"Silver Linings Playbook" with Robert DeNiro and Bradley Cooper (2012)

David O. Russell did an excellent job of writing the screen play for this movie, which is taken from the novel by Matthew Quick. Set in present day Philadelphia, the film tells the story of Pat, Jr., played by Bradley Cooper, who is released from John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore after becoming violent when he finds his wife in the shower with another man.

After 8 months, his mother, played by Jacki Weaver, comes to pick him up and take him home. But, there are conditions to his release. He must remain on his medications; which he routinely spits out; and he must not have any contact with his estranged wife, including staying several hundred feet from her place of employment. Any violation of these conditions will see him returned to Baltimore.

Arriving at home in Philadelphia, Pat, Jr. finds that his father, Pat Sr., played by Robert DeNiro, has lost his job and is taking bets on sports events as a way to make a living. Pat, Jr. cannot seem to come to terms with the dissolution of his marriage. He feels that if can just explain to her what happened that day when he caught her in the shower, he can move on. But, there is that pesky restraining order to be dealt with.

He hooks up with an old friend, Ronnie, played by John Ortiz, who is married, and through him meets a woman named Tiffany, played by Jennifer Lawrence. Her husband was a police officer killed in the line of duty; leaving Tiffany widowed and deeply troubled. She has been on a bender, sleeping with just about anyone she can, to fill the void left by her husband’s death. When Pat, Jr. meets her, things begin to happen.

He continues to eschew the medications and embarks on a journey of self-discovery. His main goal is to get back to his wife; even if just to explain his actions and what caused him to lose control. He also longs to return to teaching, which his diagnosis as bi-polar prevents him from doing. So, he begins to look for the “silver linings” in his life as a way to regain control of himself. The biggest problem he has is that he hears the Stevie Wonder song “My Cheri Amour” playing over and over in his head. It was the song he and his wife danced to at their wedding, and was also the song playing on the radio when he discovered his wife in the shower. Whenever he hears it; or thinks he does; he becomes out of control, threatening the very freedom which he cherishes.

As he becomes involved more and more with Tiffany, he begins to realize that we are all, to some extent, obsessed with something or other. His father is a fanatic Philadelphia Eagles fan, and risks prison for taking bets on the game. After all, how sane is that? As Pat and Tiffany get to know one another more, they begin to feed off of one another with surprising results. What begins as a love-hate type relationship evolves into a deeper understanding of both themselves, as well as those around them who affect their lives. In the end, the question which hangs in the air is not whether Pat, Jr. and Tiffany are flawed, but rather it becomes apparent that we all are; in one way or another.

Robert DeNiro gets better and better with each film he makes. It doesn’t matter if he is directing, or just acting, he simply matures more with each film he does. 

"Being Flynn" with Robert DeNiro and Paul Dano (2012)

Robert DeNiro stars in this very poignant drama about a homeless man named Jonathan Flynn. He is a great writer. We know this because he says so to anyone with whom he comes into contact. He is only driving a cab to make ends meet while he completes his novel. When his aggressive behavior causes him to be evicted from his apartment, he becomes one of the homeless.

Denied shelter by his friends and acquaintances, he finds himself at the homeless shelter. His son, Nick Flynn, played by Paul Dano, works there, which causes all kinds of problems as the son begins to know the father he never had. Moreover, he does not really like what he sees; in some ways he is an emotional image of his father.

Julianne Moore plays his mother, Jody Flynn, who kills herself after reading an unfinished story by her son in which she was supposed to be the hero.  Mistaking the story to be about her own failure as a mother, she then takes her life.

Nick has saved over 100 of his father’s letters to him over the years. In these letters his father alludes to the “masterpiece” he is working on, but never seems to complete. Nick grows up wanting to be what his father never became; a writer. But he is plagued by the same demons as his Dad, and only a rude awakening will shake him out of his lethargy. When his father calls him, after 18 years, he is awakened.

Struggling with his own problems, and a lack of confidence, Nick navigates his way through the world of the homeless while working at the shelter. When his father is barred from the shelter for bad behavior, Nick is forced to make a choice in reaching out to his father, even while struggling to get his own life on track.
 
With outstanding performances by all, and a script based on the semi-autobiographical book by Nick Flynn, this film really moves the viewer. Directed by Paul Weitz, who also co-wrote the screenplay, the movie leaves many questions unasked, as well as others unanswered. In the end it is left for you to decide who the real hero in this story is. Are there really any heroes at all? Is Jonathan Flynn a good man, or a flawed man?  Or, is he just like the rest of us; including his son Nick; simply searching for a clue?

Looking at the Insanity Plea

Much has been written of late concerning the use of the Insanity Plea as a defense in general and, in particular, in the case of James Holmes.  Holmes is the young man accused of multiple homicides in the shooting at a midnight showing of 'The Dark Knight Rises' in Colorado, which resulted in 12 people being killed and another 59 wounded. Police say the suspect acted alone and had no prior criminal record or ties to terrorism. He had, though, been under the care of a Mental Health professional at the time, and his case was reviewed, at the direction of his doctor, by a crisis management team just days before the killings took place.

Now the deed is done, and the Monday morning “Quarterbacking” has begun in earnest. The talking heads on my TV all say that the Insanity Plea is a dead end, as Mr. Holmes clearly planned this attack beforehand. This line of thinking, in determining whether Mr. Holmes is sane or not, is like comparing an orange to a watermelon. It makes no sense.

If, for example, I were to plan a murder for profit; and then say I was crazy; that would be a ridiculous plea, which would carry no merit. I would, in that case, be “crazy as a fox.” Obviously my crime would have had a criminal purpose; I was driven by greed. But what about the Holmes case? Let’s take a look at it.

Here’s a young man; with known mental difficulties; whose own doctor even questioned whether or not he was a danger to himself and others. He has planned, in meticulous detail, a crime too heinous to imagine. And then he actually carries it out, resulting in the deaths and injuries mentioned above. He hopes to gain no profit from his act. He doesn’t even have a sense of reality about the whole event; he even asked a deputy, after the shooting, how the film ended.

When considering an Insanity Plea, the question is not whether we believe that the subject was capable of premeditation in the crime for which they stand accused; the real question is how sane was the plan to begin with. What possible gain was there for Mr. Holmes to attain, even if he had gotten away with the crime? The answer is patently obvious. There was no gain, no real motive other than to commit the crime. That’s insane. Just like the guy who contemplates whether or not he can fly by jumping off the roof, he’s clearly insane.

Is this a plea to spare Mr. Holmes life? Not a chance. I believe in the death penalty. I just believe in being honest with ourselves about why we execute people when we do. The law says we do not execute people who are insane. So, in order to execute Mr. Holmes, he must be found to be sane.

No matter how much we kid ourselves to the contrary, Mr. Holmes is damaged, and likely will never be “fixed”. I mourn for the families of those who lost loved ones by his actions. If he is found guilty, I support the application of the death penalty for his crimes. Just don’t expect me to believe that he is sane.