‘Heartbreaker’ Makes Romantic Comedy Look Effortless

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CHICAGO – If there’s one genre Hollywood has managed to screw up beyond all recognition, it’s the romantic comedy. Many of the worst films in recent years have brought the genre to an all-time low, such as “Leap Year,” “Love Happens,” and anything starring Gerard Butler. These dumbed-down products use stereotypes in place of characters, incessant sparring in place of chemistry and gooey sentiment in place of a tangible heart.

That’s what makes a decent flick like “Heartbreaker” such a delight. Though the film is a hit comedy from France, it absolutely does not (and should not) warrant an American remake. First-time feature director Pascal Chaumeil has crafted a film so slick and enjoyable, not to mention pop-culture savvy, that it could easily win over mainstream audiences in the U.S., regardless of its subtitles. Plus the film provides an ideal showcase for two stars armed with formidable international appeal. It also helps that neither of the actors are well-schooled in the genre, which allows them to bring a freshness and authenticity to material that’s otherwise formulaic.

Romain Duris and Vanessa Paradis star in Pascal Chaumeil’s Heartbreaker.
Romain Duris and Vanessa Paradis star in Pascal Chaumeil’s Heartbreaker.
Photo credit: IFC Films

Best known for his breakout work in “The Spanish Apartment” and “The Beat That My Heart Skipped,” Romain Duris has proven to be one of the most charismatic actors on the planet, and in “Heartbreaker,” he demonstrates his deft ability to navigate the timing and physicality of screwball comedy. His natural charm offsets the less appealing aspects of his character, who is a con artist with a warped sense of integrity. Duris plays Alex Lippi, a suave ladykiller who breaks hearts for a living, while mending them with fabricated hope.

The film’s enticing 13-minute prologue sets up an intriguing premise, following Alex through one of his standard jobs. His clients pay him to break up couples whose relationship has become rancid, at least in the opinion of the client. Alex seduces each woman away from her boyfriend, just enough to let her realize that she deserves better. This is achieved through the use of extensive research into the woman’s background, designed to make her fall for Alex in much the same way Andie MacDowell fell for Bill Murray in “Groundhog Day.” Essentially a “Don Juan For Hire,” Alex is aided by his sister, Melanie (Julie Ferrier, the vessel of wide-eyed whimsicality from “Micmacs”), and her husband Marc (scene-stealer François Damiens), who assures the audience that no scripted seduction resorts to sex because, “We open their minds, not their legs.”

This extended pre-title sequence is so satisfying that it could easily function as a standalone short. Once the real plot kicks in, the film settles for routine yet reliably crowd-pleasing complications. Alex may be a master seducer, but he’s unlucky in love, especially since no woman could possibly tolerate his endless games of deception. His latest task is to break up a couple engaged to be married in ten days. The woman, Juliette (Vanessa Paradis), seems perfectly happy with her British beau (Andrew Lincoln), but her overprotective father (Jacques Frantz) has nagging doubts. Though Alex is deeply conflicted about the job, since it violates his rule to never destroy a happy couple, he has a long-standing debt to pay, embodied by the sinister meathead always lurking in the corner of the frame, deviously chomping on assorted nuts. Thus, Alex decides he needs money, and off to work he goes, posing as Juliette’s bodyguard.

Pascal Chaumeil’s Heartbreaker was released Sept. 17 at the Landmark Century Centre Cinema.
Pascal Chaumeil’s Heartbreaker was released Sept. 17 at the Landmark Century Centre Cinema.
Photo credit: IFC Films

There’s enough ambiguity and potential in this setup that could’ve resulted in a far more interesting picture, yet Chaumeil decides to play it safe every step of the way, concluding with a tacked-on ending that is less satisfying the more you think about it. If the film had ended a few minutes before its obligatory denouement, it would’ve been a more resonant, albeit bittersweet, picture (the title is, after all, “Heartbreaker”). But I digress. The filmmakers have clearly set out to make a purely entertaining lark guaranteed to lift moviegoers up out of the doldrums of a mediocre multiplex, and in that regard, they have succeeded admirably. Though it’s never quite laugh-out-loud funny, the film is light, breezy and richly pleasurable. In terms of tone and content, it’s every bit as accessible as the Will Smith comedy “Hitch,” and has the added attraction of lovely cinematography by Thierry Arbogast, which soaks in every inch of beauty from the picturesque locations.

Yet nothing in the film quite matches the beguiling allure of Paradis, who sounds like Marion Cotillard and looks a little like a Tim Burton character, minus the scraggly black hair (no wonder her longtime partner is Johnny Depp). She never overplays a moment or forces an emotion. There’s an endearing scene where she quietly mouths the lyrics to one of her character’s favorite songs, by George Michael of all people, while Alex desperately tries to sing along. She’s also a big fan of “Dirty Dancing,” a fact that inspires Alex to reluctantly master the moves of Patrick Swayze. In an American picture, this homage would be way too broad and obvious. But “Heartbreaker” is just giddy and inventive enough to make this silly running gag work. After all, no one puts Lippi in the corner.

‘Heartbreaker’ stars Romain Duris, Vanessa Paradis, Julie Ferrier, François Damiens, Héléna Noguerra, Jacques Frantz and Andrew Lincoln. It was written by Laurent Zeitoun & Jeremy Doner & Yohan Gromb and directed by Pascal Chaumeil. It opened on Sept. 17th at the Landmark Century Centre Cinema. It is not rated.

HollywoodChicago.com staff writer Matt Fagerholm

By MATT FAGERHOLM
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
matt@hollywoodchicago.com

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