If you’re looking for a movie that will make you laugh and cry at the same time then David O. Russell’s Silver Linings Playbook is the movie for you. Starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, this film is about a man, Pat Solitano (Cooper), who is released from a mental facility and returns home after eight months.

During his stay at home, Pat plans to get his wife, Nikki, back after a messy and violent separation. One night at dinner with old friends, he meets Tiffany (Lawrence). Tiffany and Pat make a deal; if Pat promises to partner up with Tiffany for a popular dance competition, she’ll help him get back with Nikki. The two practice together every day to prepare for the dance and, in the process, form a bond with each other.

Cooper and Lawrence did a remarkable job playing the parts of Pat and Tiffany, with the proof being that they were both nominated for Academy Awards for their roles. Their acting was flawless, and contributed to advancing the characters’ development and overall plot of the movie. Both Pat and Tiffany struggle with some sort of mental impairment, whether it be depression or bipolar disorder. The fact that Cooper and Lawrence could perfect the roles of the two is impressive. They were able to capture the dark parts of their character’s personalities – like Pat’s fit of rage over Ernest Hemingway’s novel A Farewell to Arms – but also the warmth of them too. The warmth of the two actors kept me rooting that they would both end up happy and healthy. Pat’s increase in mental stability was done so well by Cooper that throughout the movie you could tell Pat was making progress.

Silver Linings Playbook was comical but at the same time slightly dark. Pat and Tiffany’s dark pasts and acute mental instability make this film much more than an average romantic comedy. Pat’s interactions with the surrounding people in his life: his father (Robert De Niro), his mother (Jacki Weaver), Tiffany, and Danny McDaniels (Chris Tucker), a friend he made at the mental health facility, are both humorous and dramatic. The relationships he builds with friends and family adds light to the story, while his failed marriage with Nikki and its effect on him give it a dark edge.

Since its release, this film has been nominated for and won numerous awards that it definitely deserves. With an outstanding cast and wonderfully developed plot, Silver Linings Playbook is the perfect blend of romance, comedy, and drama to keep viewers glued to their seats.