The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick

2.5ish stars. (Movie: 4.5 ish stars).

Basically, the movie is better. Its writer/director, David O. Russell, took the basic structure of the novel and turned it into something special. The book is a sporadically entertaining but strange story about a man whose TBI and repressed memories cause him to act and think like a teenager, and the unkind, manipulative, but well-meaning woman who is into it for some reason.

The movie is a nuanced, sometimes hilarious picture of mental health seen through the eyes of two relatable, struggling individuals who match each other’s crazy in a way that might just save both of them. Tiffany in particular is given life in the movie (as embodied by Jennifer Lawrence) in a way that rises above the caricature she’s painted as in the book. But all of the characters and their relationships make more sense and are much more likable as envisioned by Russell.

He also makes several changes to the story that elevate it from humdrum into an exciting culmination of football juju, high-stakes sports betting, and a climactic dance performance at the Benjamin Franklin hotel. He manages to accomplish in two hours what Quick wasn’t able to in 300 pages.

What I’m saying is, this is one of those times you really can skip the book and just watch the movie.



View all my reviews