The Movie Silver Linings Playbook, directed and written by David O. Russell is a fascinating movie, set in and around the area of Philadelphia in the mid seventies. (Eisenberg) The movie is jammed packed with drama, romance and hilarious scenes that will keep you laughing long after the credits roll. The two main characters are Jennifer Lawrence, playing Tiffany, and Bradley Cooper playing Pat Solitano—an ex teacher. The movie opens with Pat leaving a mental institution after experiencing a massive psychological breakdown. Once Pat returns home, it’s clear his delusion has only perpetuated into a reality. He firmly believes his ex wife is still in love with him, and through the deluded path of denial, this belief has become his overwhelming obsession. Pat is clearly unstable, and his father expresses this sentiment throughout the movie. Once Pat returns home, it is clear that he had one goal in mind. With mind-numbing denial he begins a desperate attempt to win back his ex wife Nikki— played by Brea Bee. Soon after this, we encounter Tiffany, who has gone through a concurrent mental breakdown on the same bounds as Pat’s. At first these two have a very uncomfortable and unusual relationship however, as the movie proceeds on, the two agree to help each other out. Tiffany capitalizes on Pat’s weakened state, by promising to reunite him with his ex wife if he helps her with a very peculiar, and simplistically unusual contest.
In this movie, David O. Russell highlights mental illness in a very intriguing way. Most movies that talk about mental illness tend to be very somber and ultimately depressing. Silver Linings Playbook, however, focuses on portraying mental illness in a light and humorous way. The movie makes you smile and laugh, yet also centralizes some overarching themes and insight into the humanizing life of mental illness. This film does a great job using of strong dialogue that keeps you both amused and confused. As the movie draws to a close, you can see how each scene has built on the preceding one to tie it all together. The dialogue keeps you on your feet, and the characters really add to the provoking nature of the film. In the end, the movie Silver Linings PlayBook connects themes of happiness and emotional survival to the unexpected romance of two people who truly needed each other.
The movie does a great job of conveying the internal viewpoint of a person with a mental illness, as well as exhibiting their possible actions and thought processes. Furthermore, one specific scene in the movie that I felt did a great job of showing this, was in the beginning when Pat goes to his first therapy session. To start, all of the characters were wearing very neutral colors that didn’t really stand out against the equally monotoned furniture and decorations in the scene. This creates a rather saddened and dull mood for the viewer. The scene starts off with Pat entering the therapist office; the room is small and very plain with little to no decoration to create any sort of visual interest. This scene automatically gives you an uncomfortable vibe. In the corner of the room, a wife and a husband are huddled together, and as Pat slowly walks in, the silence becomes deafening. The Camera then pans over to the secretary. Her eyes are nervously fixated on Pat, and the tension in the room grows into a palpable, unsuspecting cloud. As Pat reaches the front desk the secretary slowly pushes the sign-in sheet forward. The camera then zooms in on the piece of paper and Pats hand as he is begins signing it. Casually, and almost unnoticeably music begins playing in the background—rising slowly in volume. As this happens the camera then pans up to Pat’s face, indicating this song has some type of importance or meaning to Pat. Next the camera jumps from different shots between the secretary staring at Pat and Pat signing the paper. This moment highlights the seemingly simple action, by foreshadowing that the therapist knew more than the viewer. This is where the scene takes a change for the worst. The camera jumps to a side angle then slowly starts to do an arc shot. As the camera spins around Pats head you can feel the tension building up, and that’s when we start to understand that Pat is realizing what song is being played. As the camera closes in on Pat’s face, you can see the light actually leaving his eyes as the grief settles in. With every passing moment you can tell Pat is just getting angrier and angrier. The camera then cuts over to the couple sitting wide-eyed and silent in the corner. This shot let’s us into their discomfort and confusion. Soon the therapist comes out and calms Pat down. The next shot—over the shoulder of the therapist—shows Pat talking about how he wasn’t amused by the song, while gripping the chair and tapping his foot in an angry, persistent fashion. The way Russell filmed this scene was excellent, because each shot explained what was going on and how Pats realization of the song made him feel. The song, which we soon learn during Pat’s therapy session is a trigger for his mental illness and breakdowns due to its historically romantic ties, becomes the perfect symbol for his angst. On top of this we also learn the song being played was the same song that was playing when he discovered his wife’s affair. After this important and dramatic scene, the movie eventually shifts from a somber to a more hopeful mood. 
Talking about Mental illnesses is not an easy subject to discuss, and there is a thin line between having it be funny or punishingly offensive. Luckily David O. Russell walks that line well, and does a great job letting us know that ultimately we are all a little crazy. He points out that the best way to deal with this is to laugh about it. Not to mention, Russell explains the importance of family and relationships throughout the movie. Having people there for you, who care about you even through the crazy, is what makes the world a little saner. Nobody is perfect so like the characters in the Silver Linings PlayBook did, why not embrace the oddness?
Photos:
http://pixel.nymag.com/imgs/daily/vulture/2012/12/03/03-silver-linings-playbook-psych.w750.h560.2x.jpg
http://www.trendengel.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/silver-lining-playbook-movie.jpg Citations:
Eisenberg, Eric. "SilverLinings Playbook." CinemaBlend. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.
