David O. Russell‘s Joy brings reunites Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, and Robert De Niro, for as the director would describe in an interview with EW, “an epic, unexpected story about the interior life of one woman’s soul, from the ages of 10 to 40.” This isn’t the first time that the four have worked together on one project. They previously teamed up for the Oscar-nominated Silver Linings Playbook, for which all them earned Academy Award nominations. So expect that same level of performance and directorial effort to be in this latest film.

Though initially just a teaser, we get to see the scope of what O. Russell will give us this winter holiday. Check out the first teaser below.

Aldous Huxley, author of Brave New World, stated that “experience is not what happens to you; it’s what you do with what happens to you.” This quote lingered within my thoughts for the majority of the 2013 movie year because there is a remarkable number of films that confirm Huxley’s statement with shocking clarity. During 2013 the majority of characters in cinema experienced a relentless assault of either irrepressible physical violence or emotional turmoil, resulting in each character clinging to their lives, praying that they won’t become defeated. Characters had to either sink or swim. No film provided for them a middle ground that would grant them an easy way out or provide a buoy for them. Characters had to act, and act fast.

In Gravity, becoming disconnected from her partner in the infinite void of space, Dr. Stone had to gain composure quickly or endure an onslaught of debris and isolation. In The Place Beyond the Pines, a cop had to rely on his survival instincts and the ramifications of his decision reverberated throughout generations. In Blue is the Warmest Color, a confused teenage woman, utterly love-sick, discovers the throes and pangs of first love and is left even more confused after the indelible experience. In Dallas Buyers Club, an AIDs victim with a guaranteed death-sentence uses his situation to give hope to thousands of other AIDs victims. And in The Counselor, a man’s experience overwhelms him and he is soon exposed to the most unsavory circumstances that are beyond his control and the most heinous individuals.

Without further hesitance, the best 2013 had to offer.

American Hustle
Director: David O. Russell
Cast: Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner
Columbia Pictures
Rated R | 132 Minutes
Release Date: December 20, 2013

“Some of this actually happened.”

With steely concentration, Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) glues a toupée to the top of his head. Once the swatch of synthetic hair is in place, he meticulously combs the thinning hair on his temples over and around it. To complete the masterful act of male grooming, Irving blasts his new ‘do with industrial-strength hairspray.

This is the opening sequence of American Hustle, the latest film by director David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook). The film is loosely based on the 1978 ABSCAM scandal, a series of FBI operations designed to uncover corrupt government officials.

Standing there in front of the mirror, sporting a serious paunch and a colorful ascot, Irving could be mistaken for Roy Munson, Woody Harrelson’s character from Kingpin: a sad, semi-pathetic hustler chasing the American dream. With the help of his partner and lover, Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams), Irving sells art forgeries and participates in investment schemes.

Just to show you can’t keep a zombie movie of indeterminate quality down, the long-in-development screen adaptation of Pride, Prejudice and Zombies, Seth Grahame-Smith‘s (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) mash-up of Jane Austen‘s beloved 1813 novel that is in the public domain and the zombie horror genre first published to great acclaim and sales four years ago, is back on track for the umpteenth time.

Panorama Media is joining up with Darko Entertainment, Handsomecharlie Films, and producer Allison Shearmur of Allison Shearmur Productions to finally make the Pride, Prejudice and Zombies movie a reality. Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman, once mooted to play the female lead Elizabeth Bennet, will produce the movie for Darko Entertainment. David O. Russell, the director of Three Kings and The Silver Linings Playbook, is writing the screenplay and at one point was attached to direct. Other directors who have attempted – and failed – to bring Pride to life include Craig Gillespie (Lars and the Real Girl) and Mike White (Year of the Dog).

Silver Linings Playbook
Directed by David O. Russell
Written by David O. Russell
Starring Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Chris Tucker
The Weinstein Company
Rated R | 122 Minutes
Release Date: November 21, 2012
Purchase Tickets on Fandango

Written and directed by David O. Russell (The Fighter), Silver Linings Playbook is based on the 2008 novel by Matthew Quick and stars (Bradley Cooper) as Pat Solitano, a troubled man who has lost everything – his house, his job, and his wife.

After spending eight months in a Baltimore mental institution, Pat finds himself back in Philadelphia, living with his mother (Jacki Weaver) and father (Robert De Niro). Despite a restraining order, Pat is determined to remain positive, rebuild his life, and reunite with his estranged wife Nikki (Brea Bee).

Meanwhile, Pat’s parents hope he’ll get back on his feet and take part in the family’s obsession with the Philadelphia Eagles. Things take an unexpected turn when he meets kindred crazy person Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a young woman trying to cope with her husband’s death by sleeping with everyone at her work.

Pat and Tiffany bond over their issues and idiosyncrasies, with ‘crazy person’ topics like the types of medication they’ve taken. Tiffany offers to help Pat reconnect with his wife, but only if he’ll return the favor by doing something very important for her – be her partner in a freestyle dance competition.