Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Directed by: David O. Russell
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 91%

Katie, her brother, his girlfriend, and I saw Silver Linings Playbook tonight. Our other two choices were Parental Guidance and The Guilt Trip. I was not keen on either of those and I had wanted to see Silver Linings so that's what we went with. I feel we made a wise decision.
Silver Linings Playbook is one of the most meaningful films I have seen recently. The characters are fleshed out and do not feel like archetypes or cliches. Bradley Cooper gives a terrific performance in one of his few roles where he isn't a complete douchebag (lovable douchebag but douchebag nonetheless). Jennifer Lawrence proves with this role that she will not be type cast as...anything really. She did well as Katniss in The Hunger Games, she was great opposite John Hawkes in Winter's Bone, and now she can add Silver Linings Playbook to her repertoire of successful films. However, the role that really surprised me is Robert De Niro. He has, in my opinion, become a cliche in himself. Much like Al Pacino and Samuel L. Jackson; De Niro embodies a specific character. He is a tough guy, a badass, someone not to be trifled with. De Niro gets to show that he is more than that in Silver Linings Playbook. We see his struggle to support his family, his desire to understand and communicate with his son (Cooper) that is living with Bipolar Disorder. His performance is one of the most important aspects of this film.

The way that Silver Linings Playbook was filmed and edited becomes another medium for the story to be told through. Pat (Cooper) is living with undiagnosed Bipolar Disorder and he is not taking medication for it. Because of that he goes through intense mood swings that are triggered by severe stress, anxiety, or even something as simple as a song. Russell has done a brilliant job of making the audience feel the anxiety that Pat feels throughout the film. In one scene, Pat is desperately looking for his wedding video that is seemingly lost in the clutter of his parent's home. As he franticly searches through boxes and piles of Eagles tapes a Led Zeppelin song plays over the noise. As things crash to the floor, Pat begins to yell at his parents, accusing them of hiding it from him. Pat's father, Pat Senior (De Niro) starts yelling at him and the neighbor's begin to call the police. This is all happening while the Led Zeppelin song continues to blare in the background. We, the audience, feel Pat Jr's intense feeling of anxiety and dread because everything is coming to a point and it is too much for him to handle.

One of my favorite scenes in the entire film takes place in a crowded ballroom. I am a sucker for long takes. They are one of the most fascinating things in film for me to watch. A long take is when the camera does not cut for an abnormal amount of time. We have been trained to view films in a specific way with cuts and edits. Rarely do we watch a scene without a dozen or more cuts even in just a few minutes of the movie. One of my favorite long takes is from the Scorsese film Goodfellas. If you haven't seen it watch it here:

We follow Ray Liotta from his car on the street, down the stairs, through a crowded kitchen, out into the dining room, and finally to his table that has been brought out for him. All without a cut. That is incredible! There is a moment like this in Silver Linings Playbook that follows Pat through the ballroom that is full of people sitting and dancing. It truly is remarkable.


No BS

Silver Linings Playbook is actually a pretty easily digestible film. It is a little long at just over 2 hours but it doesn't really feel like it. The performances of the actors make it an enjoyable movie. There is a perfect balance of emotional drama and dead pan humor to keep things flowing. The pacing doesn't lag at any point in the movie. There is quite a bit of language but it's believable coming from these characters. This one is definitely not one to miss.
My Score: 8.5/10