Heartbreaker (2010)

Alex, his sister and brother-in-law break up couples for a living. Their only rule is to operate only if the girl to save is unhappy whether she knows it or not. When Alex is hired to break up Juliette and Jonathan who apparently love each other, he has no choice but to accept in order to pay back his debt. He only has 10 days to break them up before their wedding. L'Arnacoeur is an entertaining movie. But it's a rom com so you obviously know from the start what will happen. There is no twist or surprise but I find it quite entertaining. It is not the plot of the decade but the cast meets my expectations. This movie has nothing to envy to Hollywood blockbusters. It keeps its promise. I think it's a challenge to get an art-house rom com if you also want to rock the box office. As an indie-enthusiast, I'd rather pick the underground love story nobody knows over the popular sparkly one. But L'Arnacoeur committed to selling tickets. It features 2 popular and glamorous French actors (Romain Duris & Vanessa Paradis), funny supporting roles, and displays over-the-top luxury: the perfect cocktail to attract crowds to the movies.1 reason to watch: the Dirty Dancing trump that Alex whips outRead it here: http://squeerelist.blogspot.com/2013/06/l-heartbreaker- 2010.html

Suppose your best friend is about to marry the wrong guy, but she has convinced herself that she's happy with him. What can you do? Call the Heartbreakers, a company in the business of seduction, the best when it comes to breaking up ill-fitting relationships.The Heartbreaker team is comprised of master seducer Alex, his sister, and her husband; and together, the quirky trio spies on their subject, finds the flaws in the relationship, and develops an elaborate sabotage plan.This time the assignment is Juliette, the confident daughter of an overprotective French millionaire. Juliette, played by Vanessa Paradis (Mrs. Johnny Deep), is about to marry a rich, kind, and handsome Brit; and the Heartbreakers have only a few days to convince the strong-willed Juliette to break the engagement.Filmed against the backdrop of the French Riviera, the cinematography is a delicious treat, but the ingenious script and the spirited performances are the two winning elements of the movie.The script is a smart hybrid between a romantic comedy and a light spy thriller, and it will have you laughing out loud from beginning to end. And while the finale is somewhat predictable, the twists in the plot will have you wondering how it's all going to unravel.As far as performances, the suave Duris is superb as he charms the ladies, and he and Paradis show a decent amount of chemistry on screen. The supporting cast is also brilliant, especially Julie Ferrier (who plays Alex's sister) and François Damiens (Alex's brother-in-law).Don't wait for the American remake; watch this original version, because--like its hero--is stylish, clever, and simply hard-to-resist! It's everything a romantic comedy should be; truly satisfying!

HeartBreaker is a wonderful film to watch; to spend an afternoon in a darkened theatre with a companion you love, one who is familiar with the beautiful places visited as backdrops to this engaging film. The people involved are all actors of effortless grace regarding their seemingly effortless immmersion in the modestly complex plot. This plot is something that would need to be worked out in a non-English culture: a culture for which the old tenants of behaviour still hold some sway. I cannot imagine any of what happened on the screen taking place in an English speaking country but perhaps that speaks more of my nativity than anything about the script. The two main actors, Romain Duris and Vanessa Paradis, play their roles consummately as does everybody else in this delightful film. The Set Director did a wonderful job by bringing the viewer virtually into the film because the sets and locations were so phenomenal. You owe it to yourself to see this film.

"Women in couples come in three categories: happy, knowingly unhappy, and unhappy without admitting it."Heartbreaker is a breezy French romantic comedy about a suave man travels about, being paid by wealthy people to break up relationships or engagements between women and the men that they don't love or who are undeserving. He's hired by parents, siblings, and friends to keep the women from making mistakes. With the help of his sister, brother-in-law, and the information they gather about their marks, they efficiently make the women fall for Alex, and in the process, make them realize that they don't love their partner. They only intervene if they see that the woman is truly unhappy, and they never act on the basis of race or nationality. Alex doesn't sleep with the women, it's all strictly business. That is (there's always a catch) he's hired to thwart an upcoming marriage that seems perfect from the outside, and meets a woman who becomes more than just another job.There's nothing particularly new or brilliant about Heartbreakers, but it's pleasant enough. It's amusing at times (mostly thanks to the comic relief of the sister and brother-in-law characters), and whoever wrote the script has a definite love for Dirty Dancing. The movie is referenced almost constantly, and there's even a spot-on recreation of a dance scene, near the end. So if you're a big fan of Dirty Dancing, the novelty of that should be a point in Heartbreaker's favor.Overall, this was an okay movie. There are much worse movies of the type, that's for sure.