Monday, January 14, 2013

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK


Directed by: David O. Russell
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro
Running time: 122 minutes.

A film about two people having difficulties to deal with their own problems is always interesting. As long as it does not curse itself with typical self-help words that can make you (well not you, perhaps just me, the cynical one) cringe with disbelief, I am on it. Not only that, the title itself reminded me of an expression I learned at English lesson at school; every cloud has a silver lining.

This is a rare film that manages to repackage love story into something new and fresh. With Bradley Cooper as Pat and Jennifer Lawrence as Tiffany this is a story about how two psychologically wounded people find each other.

Pat has just been out after staying in a psychiatric hospital for eight months, courtesy of the court since Pat acted violently after finding out his wife cheating on him. Personally I think what Pat did was 'understandable'. Anyone would have been flipped out finding their wife in a shower with another guy. However Pat seems cannot move on, he still loves his wife (despite the restraining order).

Losing his house and job, Pat lives with his parents, father (Robert De Niro) and mother (Jacki Weaver) and soon we can tell where he got his 'quirkiness' and how the remnants of Pat's mental illness still there. His father also just lost his job and became a bookie for football match. Believing in superstition makes you think, how come his father also not admitted in the mental hospital?

Then Pat meet Tiffany in a strange way. They soon become attracted to each other and the rest is quite predictable but not boring. I like how the story goes and how David O' Russell did not rely on corny songs to built up emotions. The actors and actress in this film are good. Cooper and Lawrence had chemistry and I like how Chris Tucker suddenly appear in the film. By letting things flows as it is in the film, we are allowed to found or own silver linings.

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