits of drama, the acting was superb, but it just wasn't moved by the end as much as I thought I would be. And it took until those final few scenes where most would be crying but I was just sitting there for me to realize why this movie just didn't work as well for me as it does for most. The reason? How lightly they approach the mental illnesses that three of the characters in this movie suffer from. Supposedly, because aside from one (Robert De Niro's character) you barely see these illnesses at all in the final act. You do in the first two. Quite a bit. But they are magically healed by the third act. What's particularly frustrating is how seriously these issues are addressed initially. There were a few scenes in here that moved me, but it was as Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper were dealing with and addressing these illnesses they were suffering from. There was one scene outside of a movie theater where Lawrence's character is trying to help Cooper's character get over his fear of a specific song and it is really beautiful. That and the scene where Lawrence first meets Cooper's family are the two best scenes of the movie, even though its all downhill for me after that later scene.

I guess to sum it up I was really hoping that this movie would be more in the dramatic realm of movies with some good laughs along the way as opposed to the comedic realm. But that doesn't mean it was all bad. Quite the contrary. The story was great, despite it's treatment of mental illness. This is still a moving love story. I just didn't hit the crescendo of it when I was supposed to. The acting was phenomenal too. Jennifer Lawrence unquestionably earned Best Actress last year for this movie, as she gets that performance like Emma Watson did in Perks of Being a Wallflower that will slingshot her career from being the girl in the Hunger Games movies to being an A-list superstar. Plus cozying up to David O. Russell helps as she's already lined up to star in his next film American Hustle which I am very excited for. Bradley Cooper would've won Best Actor as well were it not for Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln. I mean that one was a no-brainer. But these two actors have a phenomenal chemistry and clearly studied how people with mental illnesses might behave on a day-to-day level. Even though if I could go to a mental institution for eight months and come out of it looking like Bradley Cooper, SIGN ME UP! Also it was damn good to see De Niro back in a movie where he puts in a great performance. It has been quite some time since that happened, but in here he was phenomenal as the father of Bradley Cooper. Oh and can I just say Chris Tucker and Shea Whingham were also in this? They didn't exactly have huge roles but they were in it. Yes Chris Tucker. He did bring a few laughs here. Believe it or not.

But again, I just could not get past how lightly they took the backgrounds of these characters. I'll give you one last example. There was a doctor that was the therapist for Cooper's character, and instead of using him intelligently to try to dissect Lawrence's motivations, or Cooper's own obsession to get back with his ex-wife, he's basically there to simply move the plot along and for comedy's sake when Cooper runs into him at an Eagles game. I'm pretty sure that's illegal to begin with (to be seeing a client outside of work and spending time with them in a social manner) but then bad things happen and what do you know? The doctor is in Cooper's house in the middle of a huge meltdown from several characters. Just sitting there. In the corner. At one point he helps to explain what's happening in the plot at the current moment but all I did was be absolutely shocked at the realization that the therapist is just sitting in the corner watching what is happening before him and doing absolutely nothing! Am I allowed to be bothered by this? Yes I am! Am I allowed to judge the entire movie because of it? Absolutely not! Am I doing so at all? Absolutely not! Just pointing out an example.

Now I know you're gonna say that I'm taking this movie way too seriously, especially since it is a comedy, but I have to when some people are calling it the best movie of 2012. If you loved it, great! That's your opinion, and you are entitled to it. But as for me, I just liked it. That's it. Now I am forgiving a lot here since it is a comedy, like how the therapist character is treated, but I just can't get past them taking such a serious topic as mental illness so lightly. I just can't. I'm sorry.

The Critique: Award-winning acting, directing, and story come together for a fun romantic comedy with a (supposedly) moving ending.

The Recommendation: I'd be careful with this one....I'd say see it if you like either of the leads, or if you want to see a pretty good romantic comedy. But if mental illness is something of a trigger for you I would not recommend it. And no kids! A lot of cursing and sexual references are in here, plus a completely inaccurate portrayal of mental illness.

Rewatchability: Moderate

The Verdict: 7.5/10  Somewhere between good and great. I'm sorry.