Film
Silver Linings Playbook + live panel Q&A
- Director
- David O. Russell
- Certificate
- 15
- Running Time
- 122 mins
Bradley Cooper – the Sexiest Man Alive, according to an American publication – plays bipolar Pat, who’s released into the custody of his parents (Jacki Weaver, Robert De Niro) from a mental institution, having received treatment following a violent incident that resulted in a restraining order. He’s determined to get back together with his wife, but instead encounters promiscuous, equally damaged Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence). She offers to act as a go-between if he’ll be her partner in a freestyle dance contest. As you do.
A peculiar mix of the quirky and crushingly formulaic, David O. Russell‘s Oscar winner delivers fewer laughs than you might anticipate. Cooper’s Pat is rather unsympathetic; Bob De Niro coasts along on grouchy autopilot, with OCD to play with as a character trait; and the great Australian actress Jacki Weaver is wasted in a two-dimensional mum part that’s far less meaty than her terrifying turn in Animal Kingdom. Chris Tucker pops out of semi-retirement to play one of Pat’s fellow inmates who escapes at convenient moments. But if anyone emerges from all this with credibility intact, it’s talented Jennifer (Winter’s Bone, The Hunger Games) Lawrence, who gives a remarkably engaging performance in what boils down to yet another of those ‘isn’t mental illness adorably kooky?’ roles.
The Curzon’s World Mental Health Day screening is followed by a live panel Q&A.
is needed now More than ever
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