Joy

Jennifer Lawrence won Best Actress in a Motion Picture Comedy for her role in Joy at the 2016 Golden Globes.

Jennifer Lawrence’s newest starring vehicle, the Joy Mangano sorta-biopic, sorta-a-bunch-of-other-movies-smashed-together Joy, went into wide release over this past weekend only to meet with a spate of middling reviews. Lawrence’s unquestioning and absolute allegiance to director David O. Russell would appear to suggest that audiences can look forward to lots more pictures in the vein of the not-quite-there Joy, the not-quite-there American Hustle, and the not-quite-there Silver Linings Playbook. But hop one parallel dimension over, and Lawrence is currently being showered with praise for one of her most memorable, risky roles in a film that’s generated quite a bit of awards buzz.

At this point, we can officially start calling the box office for Star Wars: The Force Awakens astonishing. Last week’s record breaking opening was massively impressive, but the endurance showcased by the film’s second weekend is even more so. Not only is the film doing well, but word of mouth is strong enough to propel it to a sophomore weekend gross that most movies would kill to earn in their entire runs. However, the holiday weekend was kind to many movies, including most of the five new releases, making this one of the strongest top 10s we’ve seen in quite some time.

Jennifer Lawrence was 24 when she shot Joy. Her character, Joy Mangano, was 34 when she invented the Miracle Mop and became one of the first stars of the QVC network. This fact remains inescapable throughout Joy. Lawrence remains watchable in Joy because, as one of our best young actors, she can’t help but be watchable. But she’s totally miscast as a divorced mother of two who’s been repeatedly beaten down by life’s disappointments. This part was meant for the Jennifer Lawrence of a 2025, not the one of 2015.

Jennifer Lawrence and David O. Russell are the best thing to happen to one another, making up two halves of a winning formula that’s created a handful of engaging and distinctive films popular with Oscar voters and neighborhood moviegoers alike.

Joy is not only the third consecutive film director David O. Russell has made with Jennifer Lawrence, but the fourth film in which Lawrence has appeared opposite Bradley Cooper. A new clip from the upcoming drama features Lawrence invoking the name of famed producer David O. Selznick and flexing her Oscar season muscles.

Whatever you do, never speak on behalf of Jennifer Lawrence. Seriously, don’t do it. Girl’s got a shotgun. In the latest trailer for David O. Russell’s Joy, we get a longer look at the Lawrence-led family drama, and a really great line courtesy of Robert De Niro.

The first time Jennifer Lawrence teamed with writer/director David O. Russell, they made Silver Linings Playbook, and she won an Oscar. The second time they teamed together they made American Hustle, and she was nominated for another Oscar. Now they’ve got Joy, yet another prestige drama coming out in December. Looks like they’re going for the trifecta.

Things are looking pretty good for 'American Hustle' director David O. Russell, who has spent the past five years reinventing himself. The man who was once known more for being a pain in the ass on the set of 'I Heart Huckabees' and getting in a fistfight with George Clooney while shooting 'Three Kings' has emerged as the modern master of the crowd-pleaser, crafting straightforward entertainments that make big bucks at the box office and get a bunch of Oscar attention. That's the kind of combination that keeps you making movies and convinces every actor in Hollywood to get in line to work with you. And that's probably why Robert De Niro is in talks to join the cast of 'Joy,' which will be his third collaboration with Russell in three years.