David Owen Russell
Joy

LA RECENSIONE

JOY (2015), written and directed by David O. Russell

In the long run, determination and perseverance can lead to the desired success, but not always, as it depends on many factors, not least of which is luck.

This is indeed how the story of Joy unfolds, a creative inventor as a child, who finds herself as an adult with two children, living with her ex-husband under the same roof, and also taking care of her grandmother (her great supporter) and her mother.

At a certain point, she also has to host her father (who doesn't get along at all with the ex-husband), who has been kicked out of the house by the rival stepsister.

Forced by the airline to work (reluctantly) on the night shift, she struggles to make ends meet, and following an injury to her hands while cleaning up glass shards, her inventive spark is reignited, leading to an original idea: the self-wringing mop that cleans and rinses without needing to touch it directly.

Okay, I'll try to be brief and concise as usual, ahem, despite the risk of a total failure that is driving her to bankruptcy after spending a quarter of a million dollars lent by her father's new partner and partly obtained by taking out two mortgages on her own house, she fights to the very end to reclaim her rights (partly opposed by her stepsister and despicable characters in the business world) on an economic level and succeeds, continuing to come up with other small inventions like the velvet pads applied to hangers.

What else can be said?

De Niro is excellent in the role of the doubtful father about his daughter's abilities, and Jennifer Lawrence shines as Joy (by the way, the director, these two together with Bradley Cooper have already worked together on two previous films and it's evident they are very in sync), not to forget our great Isabella Rossellini as the annoying partner of the father.

A little gem in the film is the performance of actress Drena De Niro (Robert's adoptive daughter), who does a great job in the role of Joy's tireless friend.

Oh yes, I assured I'd be brief, so I will be, let me just add that the film is based on a true story, that of the inventor of the Miracle Mop.

P.S. Nice blues pieces in the soundtrack, ahem, I don't know whose they are...