Summary

• The Silver Linings Playbook movie made changes to the book, including giving the main character a bipolar diagnosis that wasn't in the novel.
• The movie focused more on the romantic relationship between Pat and Tiffany, intensifying their love story compared to the book.
• The movie changed the setting to Pennsylvania and added a gambling addiction storyline for Pat's father, adding more tension to the film.

Like most Hollywood adaptations, the memorable soundtrack, Silver Linings Playbook proved to be a massive success and earned eight Oscar nominations, with Lawrence taking home the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Silver Linings Playbook follows the story of a man being released from a mental health facility and coping with his new life, which leads to a complicated friendship and romantic relationship with a young widow. However, from a more intense love story to a different diagnosis, the 2012 Jennifer Lawrence-starring movie took some creative liberties when adapting the 2008 novel. While Silver Linings Playbook was critically acclaimed, it's not as close to its source material as some may think.

10 Pat Wasn't Diagnosed With Bipolar Disorder In The Book

While Pat's bipolar diagnosis is a significant part of Silver Linings Playbook, it's actually an aspect that only appears in the movie. In the book, Pat has brain damage, and while he does experience many of the same bipolar disorder-related symptoms from the movie, the book never specifies. However, by explicitly giving Pat a bipolar diagnosis, Silver Linings Playbook director David O. Russell was able to honor his son Matthew, who lives with bipolar disorder.

9 Pat Is In The Mental Health Facility Longer In The Book

Another change in the movie is that Pat's time in the mental health facility is much shorter than it was in the book. In the Silver Linings Playbook novel, Pat is in the facility for four years. While he's there, he experiences memory loss that causes him to forget how long he's been there and the reason that he was itted to the facility. This changes in David O. Russell's film, as Pat is only in the facility for eight months. The memory loss storyline is taken out, meaning he knows exactly how he ended up in the facility.

8 A Flashback Scene Added To The Movie Changes Pat's Storyline With His Wife

The storyline between Pat and his wife, Nikki, is crucial to both the book and the movie. However, an added detail in Silver Linings Playbook's movie changes a lot about their dynamic. In the book, Pat desperately wants his wife Nikki back, and it isn't until the end that it's revealed Nikki cheated on him. In the movie, this detail is revealed early on through a flashback.

While it may not seem like a massive change, the book's version of Pat is yearning for his wife because he doesn't know about her infidelity. However, in the Silver Linings Playbook movie, he is desperate to get his wife back despite being aware of her betrayal. The storyline is otherwise the same, but the movie changes Pat's character by making him someone who wants his wife back even if she hurt him in the past.

7 Pat Talks To Nikki In Person In The Movie

In the Silver Linings Playbook book and movie, Tiffany pretends Nikki has written to Pat even though she's actually the person behind the letters. Pat finds out the truth in both works, but it's only in the film that Pat gets to talk to his wife in person. In the book, Pat goes to see Nikki when he finds out the letters are fake. However, since he was in the facility for four years in the book, more time has ed. When he gets to Nikki's house, she's already moved on with kids and a new partner.

However, instead of being resentful, Pat is at peace with seeing Nikki live a happy life, and he lets her go without having to talk to her. In the movie, Nikki attends Pat and Tiffany's dance competition, and after their performance, he goes to talk to her. They make small talk and Nikki seems impressed by how much Pat has changed, which is exactly what he wanted. However, he decides to leave Nikki behind when Tiffany leaves upon seeing them together, and Pat's father encourages him to go after her.

6 The Movie Is More Focused On Pat & Tiffany's Relationship

In the Silver Linings Playbook novel, Tiffany is a big part of Pat's life as she's a friend who can relate to his experience with mental health disorders. She does have romantic feelings for him, but these are intensified in the film. In Russell's movie, Tiffany and Pat's romance becomes much more of a compelling Hollywood love story. This doesn't change the overall plot of the story, but it certainly makes the Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper movie feel like more of a romance than the book did.

5 Tiffany Is Significantly Younger In The Movie

Age isn't always significant in film adaptations, but the fact that Jennifer Lawrence was so young when she played Tiffany differs significantly from the novel version of the character. In the book, Tiffany is in her late 30s, but when Jennifer Lawrence portrayed the character in Silver Linings Playbook, she was only 22 years old. This is pretty impactful to Tiffany's story.

In the Silver Linings Playbook book and the movie, Tiffany was previously married to a man named Tommy for three years. This makes a lot more sense for Tiffany in the book, as Lawrence's version of the character would have only been 19 years old when getting married. In most states in the US, the legal marriage age without needing a parent's consent is 18, making 19 a pretty young age to get married and soon become a widow.

4 The Movie Is Set In Pennsylvania Instead Of New Jersey

There is also a setting change in the Silver Linings Playbook movie. In the book, Pat leaves the mental health facility and returns to Collingswood, New Jersey to live with his parents. However, the movie changed the location to Ridley Park, Pennsylvania.

In the book and movie, Pat is a big fan of the Eagles, and even though he lives in New Jersey in the book, he lives in the south part of the state where sports fans root for Pennsylvania teams. The movie could have kept the setting in New Jersey, but setting the film in Pennsylvania brought Pat closer to his favorite team. It also made it easier for audience to understand his love for the Eagles since many may be unaware of the south Jersey connection.

3 Pat's Father's Gambling Addiction Wasn't In The Book

Robert De Niro's Oscar nomination for Silver Linings Playbook was well deserved. However, his gambling addiction storyline was never in Matthew Quick's novel. While Pat's father also loves the Eagles in the book, he doesn't bet on them like he does in the film. However, it's understandable why this storyline was written. It creates more tension for the film and also showcases that Pat grew up around guardians who have their own mental health disorders that haven't been properly treated. It also wouldn't have made sense to have such a seasoned actor in the film if he wasn't given a significant role.

2 The Song That Triggers Pat Has Been Changed For The Movie

In the Silver Linings Playbook novel, Pat is triggered by a song by Kenny G. This is different in the Silver Linings Playbook film as the song that has this effect on Pat is "My Cherie Amour" by Stevie Wonder. It's unclear why filmmakers decided to make this change, though it could be as simple as Stevie Wonder's voice being more recognizable on the movie's soundtrack.

1 The Silver Linings Playbook Movie Ending Is Different

Both the Silver Linings Playbook book and movies end with Tiffany and Pat itting their feelings for each other, but the scenes play out differently between mediums. The book is much more casual, with Tiffany apologizing for faking the notes from Nikki before revealing to Pat that she's in love with him. Tiffany then gives Pat a cloud recognition manual to help him recognize the clouds he's always looking at. They then tell each other that they need each other before the book ends.

The movie's ending is much more dramatic as Pat chases after Tiffany, who stormed out of the dance competition when she saw Pat talking to Nikki. Pat realizes his feelings for Nikki are gone, and he actually has romantic feelings for Tiffany now. Pat gives Tiffany a letter telling her that he knows it was her who faked the letter from Tiffany. He then tells her he loves her, and he knew it the moment he met her. Silver Linings Playbook's romantic ending sees Tiffany and Pat together in his home, getting ready for the Sunday football game.