Silver Linings Playbook

This movie adaptation did not touch my heart the same way the book "The Silver Linings Playbook" did. But I still find myself giving it five stars because its occasionally noticeable flaws are outshone by its virtues.The protagonist is Pat. He's a former high school history teacher and coach (as well as a bipolar disorder sufferer) who went a bit crazy after "something" went wrong with his marriage. That something landed him in a mental hospital as part of a plea bargain. We meet him the day his doting and loving mother gets him discharged from the facility. Pat is touchingly and sometimes even maddeningly naive about the chances of renewing his marriage with his wife Nikki. Like many people (including me), he's been conditioned by Hollywood and popular culture to expect a happy ending to the "movie" his life seems to be to him.But Pat should have remembered that sometimes the happy ending that you think you want is not the ending you are going to get and the one you get is much better than the one you want. The "twist" in his life-movie plot comes in the form of a young widow named Tiffany who is struggling to overcome her own personal demons. Somehow, grudgingly, Pat becomes friends with her and then something more along the way...I won't say more than that, except to say the story has an immensely uplifting ending that put a smile on my face.This odd love story unfolds in Philadelphia and against the backdrop of the NFL season. Pat, like his brother and father, is a rabid Eagles fan and a great deal of the story delves in what that means to love a team so much. Suffice to say that even though I'm from Washington DC (go Redskins!) it made me want to go see the Eagles play and root for them to be part of the Eagles fandom brotherhood for just a moment (so long as it wasn't a game with the Redskins).There are three things about this story that stand out to me as being particularly praise-worthy.1. Jennifer Lawrence is absolutely luminous as Tiffany. She may have been a bit young to play the role of someone who was in their mid-to-late 20s, but she was so beautiful, sad, and compelling, I was more than willing to suspend disbelief on that part (and besides some people do look much younger than their actual ages...and a thirty-five year old being involved with a 21 year old may be uncommon but it's hardly deviant).2. Dr. "Cliff" Patel (Pat's therapist) is a great supporting character...especially when he reveals that he too is an ardent Eagles fan.3. The depiction of serious mental illness like that Pat suffers (and to a lesser extent Tiffany) is not sugar-coated but not portrayed in an ugly way that might repel the viewer. The scene where Pat has a major episode and winds up scuffling with his parents is well done and heart-breaking.So how did the movie and novel differ from each other?<spoilers>I think most of the changes were driven by the need to keep the story moving along and prevent the movie from getting too long. I only think the ones that made the movie a little less compelling than the book were items 1, 2, 3, and 4 below.1. The movie ended with the Tiffany and Pat professing their love for each other at the end of the dance competition, instead of lying down on a snowy field to watch for clouds and saying that they needed each other (vice "loved"). I actually liked the book ending better, but I suppose the movie had a more Hollywood ending simply because Hollywood knows what sells.2. Nikki did not come to the dance recital in the book, but Pat did have his brother drive him past the house where she was living with her new husband and family and seeing them happy, Pat realized his marriage was truly over and that he didn't want to bother or bother with Nikki anymore. I think that would have made a better resolution than what the movie did.3. Pat's family was not Italian-American in the book. I didn't mind this change, but I wished that they had played down the "lovable noisy Italian American family" cliche some. All the people yelling at each other got slightly annoying.4. Pat exchanged more letters with what he thought was his wife Nikki in the book and contrary to the movie, he did not find out that the letters were fake until Tiffany told him they were. These letters and the ones Tiffany wrote him under her own name shed a lot of useful light on Tiffany and how she felt about Pat.5. Pat and Tiffany did not go to the beach with their friends in the movie.6. Pat's father in the book did not have his own problems with low level OCD but was simply somewhat withdrawn from his family although he did love Pat and his wife.7. The Eagles games featured more prominently in the book.8. Pat's father was not a bookie in the book and did not make any bets about the outcome of the game with the Cowboys or the dance competition with his friend.9. The dance that Pat and Tiffany did in the book was more a modern dance than ballroom, and they did better in the book than the movie.10. The scene in the book where Pat got in a fight at an Eagles game was somewhat different than what the movie showed. Pat did not get arrested.11. Pat did not get mugged and his leg broken in the movie like he did in the book.12. They used different songs in the movie and book as the song from Pat and Nikki's wedding that was playing when he caught his wife cheating on him.13. Pat's mother did not go "on strike" to try to change Pat's father's behavior in the movie like she did in the book.14. Unlike in the book, Pat did not blot out the reason why he wound up in a mental hospital in the movie.15. Pat was in the mental hospital for four years in the book and was hazy about how long he had been there (somewhat deliberately). In the movie, he had been away for eight months and knew that.16. While the movie showed Pat as working hard to lose weight and get in great shape for the sake his hoped for reunion with Nikki, it was not done to quite the same degree as in the book.<end spoilers>So I would say see the movie and read the book...both are worthwhile, but it's the book that will stay with me more.Finally, those who like this book/movie probably will like "Ordinary People," another story that also deals with family tragedy and mental illness but is similarly uplifting with some romantic elements.Ordinary PeopleOrdinary People

From [...]A gripping, charming, hilarious, and moving movie about a couple troubled people making life work in their own way. Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence are both at the absolute top of their game. Both actors deliver mesmerizing Oscar worthy performances and sell what was already a fantastically written script. In a smaller support role that turns out being a lot more important than at first glance, Robert De Niro brings one of the most moving performances in his recent career.When Pat Solitano (Bradley Cooper) is released from a court ordered stay in a mental institution he moves back in with his parents. Pat’s goal is a new attitude, fitness, and to reconcile with ex-wife. His behavior is obsessive and he has no filter on what comes out of his mouth but it is clear Pat isn’t an overall bad guy. As pieces of his past are filled in, the depth of the character comes into focus. Pat Senior (Robert De Niro) at first comes off as a smaller role who throws out a couple snappy one liners but doesn’t amount to much. As the story continues and Pat Jr. and Sr. interact more it becomes very clear how Pat turned out the way he did. Pat Sr. isn’t a bad man or a bad father and mental illness can not be blamed on the individual but the personality traits carried through father and son are very well laid out and subtle. At a dinner with some old friend Pat meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence). The two seem to have no chemistry at all but end up bonding over their own social issues and medications they have been on. After a couple seeming random encounters the two form a unique and borderline hostile friendship. The friendship deepens and Pat agrees to help Tiffany with a dance competition she has been training for.Silver Linings Playbook was advertised primarily as a comedy, the movie is very funny. As funny as the movie is it is also very deep and moving when it needs to be. Director David O. Russell really strikes a perfect balance between the deep emotions and hysterics that are delivered perfectly by the amazing cast. Along the way as Pat and Tiffany grow closer Playbook could easily have derailed and became one of several typical romantic-comedies that get churned out every year. Bradley Cooper would have needed to flash a smile and Jennifer Lawrence bear her emotions after indulging in expensive ice cream and the movie could have been shipped, sold and forgotten about. Instead the audiences were served a spectacular story about family, friends, redemption, moving forward and all forms of love. The various levels of the movie don’t just make it interesting to experience but give a lot of re-watch value beyond the humor and amazing performances. The writing is so well done that everything can’t possibly be absorbed one time through but nothing is obtuse.Bradley Cooper has been acting for a while now and has moved steadily up into meatier roles. He has proven he can handle comedy in popular movies like Wedding Crashers (2005) and The Hangover (2009), he handled action in The A-Team, and has had more than his fair share of romantic comedies. While always delivering for the part he was given Silver Linings Playbook is the first time he got to fully stretch his legs and show off what he can do as an actor. In the best performance of his career so far (no doubt that there is more amazing performances to come from him) Cooper plays Pat perfectly. At times he is bouncing off the walls and at other times he is angry beyond comprehension but Cooper always brings these extremes up to the line but never crossing into doing too much. Jennifer Lawrence hasn’t been acting for quite as long but started her career fairly young and has had a variety of roles. Her first leading film role was in Winter’s Bone (2010) and she proved that she has what it takes to be a leading actress. As good as Lawrence did in Winter’s Bone and her other movies leading up to Silver Linings Playbook, Playbook was a whole new league to the caliber of acting Lawrence is capable of. Tiffany is a more damaged character than Pat in some way and Lawrence gives the audience no choice but to feel for her. Her performance is incredibly moving while she teeters on the brink of incredibly strong or cracked and fragile. Robert De Niro gives his strongest performance in years as well. De Niro plays a man his age, a husband and a father. There is none of the typical De Niro “cool” or toughness that seems to follow him to the majority of his roles. Taking that away he is left as a very real man. He wasn’t a perfect father or husband but a man who tried his best and he feels completely real. Pat Sr. has some obsessive compulsive tendencies, a gambling problem, and a horrible temper. A lot of these traits can be seen in both of his sons in the movie and the progression is subtle, but makes all the characters that much more complete. The supporting case is also impeccable. Chris Tucker makes his first appearance in 2005. He provides some great comedic relief and doesn’t overstay his welcome. It was nice seeing Tucker in a tame but still hilarious role since in the bast he mostly overacted and was always over the top. Jacki Weaver, Dash Mihok, John Ortiz, Shea Whigham, and Julia Styles round out the rest of the cast with smaller but very important parts.Silver Linings Playbook is absolutely one of the best movies of it’s year. Every element of the film clicks into place perfectly. There is something for every movie-goers taste and Cooper and Lawrence prove that they are a couple actresses that audiences will be seeing a lot more of in the future.

rien à dire c'est un très bon film

Dos horas que pasan rápido, pero porque no paran de ocurrir cosas que mantienen en todo momento tu atención. No es el tipo de película que suelo ver, y cuando lo hice fue en un momento de aburrimiento supino en el que no tenia otra cosa para ver. Desde entonces la abre visto 10 veces, gran pelicula. Jennifer Lawrence es genial, y no se porque dicen que esta gorda. Es muy expresiva y te lo dice todo con la mirada. Normalmente cuando alguien me comenta que el trabajo de tal o cual actor es muy bueno no me lo suelo creer mucho, pues las películas suelen estar dobladas y eso elimina gran parte de su interpretación, pero en este caso bien se puede apreciar. El otro protagonista, Bradley Cooper, también lo borda. Robert De Niro y el resto de reparto tampoco es que desmerezcan lo mas mínimo, aunque por otra parte a todo esto también debe contribuir la dirección. La música también transmite perfectamente los cambios anímicos de los protagonistas, su complicidad, nerviosismo....En fin.... que me ha sorprendido gratamente, asi que vuelvo a decirlo, una Gran Pelicula.

l'ho visto due volte. In italiano mi era piaciuto. In inglese mi ha strappato qualche lacrima. Il film è ben studiato, ben confezionato, una trama solida realtiva ad una storia d'amore impensabile.Ricco di spunti paradossali, che mettono in mostra alcuni lati e sprazzi di vissuto reale (certo a tratti estremizzati per poter strappare anche qualche lacrima), ma mentre sulla cover lo definiscono commedia, perchè si qualche risata la fa fare, il film rappresenta in modo leggero a tratti e forte in altri, una storia drammatica, un dramma familiare.Gli attori scelti sono tutti bravissimi, e perfetti nei propri ruoli.Quest'opera è da non perdere.

Silver Linings, im Original Silver Linings Playbook, ist eine Tragikomödie, die, basierend auf dem gleichnamigen Roman von Matthew Quick, vom Regisseur David O. Russell visualisiert worden ist.Der Protagonist Pat (Bradley Cooper) wurde, nachdem er seine Frau Nikki in flagranti mit einem anderen Mann erwischt und selbigen daraufhin zusammengeschlagen hatte, in die Psychatrie eingewiesen und leidet seitdem unter einer bipolaren Störung. Woraufhin ihn seine Mutter (Jackie Weaver) nach acht Monaten Therapie, mit Erlaubnis des Gerichts, wieder zu sich und ihrem Mann (Robert De Niro) nach Hause holt.Dort angekommen trifft er auf die an Depressionen leidende Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), durch die er versucht wieder Kontakt mit Nikki herzustellen. Hierfür verlangt Tiffany jedoch, dass Pat mit ihr Tanzen trainiert um an einem Tanzwettbewerb teilzunehmen und dabei entwickeln beide langsam Gefühle füreinander.Dieses Grundgerüst entwickelt sich im Laufe der 122 Minuten Laufzeit zu einer ambivalentenTragikomödie, die besonders von den wunderbaren Charakteren und der realistischen Darstellung von psychischen Krankheiten ihre Faszination schöpft.David O. Russell präsentiert uns hier eine sehr gute Darstellung von Geisteskrankheiten unter denen die zwei Hauptfiguren, Pat und Tiffany, leiden. Dadurch ergeben sich briliant geschriebene Dialoge, in denen die beiden Darsteller ihr volles Können ausschöpfen. Die Kommunikation ist die tragende Säule des Films, man will immer, dass Pat und Tiffany miteinander agieren, da diese Szenen total faszinierend zu beobachten sind. Beide wissen, dass sie Gefühle füreinander haben, doch stehen ihnen ihre Krankheiten im Weg, die auf der einen Seite zu wirklich lustigen Dialogen führen, auf der anderen Seite zeigen sie dem Zuschauer aber auch wie schwer es ist mit solch einer Erkrankung zu leben und wie unsere Gesellschaft diese Leute als verrückt abstempelt.Neben dieser unterschwellig mitschwingenden und hoffnungsvollen Botschaft für alle diejenigen, die unter psychischen Krankheiten zu kämpfen haben, bietet der Film, wie oben erwähnt fantastische Dialoge, eine herzerwärmende Geschichte, gut eingesträute Gags sowie einen guten Soundtrack, der immer zu den Gefühlen der Charaktere passt. Desweiteren sind die Tanzszenen zwar wichtig, jedoch haben sie keinen zu großen Stellenwert,was für Leute, die mit Tanzen nichts anfangen können (wie mich) zum Wohl des Filmes beiträgt.Die Akteure spielen ihre Rollen in Silver Linings grossartig. Bradley Cooper brilliert als Pat, Jennifer Lawrence hat für diese Rolle zurecht einen Oscar bekommen, Robert De Niro spielt die Rolle des ambivalenten Vaters grandios und auch Jackie Weaver liefert eine solide Darstellung. Hervorheben möchte ich hier jedoch Chris Tucker, der ansonsten völlig überspitzt spielt, hält sich in diesem Film sehr angenehm zurück, was zur Stimmigkeit des Films beiträgt. Bradley und Jennifer harmonieren perfekt miteinander, was man in jeder Szene der beiden merkt.Die logische Schlussfolgerung ist natürlich, dass Silver Linings eine der besten Tragikomödien seit langem ist und der Regisseur es versteht dem Zuschauer eine liebevolle und unterhaltsame Romanze zu präsentieren.9/10 Punkten[...]

Si vous vous sentez différent, déprimé, un peu hors du coup ou simplement avec un moral qui fluctue régulièrement alors ce film est fait pour vous !!!Porté par des acteurs au top (mention spéciale à Jennifer Lawrence qui est tout simplement fabuleuse), cet excellent film décrit la relation parfois loufoque mais souvent touchante entre Jennier Lawrence et Bradley Cooper.C'est frais, tendre et bien de notre époque.Qui n'a jamais connu une (petite ou grande) baisse de moral ? Qui ne s'est jamais senti différent des autres ? PERSONNE et ce film nous rassure sur notre "normalité" tout en se demandant si prendre autant d'antidépresseurs ou autres substances chimiques n'aggrave finalement pas plus le problème.C'est avant tout un film romantique mais qui décrit une relation différente et peut-être plus normale que beaucoup d'histoires de cinéma.Jamais je n'ai été autant touché par un film et rien que ça mérite que je lui attribue 5 étoiles.