February 23, 2013

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My co-bloggers have dismissed "Silver Linings Playbook" as a long shot for Best Picture, and I'm thinking.... they're wrong. It's almost impossible to avoid falling in love with this movie. Like "Moonstruck," people will buy copies of "Playbook" and watch it for years to come. It brings back the sheer, unabashed joy of movie watching, and in Hollywood, that's gotta be worth something. So I'm gonna go with heart over head.

DeNiro? No way he doesn't get Best Supporting Actor for this. And scarily good Jennifer Lawrence will also bring home the Oscar. Bradley Cooper was simply wonderful (I had no idea he was quite this talented). Will he win? Hollywood loves it when an actor steps out of typecasting, and for someone whose previous biggest hit was "The Hangover," this portrayal qualifies. So we'll see.

This movie is worth seeing just for the scene where DeNiro cries. When he tries to connect with his son, he reminded me so much of my dad -- but more importantly, he reminded everyone of their dad. (I noticed more than a few heaving male shoulders in the audience after the scene.)

I got a kick out of the locations, by the way. That's Bradley Cooper jogging down the main street of the town where I raised my kids, and the infamous diner scene takes place in the Llanerch Diner, where one of my kids worked. (And where the powerful Republican leader used to hold his morning meetings.)

And if it doesn't win? Ah, so what. Sooner or later, you'll see it and love it.

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