I have always wondered what, if anything, my exes have kept from my past relationships and what kinds of memories those little trinkets or notes bring with them. Because I'm sure I'm not the only one who wonders such things, I found this premise in a romantic-comedy to be incredibly interesting. Finding love through moving on is only one of the things that this delightful film does and The Broken Hearts Gallery proves to be such an adorable, little story. Natalie Krinsky's directorial debut is an incredibly solid one, made even better by the performances from its leads and the often painfully relatable story that functions as the heart of its narrative. The trick to seeing films like this one, though, is knowing exactly what you are getting yourself into and adjusting expectations as such. Corny romantic-comedies like this will always have a special place in my heart and even though this film never attempted to be anything groundbreaking, it didn't really need to for it to be entertaining. And most of the time, that's completely okay.
Lucy (Geraldine Viswanathan) is a newly single woman after her boyfriend Max (Utkarsh Ambudkar) breaks up with her and as she attempts to rediscover her personal identity, she has a great idea. Setting up an art exhibit, she tries to honor the often heartbreaking reminders of past relationships in order to help other people let go and does this with the help of a local boutique hotel owner named Nick (Dacre Montgomery). Natalie Krinsky's writing and direction throughout this movie are just simple and wonderful. Her script might not be the most innovative story to ever be told nor does it do anything that makes me want to rewatch but her writing is undeniably solid. She is able to take a unique idea and turn it into a rom-com for today's generation of Stranger Things-obsessed teenagers that will undoubtedly gobble it up. Krinsky's direction is also fantastic and she definitely shows that she knows how to handle a story such as this. I could tell how much this story meant to the filmmakers and it felt very special to them, which is what I believe is most important. My only issue with this script, besides its mediocrity, is how it is really unable to balance the two most prevalent themes. This film tries to function as both a love story between Lucy and Nick and a love story between its protagonists learning to let go of the past. While both of these themes were touched on decently, they could never blend very well and I was left feeling a bit underwhelmed. And of course, as with any contemporary rom-com, this film's humor would have hit much harder with some tighter editing. Shawn Paper does a great job keeping this story concise with just the right amount of establishing shots that a generic genre film like this requires but the comedy did not always hit the way I wanted it to. There are some genuinely funny moments in this film that had a lot of potential but I feel like the storytelling was almost too nonchalant. However, besides all of these qualities lacking a bit of efficiency, I still had a very fun time watching this and if nothing else, it does its job with the utmost of ease.
The performances from this entire cast make the experience worth it more than anything. Viswanathan and Montgomery are so wonderful together and they brought their characters to life much more than I would have expected. The supporting characters were also great and had some fantastic performances to go with them: Molly Gordon, Phillipa Soo, and Bernadette Peters were especially great and I could just really tell how much fun this cast was having. There's not much else I can say about what shined in the most in this movie because for a genre film like this, it either works or it doesn't. Every technical element that went into this film was very standard and while there was nothing wrong with the cinematographic or editing choices made, I feel like it could have benefitted from a much stronger, visual style. The Broken Hearts Gallery also has a generally poppy feeling to it throughout its entire soundtrack but there were certain parts that just felt incredibly forced. Particularly the Billie Eilish needle drop at the end of the second act: this felt so very awkward and it was obvious from the first note how much it did not fit the scene. The branding and pop culture imbuement that practically carries the atmosphere of this film also has problems of its own and really makes it evident who worked on the movie and how this story got funding. Selena Gomez is an executive producer and while she does a fine job of keeping this film on track with its cute story, it felt very much like something that she would produce. Whether it's her style of music or just the storytelling qualities that I associate with her, this entire film felt very suited for someone of her aesthetic. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as she is extremely talented in her own right, but I was a bit underwhelmed by her efforts to break into film. Again, I was never expecting any kind of revolutionary filmmaking, as I knew exactly what I was going into, but it's a bit disheartening to see the corporate side of artistry overpower genuine creative control.
The Broken Hearts Gallery is a serviceable and fun romantic-comedy that gave me exactly the right amount of adorable content to fill my heart for the time being. There is nothing blatantly wrong with this film and it works very well as an addition to this genre but I just wish that more up-and-coming filmmakers like Krinsky would take bigger risks in their storytelling. As much as these types of films work and will continue to make money, I like seeing some storytellers do things with their scripts that audiences would not necessarily expect; although I guess that was a bit too much to ask for in this movie, I still enjoyed myself nonetheless.
My Rating: ★★★
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