I’ve seen a lot of movies, and it isn’t very often a movie makes a lasting impact on me. It also isn’t often I agree with the Academy voting on Oscar nominations. “Silver Linings Playbook” is an exception.
The movie has an all-star cast, including Robert de Niro, Bradley Cooper, and Jennifer Lawrence. The movie follows main characters Pat (Cooper) and Tiffany (Lawrence) as they struggle with mental illness. Pat has bi-polar disorder, and Tiffany is a recovering sex addict.
Their mental illnesses are a result of both of their respective failed marriages. Pat had a nasty divorce resulting in his having an obsession with his ex-wife Nikki. Tiffany’s husband died, and due to the stress of his death, she became a sex addict.
They cross paths after Pat is discharged from the mental hospital and moves in with his parents. Tiffany lives down the street and is the sister of a mutual friend of Pat and Nikki.
Pat is determined to make contact with Nikki, so he asks Tiffany if she can deliver a letter to her from him. In exchange for delivering the letter, Tiffany wants Pat to enter a dance competition with her. While Pat and Tiffany are rehearsing, they begin to fall for each other.
They are both able to look past the skeletons in the other’s closet. Nikki shows up to watch the dance competition, and Pat is torn as to who his heart should belong to. That is when Pat’s dad (de Niro) says to Pat, “When life reaches out with a moment like this, it’s a sin if you don’t reach back!” Pat and Tiffany then proceed to compete.
The most refreshing thing about “Silver Linings” is that the characters do not care what people think of them. They state what is on their mind, no matter what the consequences are from society. Both Pat and Tiffany get to know one another despite society’s view of them.
“Silver Linings Playbook” proves that no matter what we have been through or what challenges life presents us, we are all capable of being loved and of achieving our own silver lining.
Wednesday, June 25, 2025