Silver Linings Playbook AKA Am I Crazy Or Is That A Lot of Gum?

Silver Linings Playbook
Director: David O. Russell
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, and Robert DeNiro
New Release Review

Every year, the Academy Awards honour a film that is deserving of all it's accolades, but it also appeals to the masses. Last year it was The Help (and Hugo - though that film didn't garner any acting nominations but did earn eleven nominations nonetheless). This year, it's Silver Linings Playbook.

Playbook stars Bradley Cooper as Pat, a recently released patient of a mental health facility, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and put in the custody of his parents after eight months of treatment. Suffering major life blows including losing his job and his wife, Pat is at an all time low when he is court-ordered to receive treatment. Upon his release, he learns that his wife (Nikki) has moved away and is unwilling to see him, his father, Pat Sr. (De Niro), is unemployed and heavily involved in bookmaking to earn money to start a family restaurant, and his friends and acquaintances all believe he is "crazy".

Determined to get his life back on track, and find the "silver lining", Pat agrees to dinner with his friend Ronnie and meets Ronnie's sister-in-law, Tiffany (Lawrence), a recently widowed, recovering sex addict who has also lost her job. The two form an unlikely bond when Tiffany agrees to help Pat with reconciling with Nikki, and Pat agrees to be Tiffany's partner in an upcoming dance competition.

Through the trials and tribulations of both of these characters, we are taken on a journey were we discover that being considered "crazy" is relative and nobody's life is perfect but we can find the "silver lining" in every situation.

The most remarkable thing about this film is that it found a perfect format for creating a wonderful rom-com. It's sad that now, we are inundated with cookie cutter films such as How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days, America's Sweethearts, Monster-In-Law, and Sweet Home Alabama. It was so refreshing to see a completely different take on the genre. Unlike these "dime a dozen" rom-com films, Playbook dared to be different, including grittier and  heavier plot points and more realistic emotion and drama. The film steers clear of cheesy genre elements like montages of the leads suffering because they "can't be together" and then low and behold, they end up together after a big gesture made by one of the leads.

On top of having a great storyline, Playbook boasts a stellar cast. I wasn't surprised to see Cooper step up to this big role and knock it out of the park. We have seen him prove that he has some acting chops (Limitless) and this role provided him with all the things he needed in order to produce an Oscar-worthy performance. He has gained critical acclaim for this role and it's well deserved. It won't earn him that Oscar, but being nominated is an honour in itself (as cheesy as that sounds, it's true) and will give him some serious clout as an actor.

Lawrence was spectacular. Not many young female actresses would be able to fill the shoes of this dynamic and layered character. Lawrence, despite her age, is able to believably portray characters that are "wiser beyond their years" and she always brings a little something more to the character. Her performance in this film is the stand out amongst several other strong ones. The range that she demonstrates in this film is what will give her a decent chance at the Oscar race, but we have yet to see the best that she can do.

De Niro reminds us why he has been in this industry, and so successful, for so long. Though he is sometimes forgotten in the praise of the performances in this film, his is one that should not go unnoticed. On top of giving a remarkable performance of this character, he also brings out the best in his costars, most notably, Cooper. I hope that Cooper appreciated the fact that he got to work with one of the greats and it looks like he learned a thing or two from the talented De Niro. (Side note: with his nomination for Best Supporting Actor, De Niro now has seven nominations and one win under his belt - not too shabby!)

Silver Linings Playbook has earned eight Academy Award nominations including, Best Picture and Best Director. It has achieved two rare feats: being nominated in all four acting categories (Cooper, Lawrence, De Niro, and Jacki Weaver - supporting actress) the first time since Reds in 1981 and being nominated for the "Big Five" (Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, and Screenplay) the first time since 2004's Million Dollar Baby.

Final Verdict: See it. You won't regret it. The story is wonderful and compelling; just when you think the film is about Cooper's character dealing with being bipolar, you are swept up in a story that has so much more to offer. It's an unpredictably beautiful film about two complex characters and their interesting and quirky families. One of the best films of 2012.

Rotten Tomatoes

PS: For those of you who didn't get the joke in the title of this review - it's a quote from a Seinfeld episode entitled "The Gum" where everyone is partaking in a ruse to make sure Lloyd Braun, who suffered a nervous breakdown and spent time in a mental institution, feels normal and not "crazy". Here's the clip: