Heartbreaker
A man who ruins relationships for a living may have finally found a woman he can't easily manipulate in this French comedy from writer and director Pascal Chaumeil. Alex (Romain Duris) is a handsome man who knows how to make women fall for him, and he's found an unusual way of making money from this talent -- guys who want to break up with their wives or girlfriends but lack the nerve can hire Alex to woo them away, and once the women have given their men the bad news, Alex makes himself scarce. While Alex has built a lucrative cottage industry from this scheme, business has been in a slump, and when he's given an especially difficult assignment, he takes it against his better judgment. Juliette (Vanessa Paradis) and Jonathan (Andrew Lincoln) are both wealthy, attractive, and deeply in love, but a third party wants to stop their upcoming marriage and hires Alex to pose as her bodyguard in Monaco as she arrives a few days before the wedding. However, no matter what Alex does, his efforts backfire and Juliette seems immune to his charm; even worse, the harder he tries, the more he finds himself falling for her. L'Arnacoeur (aka Heartbreaker) was received its North American premiere at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival. more..
Director: Pascal Chaumeil
Starring: Romain Duris, Vanessa Paradis, Julie Ferrier, François Damiens, Héléna Noguerra
American romantic comedies have become so dismal over the past 20 years that it wouldn't be hard for even the Romanian film industry to show us up. I'm still waiting for the great Romanian romantic comedy (and hey, it could be out there), but for now, France saves the day with Heartbreaker.
Heartbreaker is like a caper comedy meets "The Bodyguard" - it's winsome and accomplished fluff.
Splashed with Monte Carlo glamour, physical comedy and nimble scams, the movie rolls along enjoyably to its goofy but endearing big scene: an homage to "Dirty Dancing."
Frothy, frantic and inescapably unromantic - the two leads have less chemistry than an American high-school curriculum - Heartbreaker marks the uneven feature debut of television director Pascal Chaumeil.
Total fluff, though its totality is reasonably agreeable, and Pascal Chaumeil's comedy cum scenery-mainly Monte Carlo-gives the mercurial Romain Duris a chance to show his chops as an homme fatal.
Best Actor (Meilleur acteur)
César Awards, France (2011)
Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical
Satellite Awards (2010)
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