There is something fascinating about con artists. They are almost always charming, and even when they rip you off there is a certain skill involved that begs professional respect.
In David Mirkin's Heartbreakers, Sigourney Weaver and Jennifer Love Hewitt play a mother and daughter team who swindle men out of as much money as they can get away with. Max, the mother, marries them, daughter Page seduces them, and then they skip town with a nice divorce settlement. These aren't the type of people you'd want to meet in real life, but they engage us onscreen because we can observe their sleight-of-hand and audacity from a safe distance.
The narrative follows the pair's "last big con," as they attempt to rake in enough cash for Max to retire and Page to become independent. In a somewhat sad bit of casting, two-time Oscar winner Gene Hackman plays their latest victim, a decrepit tobacco tycoon whose hacking cough and ultimate demise might have evoked a little sympathy if he didn't gleefully reveal that his company test-markets to 9-year-olds. To complicate matters further, Ray Liotta shows up as the racketeer whom Weaver has recently divorced.
Co-written by Paul Guay and Stephen Mazur (along with Robert Dunn), who scripted the even funnier Liar Liar, Heartbreakers manages to infuse its humor with some intelligence. There is a touch of vulgarity to some of what transpires, but the film is consistent in allowing its characters the chance to make mistakes and think on their feet.
While it doesn't measure up to such similarly-themed films as Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, House of Games and The Grifters, the movie does have a redemptive quality and genuine affection for most of its characters.
By pinning some of the blame for Max's lifestyle on Page's long-gone father, the film even manages to sneak in a bit of Erin Brockovich-style commentary on the relational damage that unfaithful men leave in their wake. Then again, Max's character flaws could be seen as having deeper roots than that.
At any rate, the film works best when it satisfies itself with being humorous. (A relationship between Hewitt and Jason Lee, for instance, strays into serious romance and is somewhat distracting).
Weaver (stunning at 51) and her costars bring a pedigree to this material that elevates it beyond what it might have been in less skillful hands.
I was taken in by Heartbreakers and surrendered myself to it cheerfully.
Grade: B
(PG-13, 123 minutes)
