Welcome back-to-Movie Recap. Today I'm gonna show-you a 2012 romantic comedy-drama film
called, Silver Linings Playbook. Spoiler's ahead. Sit back, relax and enjoy.
The movie begins with Pat Solitano, reading a letter that he has written to his ex-wife,
Nikki. He stands alone, looking out of a window with metal bars bolted across it. His room
is bare, with only the essential pieces of furniture scattered all around.
As Pat walks out of his room, his routine reveals he has been confined in a mental health
facility. He has been institutionalized for the past 8 months His routine consists of
group therapy, a few moments of exercise in the sun, and taking medication.
Eight long months of confinement is enough, argues Mrs. Solitano, Pat's mother. She has
been talking to Pat's attending psychiatrist at the mental institution, as she processes
her son's release. Pat's doctor has his apprehensions about the troubled man's premature release
from his care, but ultimately signs off on Pat's release.
Truly, Pat is a troubled man. Right through his first few days back to his parent's house,
his past troubles and trauma unravel around him. Pat even has to cope with the tension
between him and his father, Pat Sr. at home.
During Pat's frequent court-mandated visits to his therapist, Dr. Patel, the extent of
Pat's neurosis is revealed. An incident involving Pat and a history teacher he caught his ex-wife
with has led to his confinement in the mental health facility 8 months prior.
The violent confrontation between Pat and the man that broke his marriage led to Nikki
filing for a restraining order against Pat. He is not allowed to be anywhere within 500-feet
from her, and this drives Pat further into desperation.
During his 8-month confinement in the facility, Pat has obsessively fixated on getting better.
He hopes of reuniting with his ex-wife Nikki and starting over. He focuses on his new-found
personal mantra of positivity; he calls Excelsior .
However, during his time in the facility, Pat has been under a strict medication regimen
to manage his bipolar disorder. Pat's past outburst led to his diagnosis, and he has
shown to be prone to unpredictable mood swings.
Pat's medical regimen has been the key to his changing outlook in life. However, when
Pat is finally released from confinement, he unceremoniously decides to stop taking
his medication for his bipolar disorder.
During a chance encounter with an old friend, Pat gets invited to a dinner party. Ronnie
and Veronica were good friends of Pat and Nikki when they were still married. Pat reluctantly
agrees to attend dinner, hoping to impress Ronnie and Veronica about his progress. He
wants to show them how much he's changed for the better, hoping they will tell Nikki how
good he is now.
During the dinner party at Ronnie and Veronica's home, Pat is introduced to Veronica's sister,
Tiffany. Tiffany is young and recently widowed who, similar to Pat, is also going through
a difficult period in her life. Veronica introduced the two hoping to create a shared support
system for them as they try to re-acclimate to the world outside while dealing with their
mental troubles.
At first, the dinner goes surprisingly well, although a little uncomfortable for Ronnie
and Veronica. Pat and Tiffany, on the other hand, appear to be getting along as they share
their common misery about going through different medications for their mental problems. After
dinner, Tiffany asks Pat to take her home.
Later that night, Pat suffers a mental breakdown. Pat feels guilty about having a pleasant time
during the dinner party and leaving with Tiffany. Although nothing happened between them, Pat
feels guilty because he thinks he is betraying Nikki by enjoying Tiffany's company.
To relieve himself of his guilt, Pat looks for his old wedding video with Nikki. He starts
to panic when he can't find it in his parent's house. His panicking takes a turn for the
worse when he accidentally hits his mother in the face. An altercation between him and
his father, Pat Sr., ensues shortly after.
The commotion between the Solitanos in the middle of the night prompts a visit from Police
Officer Keogh. Keogh is the police assigned to enforce Nikki's restraining order against
Pat. When officer Keogh informs Pat that he has to report this incident to Nikki, Pat
is devastated because this might affect their chances of future reconciliation.
The next day, Pat finally agrees to start taking his medication again. He now acknowledges
that his mood changes are starting to get out of control once again. He also tries to
avoid Tiffany, convinced that his initial meeting with her was the reason for his outburst.
During his next therapy session with Dr. Patel, Pat commits to developing healthier habits
to manage his mental troubles. He gets clarity about his medication helping him get his life
in order. This way, he might have a better chance at reconciliation with his estranged
wife, Nikki.
Working with a new perspective, Pat develops a friendship with Tiffany. Pat plans to use
Tiffany's connection to Nikki to his advantage. They meet up at a diner to start to get to
know each other better.
Tiffany opens up to Pat about her own struggle with her mental health. She tells Pat about
her dead husband, about how they were young and in love. And how her life spiraled out
of control when she lost him to a car accident.
Pat and Tiffany bond over their shared experience of losing someone they truly loved. Tiffany
reluctantly offers to deliver a letter from Pat to Nikki. Realizing that unlike her dead
husband, Nikki is alive, there might still be a chance for Pat to be with his love.
The following day, Pat is on a high. He is ecstatic about the possibility of finally
being able to communicate with Nikki again. He writes a heartfelt letter, and goes to
see Tiffany about her offer to his messenger for Nikki again.
When Pat shows up to Tiffany's door, he helps her avoid a sticky situation with an old acquaintance.
Witnessing Pat defend her, Tiffany starts to develop affection for Pat. Tiffany then
tries to back out of her offer to deliver Pat's letter, wanting to cut connections with
him instead.
In a desperate effort to save their initial deal, Pat offers to do something for Tiffany
in exchange for her delivering his letter to Nikki. Tiffany asks Pat to be her partner
in an upcoming dance competition, thinking he will definitely decline and they will go
their separate ways.
At first, Pat refuses to dance with Tiffany. However, after further reflection, he agrees,
after he realizes he can show Nikki how much he's changed and become a better man by being
a good and responsible partner to Tiffany.
Pat and Tiffany subsequently begin a rigorous practice regimen over the following weeks.
They make great progress in their dance routine, and they grow closer. However, with Pat spending
a lot of his time at dance practice with Tiffany, he unintentionally neglects spending time
with his parents.
Pat Sr., an avid Philadelphia Eagles fan, asks his son, Pat, to attend an Eagles football
game as his good luck charm. Pat Sr. has bet all of his money on the game. As a favor to
his father, Pat skips practice with Tiffany to attend the Eagles game.
During the game, Pat gets into an altercation with unruly fans and had to be taken home
by Police Officer Keogh again. The Eagles lose the game and Pat Sr. is furious. He blames
Pat for the Eagles losing the game and all their money in his bet.
Tiffany is furious at Pat for missing their dance practice, too. She storms to the Solitano's
house and confronts him. Pat Sr. berates Tiffany about her being a hindrance to their family
by taking Pat away from them, and messing up his good luck charm for the Eagles.
Tiffany fires back at Pat Sr. by telling him that the Eagles have won every game when she
and Pat were together. Pat Sr. is impressed by Tiffany. They work together to try and
win back the money Pat Sr. lost during the game. They make a bet that if the Eagles win
their next game against Dallas, and if Pat and Tiffany score at least a 5 out of 10 in
their dance competition, he will win back double the money he lost on the first bet.
Pat is reluctant to participate in the dance contest under immense pressure from the bet
Pat Sr. is making. He reads the letter Tiffany gave him that was supposed to be from Nikki.
As he reads it, he realizes Tiffany has forged the letter, and was not from Nikki at all.
He decides to keep his discovery a secret for the time being, and continues practicing
their dance routine in the following days.
On the night of the dance competition, Pat and Tiffany get ready at his house. Tiffany
is feeling the immense pressure to perform well during the competition to win back the
money the Solitanos bet on them.
Pat and Tiffany, joined by their friends and family, arrive at the hotel that is holding
the competition. Tiffany freaks out when she sees Nikki is in the audience. Tiffany is
upset that she might lose Pat over Nikki and wants to back out of the competition.
When Pat finds Tiffany drinking at the hotel bar, he patiently talks to her and convinces
her to go dance with him. They perform their dance routine with electrifying chemistry.
They end an elaborate dance with an intensely difficult stunt and successfully earn a score
of 5.0 from the judges.
While the Solitanos and their friends are focused on Pat and Tiffany's dance routine,
the Eagles also win their game against the Dallas Cowboys. Everyone cheers for the successful
dance partners and Pat Sr. officially wins the bet and earns back the money to start
his restaurant business.
In the middle of celebrating their win and with his friends and family cheering all around
him, Pat walks towards Nikki in the audience. Tiffany watches from a distance as Pat and
Nikki talk quietly. The sight of the former couple talking deeply upsets Tiffany and she
storms off.
Now that he is able to approach Nikki, Pat tells her everything he has wanted to in the
past. Pat tells Nikki he has been doing well, and he has been reading, too. He informs her
he now has a positive attitude, and has been consistent with his medication and therapy.
Tiffany finally acknowledges that she is upset and hurt by seeing Pat and Nikki possibly
reconciling because she has developed feelings for Pat. She walked away because she knows
Pat is in love with Nikki, and he deserves to be with the person he loves. So, she walks
away. Instead of bursting into a fiery confrontation she so often does, Tiffany decides to quietly
walk away.
Meanwhile, after talking to Nikki, Pat turns away from her, too. He whispers in Nikki's
ear, and leaves her behind. This is something new for Pat, too. He has spent so much of
his time chasing after Nikki, and now that she's finally in front of him, he chooses
to turn away.
After closing Nikki's chapter in his life, Pat walks back to his friends and family.
As he looks for Tiffany, Pat Sr. takes him aside to talk. Pat Sr. begs his son to open
his eyes and not ignore the signs. He makes him realize that Tiffany truly loves him,
and he should not mess things up again.
Pat listens to his father, and runs after Tiffany. He catches up to her in the street
and hands her a letter. He finally admits to her that he has known Tiffany faked Nikki's
letter from before, but that did not matter to him.
In Pat's letter to Tiffany, he finally confesses that he loves her. He also apologized because
although he's known he loves her from the minute he met her, it took so long for him
to figure things out. The two seal their love confession with a kiss.
The movie ends with Pat and Tiffany together and in love. They both finally look genuinely
happy and content with their lives and with each other. They are surrounded by their friends
and family who are also very happy for them, too.