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    Joy

    Reviewed by
    adamwatchesmovies@

    Jennifer Lawrence continues to deliver great performances in “Joy”, her latest collaboration with director David O. Russell. It’s not on the same level as their best film together, which is still 2012’s “Silver Linings Playbook” but they can’t all be. I enjoyed the picture and I would even call it inspirational. It has flaws but making a trip to the movie theatre to see it is a good investment of your time.

    Joy Mangano (Lawrence) is a divorced mom with two kids, and her life sucks. Her mom Terri (Virginia Madsen) is wasting away in front of the TV, her ex-husband Tony (Édgar Ramírez) is living in the basement, she is hated by her half-sister Peggy (Elisabeth Röhm), her job is unfulfilling and now her womanizing, three-times divorced father Rudy (Robert De Niro) has moved into the basement as well. When inspiration strikes and Joy comes up with a revolutionary mop, the best mop you’ve ever seen, things look like they’re headed for easy street. Unfortunately the world of patents and manufacturing is a lot to handle.

    There are underdogs you love to cheer for, and then there’s Joy. With the film being based on a true story, you can somewhat guess (although you can’t be sure) that she’s going to eventually gain some kind of claim to fame, but it is a long road to success. Absolutely everything and everyone seems to be against her, to the point where even as an audience member, well removed from the action and comfortable in my movie theatre seat I was starting to feel overwhelmed. You’re just waiting for her to explode in a fireball of rage and get rid of all of these parasites that are clinging onto her so she can live up to her potential.

    I think the movie lays it on a bit too thick with the hurdles she has to overcome and this could have easily slid down into infuriating melodrama. Fortunately, that’s where the performances come in. Everyone here is good and they help reinforce the emotions in the story. It’s infuriating to see a woman who wastes her life sitting in front of the TV watching Soap Operas and developing increasingly irrational phobias, but it’s even more effective when the actor/actress playing the role does it well. I know a lot of people are going to look at some of the bigger stars and call them out on their acting talent (not that they don’t deserve it) but I’m going to tell you to look out for some of the smaller parts in the movie, how some people have to put on less than glamorous faces to allow you to really feel the frustration, the despair and even the happiness that Joy eventually experiences.

    I love underdog movies. They’re so relatable. I don’t live in a mansion, there are times I struggle with balancing my checkbook and I understand perfectly why a self-wringing mop is worth $20. As far as I can tell this story is only loosely based on true facts so it’s not that element of truth that allows you to become invested, it’s the character of Joy and her determination to get things done, to dig herself out of the hole she’s found herself in (partially because of her own mistakes) even when nobody believes in her.

    There are a few flaws throughout the film that make it feel for me, like this projects was slightly rushed. It’s like this could have been a great film, but instead it’s just very good. I’m talking about some artistic choices with dreams that could have been omitted, some developments that lay it on really thick and even some decisions by Joy herself. To me, this movie is slightly too long in the first half, before the creation of the super mop. Prior to her wanting to pitch her invention, Joy doesn’t seem to be that kind of forceful, but compassionate and down-on-her-luck protagonist you would associate with a genius that’s waiting for the opportunity to bloom. She comes off as a pushover and it’s hard to wave a flag for a weenie. It’s almost like so many things go wrong for her that when things start to turn around, it’s luck, not skill that made the difference. With the 2hr+ running time, some material could have been trimmed to streamline this story, or swapped out for others that would have shown some developments later in the woman’s life that are only mentioned but would be really interesting to see. This movie either needed to be longer, so a television series, or shorter with some post-film text to let us know about some the woman’s more inspiring accomplishments without making you feel like you missed out.

    The strong performances from the cast are more than enough to earn “Joy” a recommendation from me. That, and the central tale of the woman inventor who is determined to make her mark. That’s good stuff. If I have to pick a weakness in the film though, I’d have to say it’s David O. Russel who is wishy-washy with the beginning and conclusion of the movie. With it being released on Christmas day and with this cast I think a lot of people will go in expecting this to be a serious Oscar Contender, Best Picture kind of film, but I don’t think that’s the case. The acting might get some nods though, so don’t dismiss this movie just because it’s not the masterpiece it might have hinted at being initially. It’s worth seeing. (Theatrical version on the big screen, January 8, 2016)

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    adamwatchesmovies@  9.1.2016 age: 26-35 2,867 reviews

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