Happiness Therapy

even if I'm not a football fan. This movie almost convinced me that I would've had a whole lot more fun on my couch with some stove-top popcorn watching some live action touchdowns than I had at the theatre gobsmacked by this menagerie of looney tunes fumbling towards a Hollywood happy ending at any and all cost. Try as I might, felt zero affinity for most of these characters. Though you couldn't find two better looking actors than Bradley Cooper as Pat and Jennifer Lawrence as Tiffany, their characters were either too aggravatingly loud and/or lame to keep me interested or root for them. In short, I found the characterization of Pat's bipolar disorder and his family's (not to mention his analyst and the policemen's) response to be so benign and simplistic to the point of absurdity and as crafty as she is, I also couldn't bring myself to care for the underdog lovestruck (sex-starved?) Tiffany. I found her character a self-serving desperate ding-a-ling and worse, a predator in pursuit of somebody more vulnerable to fix. While I can appreciate that birds of a feather might flock together, these two do not a happy & balanced love match make, unless you have high hopes for sustainable joy between a codependent manipulator and and an emasculated romantic. Hmmm, on second thought... Anyway, such a shame the movie focused so heavily on these two sad sacks because the rest of the head cases were much more likable. Chris Tucker was a hoot and so were Pat's friends, Veronica and Ronnie. I wish, too, that I could've chuckled a little more because believe that some scenes were meant to really have us rolling in the aisles or smiling subversively... but alas, not so much. (Some of the more funny moments are featured in the trailer and even those weren't gut-busters, right?) Found myself checking my watch, time and again. (And this from someone who applauds many performances by the remarkable cast and does enjoy unconventional romcoms. I'd sooner recommend three other films which didn't garner half the hype but are far and away sharper, funnier, and more original: "Eagle vs. Shark", "Happy Accidents" and "The Science of Sleep".) Now, if this film does manage to make it to the Oscar playbook, it would be deplorable and affirmation anew that in Hollywood - as in life - all that's silver doesn't glitter.

I wanted to like this movie, I really did. I had read about the plot and its depiction of mental health issues and I was hoping to see a wonderfully nuanced movie with people fighting to get well. Instead, this movie was clichéd and clumsy. It was a movie without direction, it had no playbook. I'm going to assume that the book has more depth than the director cared to give the characters and that this is just a really poor adaptation to film. The characters are so incredibly flat and one dimensional and not at all a good representation of people with mental health issues. In fact, I think some damage was done here as not all depressed people get manic and destroy things at the drop of a hat or run out and sleep with a bunch of people. They're not all at odds with their doctors. There were just so many bad generalizations in this movie about the mentally ill I can't even list them all. The entire premise makes no sense. Why would you even set two people up who are at those points in their lives? It would be reckless to set up a woman still binging on sex with a man who was obsessed with his wife. I could go on and on. The entire story just didn't work. At all. Aside from the script the film craft was one of the worst I've seen this year! I counted about 5 gaffs in the movie before it was even halfway through. These were not small gaffs but obvious things you'll notice and I'm not sure how the editor missed. In addition to that, the movie just didn't flow well either. The running scenes looking staged and lifeless. He wears a trash bag to work up sweat...but never seems to sweat. He was supposed to be out of shape, but is definitely not out of shape when they show flashbacks. So many gaffs. I'm guessing people were just voting this movie highly because of Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence are attractive together. Their performances are OK, but the movie falls apart so thoroughly around them that it's unimaginable why anyone would enjoy this film.

Critical reaction and user reviews seem to be hugely positive. Let me offer up one dissenting voice. I thought this was virtually unwatchable and would have walked out if I had been seeing it alone. The theme of the film is that most of its characters are mentally ill, or at least damaged, to one extent or another. Unfortunately, this manifests in the form of characters angrily shouting at each other. This extends to about 75% of scenes in the film, at far too great a length, without any wit or craft. None of the major characters is remotely likable. This would be fine if the film was a serious depiction of mental illness. It sits very uncomfortably with a contrived, implausible romcom plot, largely free of originality or surprises. But sadly the romcom element does not extend to more than the occasional funny moment. Jennifer Lawrence is fairly good and the other performances are OK, but the film has nothing else to recommend it. By far the worst film I've seen for over a year.

At first glance, you would think this movie would be just another generic Katherine Heiglesque rom-com that dominates the box office and empties your soul. But classifying it as such is like saying Jaws was a nice little fishing movie. It's so very much more and what makes it all the more wonderful is that it comes as such a pleasant surprise. I mean, seriously, who would have thought that Bradley Cooper could convey such angst and heartache? Or that De Niro still had a great performance in him after a decade of caricaturing his old self? And Jennifer Lawrence - just wow. There's so much more to say but best to just let you experience it for yourself. Watch - this movie's rep will build through terrific word-of-mouth and it'll end up as a modern day classic. This is why you go see movies in the first place.

I saw this at the Hamptons International Film Festival as the Spotlight film and it was one of the best movies I have ever seen. It is so relatable, even if you don't suffer from the same afflictions as the main characters, and its implications are so far-reaching that everyone, I believe, can learn a little something from Pat and Tiffany. The story sends such wonderful messages about finding the "silver lining" and is uplifting, even in the seemingly most dire circumstances. Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper are phenomenal, and I found myself really attached to their characters. This is a must see for everyone! And I will be seeing it again when it hits theaters in November.