4. Silver Linings Playbook - The Dance Comp
Silver Linings Playbook was a really unexpected pleasant surprise of a movie. I didnt think Id like it anywhere near as much as I actually did. Funny, moving and filled with great performances, its a touching and well-balanced look at mental illness and the effects it can have on a person and those close to them. The stand-out moment for me however was the dance competition towards the films end. Throughout the film, Bradley Coopers Pat and Jennifer Lawrences Tiffany have been practicing for an upcoming amateur dance competition. Through a series of plot developments too detailed to fully summarise here, the outcome of their performance in the competition, along with a Philadelphia Eagles game on the same night, take on an increased importance thanks to a sizeable wager by Pats dad Pat Senior, played by Robert DeNiro. Its all set up for the big finale, the duo isnt expected to win the competition, they only need to get a relatively low average score of 5 in order to win the bet for Pat Snr. After a competent but unremarkable routine with one glaring and awkward error in particular, the exhausted couple stand back and await the judges verdicts. Obviously its about so much more than the result and the bet, the dance competition was what brought these two people together and gave them a direction and a focus as they came to terms with their conditions. It meant so much to them and those around them who came along to watch them dance. As the results are read out it isnt looking good until a strong final mark bumps them up and they manage to get a 5 bang on. Pat and Tiffany erupt with joy as do their friends and family, much to the bemusement of the judges and fellow competitors. Its one of, if not the feel good moment of the year for me, wonderfully portrayed by the excellent ensemble cast.