'Broken Hearts Gallery' Review: Rom-Com a Pleasant Diversion in Tough Situation

AWARDS BEAT

TriStar Pictures

What if a date movie came out at a time when dating was a risky thing to do? What if a romantic comedy geared for girls-night-out excursions was released in a climate in which everybody was supposed to stay in? What if a rom-com about hanging out, hooking up and having fun in crowded places with your friends was released during a pandemic when none of those things are exactly encouraged?

Those are not hypothetical questions, and the makers of “The Broken Hearts Gallery” are about to learn the answers. So is Sony, which knew what it was getting in for: It acquired the movie in June and scheduled it to be one of the first major-studio films to make it back into theaters after the COVID-19 shutdowns, but the worsening pandemic pushed the original July 10 release date back for two months, to Sept. 11.

So now the agreeably frothy and occasionally touching summer movie is coming out at the tail end of a very strange and strained summer, an awkward time and situation for a film that celebrates community and connection. But maybe that makes it a tonic for these times – and maybe the fact that “The Broken Hearts Gallery” is also about letting go and accepting loss gives it an additional resonance, though it’s hard to think of it as much more than a pleasant diversion in a time that could use one.

Also Read: Dacre Montgomery and Geraldine Viswanathan Meet-Cute in 'The Broken Hearts Gallery' Trailer (Video)

In the film from first-time writer-director Natalie Krinsky, Geraldine Viswanathan (“Blockers,” “Bad Education”) plays Lucy, an inveterate collector who can’t let go of any souvenirs of previous relationships, from a rubber ducky won at a carnival to her ex-boyfriend’s dental retainer. She is, essentially, a hoarder, both physically and emotionally, and something of a mess who can’t stop talking and can’t stop justifying her behavior to herself and to everybody around her.

Lucy lives in one of those suspiciously large New York City apartments with Amanda and Nadine (Molly Gordon and Phillipa Soo); it’s all so rom-commy and sit-commy that on at least one occasion, a visitor seems to materialize inside the apartment as if they just leave the door unlocked.

So relentlessly annoying that many viewers will really have to work at liking her, Lucy begins the movie besotted with her “grown-up” boyfriend, Max (Utkarsh Ambudkar), and thrilled with her job at a tony art gallery. Before heading off to a particularly important opening-night soiree at the gallery, she announces to her friends, “It’ll be the greatest night of my life!” Amanda quickly retorts, “That’s what people say in horror movies before they get herpes and die” – and while that’s not exactly correct since herpes is not exactly a horror-movie staple, it is true that people in romantic comedies who say they’re deliriously happy in the first 10 minutes are destined to not be happy very quickly.

So in short order, Lucy loses her boyfriend and her job and finds herself in abject (but very chatty) misery. But in the midst of her grief she has a meet-cute with Nick (“Stranger Things” star Dacre Montgomery), when she mistakes his car for an Uber and refuses to listen to his explanation until he gives her a ride home. It takes a second meet-cute (he pulls her out of a restaurant when she’s about to create a scene with her ex) before they start to connect after he delivers his diagnosis: “You’re a pessimist. You collect these things in anticipation that your relationships are going to end.”

Also Read: 'Mulan' Film Review: Epic Disney Remake Ditches the Songs and the Dragon but Has Heart

Nick, it turns out, is renovating an old hotel that he’s named the Chloe and that he wants to turn into the coolest and artiest boutique hotel in town. Lucy soon commandeers a section of the hotel for her own inspiration: the Broken Heart Gallery, where people can dispose of objects from past relationships and Lucy can turn those memories into art.

(The movie’s title is Broken Hearts, plural, but the gallery is Broken Heart, singular. Go figure.)

And from this platonic relationship between two people who kind of get on each other’s nerves but are thrown together, it’s not hard to figure out the course of events. But hey, people don’t go to rom-coms for the surprises; they go for the laughs (occasional), the chemistry (middling) and the emotional and entertainment value found in the trip to an essentially preordained conclusion.

On that level, “The Broken Hearts Gallery” is relatively satisfying. The film has some awkward edits and some jumps that suggest things are missing, but as a female-centric romance, it is breezy enough to go down easily. And the focus on coming to terms with endings can be genuinely touching at times, as it is when we finally learn why Lucy is such a collector.

It’s also a rom-com that is fully aware it’s a rom-com: Nick doesn’t just make a grand gesture, he announces it by saying, “It’s a grand gesture!”

Grand is not otherwise a word you’d associate with “The Broken Hearts Gallery,” a pleasant summer movie put in the position of having to be more than that. But with its touch of melancholy and its nostalgia for crowded bars and new loves, it could lighten the mood a bit for whatever people are ready to head back into theaters.

All the Hollywood Films Arriving on Demand Early Because of the Coronavirus

Since most U.S. movie theaters have shuttered in response to the coronavirus pandemic, studios are rushing out VOD home releases of movies that were only just in theaters.
Disney/Warner Bros./Universal
"Trolls World Tour"

The sequel to the 2017 animated hit announced it would be available for digital download on April 10 -- the same day it was supposed to land in theaters. Now it's a VOD exclusive.
Universal Pictures
"Birds of Prey"

The Margot Robbie spinoff of 2017's "Suicide Squad" debuted on demand on March 24. The film grossed $84 million since opening on Feb. 4.
Warner Bros.
"The Hunt"

The Universal/Blumhouse horror film was first delayed from release last fall due to controversy over its violent content -- and then sidelined after its March 13 opening by the coronavirus. It's available to stream now.
Universal Pictures
"The Invisible Man"

The Universal horror film starring Elisabeth Moss grossed nearly $65 million since its Feb. 26 release in theaters. It's available to stream now.
Universal Pictures
"Emma."

Focus Features' adaptation of the Jane Austen novel opened in limited release Feb. 21 -- and picked up $10 million in ticket sales until the pandemic shut down theaters. It's available to stream now.
Focus Features
"Bloodshot"

The Vin Diesel comic-book movie opened March 6 and grossed $10 million before theaters shut down. It's available on VOD now.
Sony Pictures
"I Still Believe"

Lionsgate's biopic starring K.J. Apa as Christian music star Jeremy Camp hit VOD on March 27 -- just two weeks after it opened in theaters.
Lionsgate
"The Way Back"

Warner Bros. released the Ben Affleck drama "The Way Back" -- which grossed $13 million in theaters since its March 6 opening -- on VOD less than three weeks later, on March 24.
Warner Bros.
"Onward"

Disney and Pixar’s animated feature was made available for purchase on Friday, March 20, and the film hit Disney+ on April 3.
Disney/Pixar
"Sonic the Hedgehog"

Paramount Pictures' "Sonic the Hedgehog" set a new record for video game adaptations with a $58 million domestic opening weekend on Feb. 14 and has grossed $306 million worldwide theatrically. It's available on demand now.
Paramount Pictures
"The Call of the Wild"

20th Century Studios' feel-good film starring Harrison Ford and a giant CGI dog is available on demand now.
20th Century
"Downhill"

Barely escaping an avalanche during a family ski vacation, a married couple (Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Will Ferrell) is thrown into disarray as they are forced to reevaluate their lives and how they feel about each other. It's available on demand now.
Fox Searchlight
"Never Rarely Sometimes Always"

"Never Rarely Sometimes Always" is the story of two teenage cousins from rural Pennsylvania who journey to New York City to seek an abortion. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and walked away with a Special Jury award. It's available for VOD now.
Focus Features
"Endings, Beginnings"

"Endings, Beginnings," a romantic drama from Drake Doremus starring Shailene Woodley, Sebastian Stan and Jamie Dornan, opened early on digital on April 17 and on demand on May 1. It was meant to open theatrically on May 1.
Samuel Goldwyn Films
"To the Stars"

"To the Stars," a period drama set in 1960s Oklahoma that stars Kara Hayward, Liana Liberato, Jordana Spiro, Shea Whigham, Malin Akerman and Tony Hale, was bumped up to a digital release on April 24 and an on demand release on June 1. Martha Stephens directed the film that premiered at Sundance in 2019 and was meant to be released theatrically by Samuel Goldwyn Films.
Samuel Goldwyn Films
"Impractical Jokers: The Movie"

truTV's first-ever feature-length film arrived early on digital on April 1. Follow James "Murr" Murray, Brian "Q" Quinn, Joe Gatto, and Sal Vulvano, aka The Tenderloins, playing themselves in a fictional story of a humiliating high school mishap from the early '90s.
truTV
"Artemis Fowl"

Disney's adaptation of the Eoin Colfer fantasy novel "Artemis Fowl" was meant to debut in theaters on May 29 but premiered exclusively on Disney+. The film is directed by Kenneth Branagh and stars Colin Farrell and Judi Dench.
Disney
"The Infiltrators"

The theatrical release of Oscilloscope's docu-thriller "The Infiltrators" has been postponed, and the film was released on both Cable On Demand and Digital Platforms starting June 2.
Oscilloscope
"Working Man"

The March 27 theatrical release of "Working Man" has been canceled due to the theater closures, and the film premiered on May 5 via Video On Demand.
Brainstorm Media
"Jump Shot: The Kenny Sailors Story"

"Jump Shot: The Kenny Sailors Story," a sports documentary executive produced by NBA star Steph Curry, was made available for streaming on the new service Altavod between April 16-18 for $7.99 and is available for pre-order beginning April 9. 10% of all the proceeds will be donated to COVID-19 relief efforts. The documentary tells the story of the player, Kenny Sailors, who pioneered the jump shot, and it features interviews with Curry, Kevin Durant, Dirk Nowitzki, Clark Kellogg, Bobby Knight and more.
Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images
"Scoob!"

Warner Bros. announced on April 11 that it would release the family animated film “Scoob!” for digital ownership and premium video on-demand on May 15, making it the second film (after Universal's "Trolls World Tour") to cancel a planned theatrical release and head straight to home release pandemic.
Warner Bros.
"The King of Staten Island"

"The King of Staten Island," the comedy starring and co-written by "SNL" star Pete Davidson and directed by Judd Apatow, skipped its theatrical release date of June 19 and opened one week early on VOD everywhere on June 12.
Universal Pictures
"The High Note"

"The High Note," the latest film from "Late Night" director Nisha Ganatra that stars Tracee Ellis Ross and Dakota Johnson, made its premiere on VOD on May 29. It was meant to open on May 8 theatrically.
Focus Features
"Waiting for the Barbarians"

Ciro Guerra's film starring Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp and Robert Pattinson was originally slated for a theatrical release but was picked up by Samuel Goldwyn Films to instead be released via cable on demand and on digital in August
Samuel Goldwyn Films
"Irresistible"

Jon Stewart's latest film, a political comedy called "Irresistible," will skip theaters and make its premiere online for on demand digital rental on June 26. The film from Focus Features stars Steve Carell and Rose Byrne and was meant to open in theaters on May 29.
Daniel McFadden / Focus Features
"My Spy"

The Dave Bautista action comedy "My Spy" was originally meant for a theatrical release from STXfilms and was due to hit theaters in March. Amazon then acquired the film from STX and will now release it on streaming on June 26.
Amazon Studios
"The One and Only Ivan"

The animated Disney film based on Thea Sharrock's best-selling children's book "The One and Only Ivan" is the latest feature to skip theaters and move to Disney+. The movie features the voice talent of Angelina Jolie, Danny Devito, Sam Rockwell, Bryan Cranston and Helen Mirren. The film was previously slated for theatrical release on August 14 but will now debut on Disney+ one week later on Aug. 21.
Disney
"The Secret Garden"

The re-imagining of the book "The Secret Garden" was meant to open in UK theaters in April but delayed its theatrical release until August. But STXfilms will now release the StudioCanal and Heyday Films movie on PVOD for $19.99 on August 7 in North America. "The Secret Garden" stars Colin Firth, Julie Walters and Dixie Egerickx.
STXfilms

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“Irresistible” joins a list of big films heading to digital home entertainment platforms early

Since most U.S. movie theaters have shuttered in response to the coronavirus pandemic, studios are rushing out VOD home releases of movies that were only just in theaters.

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