‘Heartbreaker’ rises above Hollywood romcoms

It is no surprise that the French film Heartbreaker, which stars Romain Duris as a professional 'couples splitter' tasked with stopping Vanessa Paradis's wedding, has been already snapped up for a US remake. Yet although Heartbreaker is very much an escapist romcom there are enough splashes of French farce and wit to make it a more seductive prospect.

Duris, 35, won worldwide acclaim for his hard-hitting performance in Jacques Audiard's 2005 film The Beat That My Heart Skipped as a criminal who dreams of becoming a concert pianist. In Heartbreaker Duris is once again playing a conman but, this time round, he is a somewhat incompetent one. While good looking, his character Alex is, as several characters in the film put it - "a bit of a dickhead".

Paradis, aka Mrs Johnny Depp, is an enigmatic but elegant presence whose performance as the rich heiress Juliette lifts the role above that of the inevitable spoilt brat likely to be found in the Hollywood version. And although the storyline is ultimately predictable, the script rises beyond a standard class-based love story to make a comment about free-spirited romance versus relationships that are comfortable yet dull.

Meanwhile the combination of glamorous French Riviera locations and slapstick performances from Alex's sister (Julie Ferrier) and her goofball husband (Francois Damiens) - who set up surveillance devices to follow Alex's targets - recall a golden era of Hollywood romcoms.

It is these elements which combine to make Heartbreaker a smart and well-acted comedy that rises above its US contemporaries.

WHAT THE CRITICS ARE SAYING:Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter: "Heartbreaker is one of those high-concept comedies the French turn out with seeming ease. Yes, they traffic in stereotypes, slapstick and near-operatic emotions. But they are so much fun to watch that American producers keep trying to remake them without ever quite getting it right."

Tom Dawson, Total Film: "Slickly orchestrated... Heartbreaker never leaves one in any doubt about its ultimate fairytale destination, although there are several amusing detours along the way." (3/5 stars)

Anna Smith, Time Out: "When Heartbreaker goes for real romance, it falters. When it goes for laughs, it hits the mark. A mixed bag, then, but still an accessible comedy that outstrips its similarly conceived US counterparts." (3/5 stars) ·