We need hope to keep us afloat through turbulent times and sometimes it arrives from the most unexpected of sources. The Broken Hearts Gallery is a rom-com that even folks who don’t care for that milieu can embrace with a bodacious bear hug.
The rationale why some exclude this genre from their viewing possibilities comes from a myriad of sources—most notably is that more often than not these endeavors are predictable and continually use the same tropes over and over and over…
That is why when a stellar rom-com comes along that has far-reaching audience potential, such as The Broken Hearts Gallery, it is like a ray of sunshine while inhaling a breath of fresh air. All those classics have earned their spot in our cinematic hearts and for good reason. When a romantic comedy hits the nail on the head, it is a glorious achievement. I mean, who doesn’t love “love?” It’s either something we are blessed with or are seeking it. Toss in some timely humor and insightful comedy that plays into a strong narrative, audiences’ passion for the flick will never waver—no matter how many times they watch it.
Blockers’ breakout Geraldine Viswanathan stars as Lucy Gulliver, a twentysomething New Yorker who aspires to curate her own gallery. She lives with her two BFFs, Amanda (Molly Gordon, Booksmart) and Hamilton chanteuse Phillipa Soo (she portrayed Eliza Hamilton), and is dating a guy who seems to be too good to be true. Utkarsh Ambudkar portrays Max Vora, who is divinely dashing but is a tad bit narcissistic. When he “leaves” Lucy for a gorgeous doctor, she’s completely destroyed. Her friends come to her aide, but it isn’t enough. She yearns for something to not only take her out of her funk but to deliver her a life-inspiring challenge that could hopefully fulfill her dream. After Max makes it clear they’re finished, Lucy finds herself in Nick’s car thinking it is a rideshare. It’s not. Dacre Montgomery, of Stranger Things fame, is simply a good guy. He tries to inform her that his car is not a rideshare. Yet, sensing her despair, he drives her home. Could this be “the beginning of a beautiful friendship?” Perhaps, something more.
What is mesmerizing about the screenplay that writer-director Natalie Krinsky has produced is that it isn’t necessarily a given that Nick and Lucy will become a couple. It’s not that there aren’t obstacles in their way. Their repartee gives off the sense that these two are meant to be, but the progress of their friendship/relationship is as organic as rom-com come. As he “coaches” her about letting go of Max, an idea emerges. Lucy has kept mementos big and small from all her past relations. This fact paints the picture that she has trouble letting go and even as Nick joshes her by calling her a “hoarder,” he keenly knows what she’s going through and why Lucy keeps these keepsakes that have meaning to solely her.
An idea arrives that she will curate a gallery of people’s artifacts of relationships gone by. Lucky for her, Nick is in the process of renovating and creating a boutique hotel that has an open-air second floor in dire need of… something. Hmmm…
There is plenty of opportunities for the story to drift into stereotypic rom-com landscapes. Once broken up with Max, Lucy does not have one single spoonful of ice cream while crying. I joke, in all seriousness, Krinsky has orchestrated something wildly original in a sea of cinematic copycats. Although not based on a true story, there really was a Broken Hearts Gallery that this writer visited in Los Angeles. What Lucy’s exhibition achieves is a surprise for Lucy. The gallery has provided a forum for countless people to share some sort of closure that may have been previously missing from their lives. We all have had romances that have taken a piece of our heart that can never be filled—no matter the passage of time or finding our own amorous bliss. Therefore, what Lucy hopes is that her artistic baby strikes a chord with the masses and is utterly universal. In the process, perhaps she will find someone whose mementos will never be in the gallery as their love line is never-ending.
Krinsky has made her directorial debut with The Broken Hearts Gallery. She has crafted a rom-com that is simultaneously deeply romantic and frequently LOL funny. The film also pierces your soul. Each emotive turn is earned by what came prior. It takes a stunningly self-aware filmmaker to lead a tale through the twists and turns of that reality that is real life. Krinsky has masterfully interjected her humor with heaps of heart that will resonate long after those credits roll. This is an artistic announcement of the highest order. The last thing I ever want to do to my readers is to spoil even the faintest hint of any plot points. Therefore, without revealing too much, let’s just say that when you think you know where Krinsky’s film is heading, something rears its head and we turn left when we were bracing for turning right. She has a gift and here’s hoping that studios across Tinsel Town dive into her Gallery and emerge ready to tap her to entertain us once again.
A director once informed me that 90-percent of their work lay in casting. In that realm, the directorial newbie has hit a grand slam. Viswanathan carries the film and is in practically every scene. There is something truly compelling about the Australian actress that when she is on the screen, you cannot look away. The camera adores her, yes. But her command arises out of an innate gift to encapsulate her character in such a manner that it’s hard to know where Lucy ends, and Viswanathan begins. She has comic timing to die for and is the most gifted of ensemble performers, perfectly yielding for her co-stars in the ebbs and flows that is a narrative making its journey towards a satisfying conclusion.
Her partner in this film journey, Montgomery, was born to be Nick. There is an instant connection these two characters achieve that is no easy task. After all, Nick is driving a car in busy Manhattan streets while Lucy is waxing poetic about her terrible day. Each is subtly intrigued by the other and yet the answer to will they or won’t they is never remotely a given. That is highly unusual in the rom-com world due to the inherent nature of its existence. That is largely due to the performance of Montgomery. There is much going on in that handsome head of his. At times he wears his emotions on his sleeve, and then other moments, he bottles them up deep into his being. It’s a rich and nuanced turn by the fellow Australian thespian whose future has to be as bright as Viswanathan. Also… wouldn’t mind if these two were paired again in another rom-com. They could easily be the Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan of the 2020s.
Instead of rushing through the three-dimensional filling out of the story and its inhabitants, there is a fantastically rich undercurrent that permeates the film—making it feel as “real” as a rom-com can achieve.
Before all is said and done here, I must take a moment to salute one of my favorite actresses from the late 70s and 80s. Bernadette Peters stars as Eva Woolf, the gallery owner who Lucy has worked with for several years. It is there that she met Max, and also her relationship with Woolf that plays an enormous part in making a dream realized.
Look for Sony’s The Broken Hearts Gallery in theaters September 11.
Grade: A-