Every Cloud Has Its 'Silver Lining'

Whatever the film. Whoever the cast. If Bradley Cooper's in it, it's a sure win. No matter what you think of him; whether he's a good actor or funny or not. Get over it. The man is a bloody God. Sexiest man ALIVE in 2011. Who cares if you're a Johnny Depp kind of woman or a Channing Tatum lover, there is no denying that every female in this fine world would happily run their fingers through that sandy brown hair whilst gazing into those ice-blue eyes. Wow. Team that with my girl crush of the moment, Jennifer Lawrence - love her in 'Hunger Games. Love her in Winter's Bone. Love her slamming bod. Love her boyfriend (Nicholas Holt from 'About A Boy' and 'Skins'). Just generally love her - and you have a pretty good film on the cards.

I must admit I was quite naive of the film before I went to see it. Presuming from the advert that it was just another boy meets girl love story, I thought I'd just spend the movie watching Cooper and Lawrence get off. And it was a love story, but one with a bit more depth to it than your normal Nicholas Sparks tale.

SPOILER ALERT!!! IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE FILM'S ABOUT, TURN AWAY NOW!!      

'Silver Linings Playbook' follows the story of Pat Solitano (the delectable Cooper), a broken man who has just been released from a mental institution following an attack on his wife's lover. We gain an insight into the mind of a bipolar sufferer who struggles with getting his life back on track so he can fulfil his delusion of winning back his wife, Nikki. In doing so, he meets Tiffany (Jen Law), a fellow "crazy person" who has lost her husband and as a result, "whored about". Together, Tiffany agrees to help Pat get back with his wife as long as he partakes in a dance competition with her - something she's wanted to do for years. Now, I won't completely ruin the plot but the long and short of it is that whilst Tiffany has fallen for Pat, he has been so consumed in getting Nikki back that he hasn't realised his own feelings for Tiffany. The irony of the ending is that at the beginning of the film, Pat rants about Hemingway's 'A Farewell To Arms' and how the ending couldn't have just been left on a happy note, which is exactly how Pat's ending is left. 

Cooper and Lawrence are both superb in this film, playing their characters incredibly child like, showing how fragile and vulnerable people with mental illnesses actually are. However my standouts of the film were actually Robert De Niro and Jacki Weaver who play Cooper's long suffering parents. I think it's hard to fault either of these actors in anything that they star in, but they depict the loving and supportive parents so perfectly that they actually made the film for me. My only criticism? More comedy. Whilst the start of the film had the woman sat next to me jumping in her seat with laughter (much to my annoyance), she failed to wriggle and yelp as much towards the end as the comedy fizzled out and was met with a lot more romance. All in all I think the film needed a bit more com to make it the faultless rom-com that it certainly had the legs to be.