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| Poster artwork for the romance drama comedy film Silver Linings Playbook. |
Merging
Minds by Linh
Silver
Linings Playbook is a romance drama comedy film adaptation
from the book of the same name by author Matthew Quick, about two people with
different mental disorders who find a connection through reaching out and
falling in love. This little independent film took five years in the making and
was filmed in thirty-three days in Philadelphia, which is the home-town of lead
actor Bradley Cooper. The film delves into the minds of most of the characters
through their words and actions; bringing out the honesty and hurtful truth
about how they think of each other that may determine how they relate to or
treat each other. A major subject matter of the film deals with various forms
of mental illness and undiagnosed mental conditions or forms of addictions that
affect the way individuals deal with other people in various situations.
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PATIENT
PARENTS: Dolores (Jacki Weaver) and Pat Sr., (Robert De Niro) are
supportive of their son with bi-polar disorder in the film Silver Linings Playbook. Image: The Weinstein Company.
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Director/writer David O. Russell (Three Kings, American Hustle)
has deservedly become the much-sought-after-director to work with following his
successful film The Fighter, which
won two Academy Awards from seven nominations in 2011. Both Bradley Cooper and
Jennifer Lawrence revealed they were interested in the film primarily to get
the chance to work with Russell, whose work they have admired and enjoyed.
Russell succeeds in giving this film a spontaneity, spark and genuine warmth
despite the dark subject matter of mental illness. He ensured the characters
were depicting real and naturalistic emotions and reactions to each other, in
very spontaneous and random ways. Many of the scenes in the film have moments
of unexpected shocks and little surprises that audiences may not have seen
coming. These small moments all add to the overall quirkiness that the
characters bring to the film.
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IMMEDIATE
IMPRESSIONS: Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence) meets Patrick
(Bradley Cooper) for the first time in the film Silver Linings Playbook. Image: The Weinstein Company.
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The film follows the recovery of a History teacher named
Patrick Solitano Jr. (Bradley Cooper) who is released from an eight-month stint
in a Baltimore psychiatric institute, after brutally attacking his wife’s
lover. Patrick is allowed back into his community in Philadelphia and stays
with his parents Pat Sr. (Robert De Niro) and Dolores (Jacki Weaver), while he
works on re-uniting with his wife Nikki (Brea Bee) and save his marriage.
Patrick is involved in a violent attack on his parents, so his wife places a
court-sanctioned restraining order on him. Despite losing his wife, his job and
his house, Patrick remains hopeful because he believes there is always a silver
lining if he works hard to think positively and be optimistic about life. He thinks
his silver lining philosophy may be enough to help him through his bi-polar
disorder until he meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence).
Tiffany has a depressive
disorder that ignites emotional pain whenever her dead husband Tommy is
mentioned. In the past, she relieved
this pain through random sexual intercourse with men and women, which affected
her work, social life and family. Tiffany persuades Patrick to dance with her
in a competition in return for passing on Patrick’s letters to his wife. She shows him that a silver lining can be
deceptive by hiding things that are seemingly awful but turn out to be awesome.
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DUBIOUS
DATE: Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence) agrees to a dinner date with
Patrick (Bradley Cooper) despite his poor judgement of her in the film Silver Linings Playbook. Image: The
Weinstein Company.
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The ensemble cast consists of newcomers and veterans of
stage, television and film, who are all as excellent individually as they are
together. Bradley Cooper (The Place Beyond
The Pines, The Hangover 3) was
nominated for a Best Leading Actor Academy Award for this role and he is superb
as the bi-polar man whose true yearnings from the heart are overshadowed by the
delusions in his head. Jennifer Lawrence (Serena,
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire) is a
rising star following her Oscar nomination in 2011 for Winter’s Bone. Her portrayal as the dark, mysterious and alluring
Tiffany is the pivotal character that changes Patrick’s perceptions of himself
and of his life in the film. Lawrence’s performance in this film has earned her
an Academy Award, a BAFTA award, a Screen Actors Guild award, an AACTA award, a
Golden Globe award, and an Independent Spirit award, all in the category for
Best Leading Actress.
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AWKWARD
ACQUAINTANCE: Patrick (Bradley Cooper) introduces his
friend Danny (Chris Tucker) to Tiffany in the film Silver Linings Playbook.
Image: The Weinstein Company.
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Robert De Niro has spent most of his film career playing
tough gangster/mobster roles until he surprised many with his comic talents in
the Meet The Fockers film franchise.
In this film, he plays Pat Sr, an obsessive compulsive, gambling addict, and
these disorders are key factors in how he expresses himself and the way he
controls his environment around him to feel comfortable and secure. De Niro
combines comic and dramatic elements of human behaviour in portraying a
character whose superstitions and obsessive disorder can cause others to feel
awkward and unsettled. De Niro received
an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in this film.
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DANCE
DUO:
Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence) and Patrick (Bradley Cooper) do warm-ups before
their dance sessions for the competition in the film Silver Linings Playbook. Image: The Weinstein Company.
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Australian actor Jacki Weaver is brilliant as the gentle
and caring mother Dolores of the Solitano household and is seemingly the only
person in the family who does not have or exhibit any mental disorders. Dolores is the mediator and peacekeeper of
the family who attempts to keep everyone happy, relaxed and comfortable with
her kindness and consideration for others. Weaver’s performance in the film Animal Kingdom earned her an Oscar
nomination for Best Supporting Actress and she was nominated in the same
category again for this film.
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DETERMINED
DANCERS: Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence) and Patrick (Bradley Cooper)
are ready for the dance competition in the film Silver Linings Playbook. Image: The Weinstein Company.
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The supporting cast is fabulous and includes Chris Tucker
as the delightfully cheerful Danny, who is Patrick’s friend in the mental
institution; Julia Stiles as Tiffany’s older sister Veronica and Anupam Kher as
Patrick’s psychiatrist Dr. Cliff Patel. Silver
Linings Playbook is a charming and thought-provoking film that makes the
viewer aware of the stigma of mental illness while keeping the viewer
entertained. It also reminds us not to judge others until we get to know them
better, and not to be afraid to speak out about mental illness affecting us or
our loved ones.
Director: David
O. Russell
Writers:
David O. Russell (screenplay), Matthew Quick (novel)
Cast:
Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver, Chris Tucker,
Anupam Kher, John Ortiz, Julia Stiles, Shea Whigham, Paul Herman, Dash Mihok,
Matthew Russell, Brea Bee, Pete Postiglione, Patsy Meck
Producers:
Bradley
Cooper, George Parra, Harvey Weinstein, Bob Weinstein, Mark Kamine, Bruce
Cohen, Donna Gigliotti, Jonathan Gordon
Original
Music Composer: Danny Elfman
Cinematographer:
Masanobu Takayanagi
Film
Editors: Jay Cassidy, Crispin Struthers
Production:
Judy Becker (Production Designer), Jesse Rosenthal (Art Director), Heather
Loeffler (Set Decorator)
Costume
Designer: Mark Bridges
Running
Time: 2 hours
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