Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: David O'Russell [IMDB]

I have a few friends who think this movie is the best thing since sliced bread, so I was pretty excited to see it. I really like David O'Russell's films and this was a title I wanted to try and get in before the end of the year... for the possibly of making my "Best of 2012" list, but alas... I could not.

Synopsis: Bradley Cooper comes home to Philly after a stay at the mental hospital and befriends Jennifer Lawrence who also has some problems of her own.

While I enjoyed SLP a lot, I didn't think it was top 10 material, maybe top 20. The cast is great and I thought everyone was really awesome in it... it was also nice to see Smokey back on the big screen. It's also an extremely well written film and the execution is top notch. I felt like there were some believability issues, especially with his doctor. I also thought the film was really predictable which kinda of made the ending seem a little lack luster. The scene where Lawrence wins the family over by making this bet to help get them out of debt didn't work for me and it felt cheesy. I know it may seem like I'm coming down hard on Silver Linings Playback, but honestly there was way more good than bad, I guess I had huge expectations.

This is the kind of movie that has strong re-watch potential, as I feel with most O'Russell films, so I'll probably pick it up on blu-ray at some point. I'd definitely recommend it, even with it's flaws. Just like the movie goes: none of us are perfect-- we all have our flaws, but still we're worth it.... or something like that.