silver linings playbook

movies:  Thanks to the fact that its limited release about a month ago and the wide release not coming till last weekend I was not able to get to see Silver Linings Playbook until now, which means that my gushing is coming a little late.  But after seeing it this afternoon I just don't care.
  This movie is the story of a bipolar man named Pat, played by Bradley Cooper, who comes home from a mental institution where he was sent after a violent episode when he caught his wife cheating.  It is a romantic comedy written and directed by David O'Russell about Pat's recovery while he is living with his parents in Philadelphia and spending time with his new friend Tiffany played by Jennifer Lawrence.  Tiffany, while aiding Pat in his attempt to get better, is dealing with her own issues.  She has been medicated and making bad decisions while lost in depression after the death of her husband.  Over the course of the movie the two find a way to make their differences work and find themselves feeling something for each other.
The plot of this movie is secondary in its brilliance though.  The first bit of brilliance comes in the form of O'Russell.  His writing and directing have to be given a lot of the credit for what elevates this film beyond typical rom-com status.  He did two very smart things with this movie.  The first was to not shy away from the two main characters problems, particularly Pat's.  It is not just that O'Russell makes it such a prevalent part of the character as it oozes from every word and tick in Cooper's performance, its that it was allowed to be debilitating   There are times, and more than a few of them, that watching Pat struggle through various scenarios and lose control was difficult and sad.  Not cry at Anne Hathaway's singing sad, but just sad because of the realization of how big a challenge it is for him to maintain any level of normalcy and self control.  Watching this movie do that greatly marginalized other movies we've seen in recent years (Friends With Benefits, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes) where we see characters with illnesses be a source of unexpected morality when characters have a moment of clarity right when they needed to in order to make the climactic point of a movie.  Pat, on the other hand, was more inclined to be at his worst at most of the moments where he had a chance to be his best.
The other great thing O'Russell did with Silver Linings was to go big and obvious with the metaphors.  There were some wonderful moments where we saw moments in the movies act as a reflection for Pat's mania.  The easiest was the big dance number at the end (yes there is a dance number, just go with it).  The music and movement of it, while call backs to earlier parts of the movie, was the definition of Pat's disorder as it moved from slow and calm to pure mania and back again.  The other metaphors were those we saw in the other characters.  As Pat's friend Ronnie tries to tell him about how he goes into his garage to beat on things and throw things to relieve the anger of his marriage or his father (a wonderful turn by Robert DeNiro) lets all rationality go as he tries to find the blend of superstitions required for his beloved Eagles to win any game, we see how truly mad we all are and that is not just those on prescription medication.  These ideas were big and obvious and perfectly constructed for a thoughtful romantic comedy.  O'Russel clearly knew he had something to say and yet also had the presence of mind to know he wasn't doing on something like Mad Men or wanting to make his viewers dig their way though The Master.  Its a rom-com.  Its fine do make your smart a little plain to the eye.
If you're wondering what really made this movie though, it was Jennifer Lawrence.  I am not even going begin trying to use my own superlatives for her performance (OK, that's probably a lie), but I am going to leave it to Zach Baron from Grantland:  "I mean, she is Godzilla stomping a building, she is a Just Blaze beat, she is all the natural disasters at once."  That about sums it up.  You could maybe say something about how she is a little too young to be playing a widow.  But who really cares?  It's a rom-com.  And no one at any age could have done with that role what she did.  She attacked the role, and sometimes it literally felt like an attack, with such a ferocity.  Watching her manage all of the madness around her, whether it be her fake attempt to help Pat fix his failed marriage or her rattling off of Eagles highlights to annihilate the superstitions of his father, while maintaining a certain level of her own mania was two hours of pure joy.  Watching Jennifer Lawrence was one of those rare moments where you realize that you are probably going to watch a movie a lot more times for a specific performance.   Yes the movie was good.  But she was all of things Mr. Baron stated and more.
I have had a few discussions with friends of mine about male actors in Hollywood and the fact that there seems to be a lack of young male movie stars and leads that seem to be ready to step in and be a bright future for movies.   Sure there are good actors like Aaron Paul or Armie Hammer, but not a whole lot of leads and movie star types.  There does however seem to be a bright future for young women though.  With people like Carey Mulligan and Jessica Chastain and Rooney Mara and Mia Wasikowska the future seems very bright.  But after being wowed by her charisma in Hunger Games (despite being underwhelmed by the movie itself) and now head over heels after seeing Silver Linings, Lawrence might be the brightest part of that future.  
After the past few weeks filled getting caught up on cable TV shows and Oscar contenders, Silver Linings Playbook did not only what I hoped it would do but also what Pat was asking for early in the movie.  It showed that sometimes that its OK to have a happy ending in such a hard cold world, and that those happy endings should be enjoyed.