The Best and Worst of Jennifer Lawrence

The "Best and Worst" series profiles the best and worst work of an actor starring in one of the week's new theatrical releases. This week I take a look at the filmography of "Joy" star Jennifer Lawrence.

Film starring Jennifer Lawrence that I've seen:
Winter's Bone
The Beaver 
X-Men: First Class
Like Crazy
The Hunger Games
Silver Linings Playbook
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
American Hustle
X-Men: Days of Future Past
The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part I
The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part II

Best Performance: Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Lawrence had previously impressed me in The Beaver and The Hunger Games, but I didn't fully realize her true talent as an actress until I saw Silver Linings Playbook. Lawrence is absolutely mesmerizing as Tiffany, a young, clinically depressed widow who develops an unconventional friendship with a bipolar man (Bradley Cooper) freshly released from a mental health facility after an eight-month stint. She brings a maturity well beyond her years to the role and brilliantly expresses the pain, confusion and mental anguish Tiffany is going through following the unexpected death of her husband.   

Worst Performance: X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
This is a bit of unfair distinction as Lawrence is one of the rare actors in Hollywood that has never turned in a truly horrible performance. However, Lawrence was much less dialed in than usual in her second go-round as shape-shifting mutant Mystique. Despite being a pivotal cog in the narrative, Lawrence got outshined by just about every other member of Days of Future Past's wildly talented ensemble. 

Best Film: Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
This is a textbook example of one of the rare times where a film just gets everything right. From the brilliant script to the award-worthy performances from the entire cast to its heavy emotional resonance, Silver Linings Playbook is a cinematic triumph of the highest order.

Worst Film: Like Crazy (2011) 
Do you like your teen romance films to be full of pretension, completely disconnected from reality and feature no discernible point? Then Like Crazy is the film for you!!!!! The normally great Anton Yelchin and Felicity Jones mumble through line after line of moronic dialogue in this seemingly eternal film that may or may not be responsible for my cynical view on relationships.   

Thank you for reading this week's installment of "The Best and Worst of". In two weeks, I'll take a look at the best and worst work of "The Revenant" star Tom Hardy.