It seems impossible to describe anything about Jennifer Love Hewitt as ‘good,’ with the obvious exception of looks. But, horror of all horrors, not only has she appeared in a good movie, but her acting isn’t bad either. ‘Heartbreakers’ is one of those films that by all accounts should have been lousy. It’s a romantic comedy about a mother-daughter con team where, in the middle of a con, the daughter falls in love. Yet, amazingly, ‘Heartbreakers’ has been blessed with a solid script that avoids enough of the traps most films of its type not only fall into, but willingly jump into head first; and contains some good laughs along the way.
Hewitt (‘Can’t Hardly Wait’) plays the daughter half of the con team. When the film begins, her mother (Sigourney Weaver, ‘Alien’) is about to wed Dean Cumanno (Ray Liotta, ‘Hannibal’), a businessman with a bit of cash Hewitt and Weaver wouldn’t mind scamming. After taking him for a few hundred grand and a Mercedes, they head south to Florida with hopes of reeling in an even bigger fish a wealthy, not to mention old, tobacco mogul played by Gene Hackman (‘Enemy of the State’). But, as is necessary with all romantic comedies, there needs to be the love interest that creates a conflict. In this case it’s a bartender (Jason Lee, ‘Chasing Amy’) who Hewitt falls for, much to her own chagrin.
While the plot is far from revolutionary, it sets up some funny scenes and one-liners. Even the obligatory sweet, revelatory moments at the film’s conclusion aren’t nearly as cringe-inducing as they should have been. Hackman’s tobacco tycoon, William B. Tensy, rarely seen without a cigarette in his mouth and looking about a cough away from dying, provides for some humorous bits as he constantly wrenches from behind a cloud of smoke. This may be his best role in years, following a disappointing turn in the torturous piece-of-awful that was ‘The Replacements’ and a cameo in the exercise-in-tedium ‘The Mexican.’ Weaver and Liotta also fare well, doing what is required of them. Even Hewitt manages to hold her own, for once not getting totally upstaged by her breasts, though her cleavage is still on prominent display throughout the film.
‘Heartbreakers” real standout, however, is Jason Lee, one of the most under-appreciated actors out there. Lee, best know for his work in Kevin Smith’s New Jersey films, plays a sarcastic bartender who is the perfect foil for Hewitt. His dead-on delivery of some sharp one-liners is classic, and he actually manages to show some emotional depth. His character is the one that the viewers are supposed to feel sympathy for, and he manages to do this without being as cheesy and obvious as many actors would have done in his position.
The release of a funny, if short of brilliant, film like ‘Heartbreakers’ means that the ‘last year’s trash’ portion of the year is finally coming to an end. More than a few cuts above enjoyable films that should have been much better like ‘Down to Earth’ and ‘Monkeybone,’ and downright awful messes like ‘3000 Miles to Graceland,’ ‘Heartbreakers’ is a clever film that should make for an enjoyable night at the movies. Aside from the fact that Jennifer Love Hewitt probably isn’t interested in a 19-year-old-film-geek-college-movie-critic, there’s little else that’s heartbreaking about ‘Heartbreakers.’
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