David O. Russell's 'Silver Linings Playbook' is ultimately a disappointing film: an unconvincing portrayal of mental illness and family dysfunction, with a weak romantic comedy subplot and an utterly meaningless second subplot featuring a dance competition. The central characters are not particularly sympathetic either: if they don't convince as mentally ill, they do convince as utterly self-obsessed - the attraction that the two leads supposedly feel for each other is asserted but in no way demonstrated. It's unclear what Russell was trying to do in this movie; but it's not funny, and nothing in it feels like it comes from the heart.