Silver Linings Playbook

This film was great, absolutely fantastic and without a doubt, one of the best films from 2012.
Pat (Bradley Cooper, finally showing some real acting chops) is in a mental institution because he beat the crap out of some guy screwing his wife in the shower. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder but he hates the medicines he has to take because they make him foggy and bloated. Upon his release, his mother Dolores (Jacki Weaver) drives him home to the not really open arms of his father, Pat, Sr. (Robert De Niro). Pat Sr. has his own issues, including OCD, even going as far as numbering his envelopes and freaking out when Pat takes one so he can write a letter to his wife, whom he still pines for though she has a restraining order against him.
Pat has his many issues, including his wedding song which causes him to freak out. He also has meltdown when he can't find the video of his wedding. Then one evening everything changes. He goes out to have dinner at the house of his old friend, Ron (John Ortiz). Ron has a crazy demanding wife Veronica (Julia Stiles) who has a sister, the young widow Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence). However, Pat and Tiffany don't really get off to a great start as he doesn't follow Ron's orders and immediately asks Tiffany how her late husband, Tommy, died. She doesn't tell him. Instead, she leaves the dinner early and insists that Pat walk her home which he does. She also invites him into her house, which is in the back of her parent's home to have sex but he can't take her up because he is still married and loyal to the absent Nikki (Brea Bee), a lifeless person when we finally see her toward the very end of the film.
Soon, Pat and Tiffany become running buddies, though their first date ends horribly. Soon, however, things change as Tiffany promises to deliver a letter to Nikki as Nikki and Veronica are still friends. But Pat must learn how to dance so she can dance in this competition. And, it seems, that for some time, their crazy problems are at bay. Pat is no longer that crazy, as he is finally able to control his emotions. Tiffany, who is filled with her own issues, including claiming that she was fired because she felt horny after Tommy died and had sex with everyone else in the office. But she seems focused on the dance competition, so her problems seem also to ease. Pat is likewise focused and Tiffany is pleased with his progress that she gives him a letter from Nikki. But then Pat gets cold feet for the competition as his father, a bookie, puts money on the competition. Tiffany devices a plan to get Pat to show up at the competition. They (she and his parents) will lie and say that Nikki will be there. This works, but when Nikki does actually show up and Tiffany is devastated. Crushed actually.
However, they dance and get the minimum score needed so Pat Sr. doesn't lose all his money. And Pat goes to greet Nikki. Tiffany storms out in a huff. Pat, after some wise words from his father, chases her and gives her a letter. But this one is not for Nikki, this one is for Tiffany. Here he writes that he is glad that she wrote the letter claiming to be from Nikki, something which I did not realize earlier, even when Tiffany uses one of the lines against him. They kiss. Everything works out. Tiffany finally stripes herself of her engagement and wedding ring. She has finally moved on. Life is now wonderful.
The film is absolutely brilliant, with quick, witty dialogue and sensational performances, also with great editing and camera angles, truly showing the action from the actor's point of views. Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence and Robert De Niro are all certainly of an Oscar nomination, if not the award itself. Even Chris Tucker is great as one of Pat's friends from the mental home. It is also rare that a film focus so much on the sports of Philadelphia, but then again Pat Sr. is a bookie, these sports are his livelihood. There may be some problems with Tiffany's character, as you never know what her problem truly is, but that didn't stop the film from being enjoyable and funny. I don't know if I would classify the film as life altering or anything, but I would classify it as one of the best of the year. Grade: A