Heartbreakers

Right now you can watch Heartbreakers in the US on Amazon Prime Video and Hoopla — and it is funnier than its reputation suggests. A tight runtime that never overstays its welcome. 1,000 people have weighed in on TMDB, and the verdict leans heavily positive. Sigourney Weaver sets the tone, and the rest of the cast matches it scene for scene. Start it on Amazon Prime Video whenever you need something guaranteed to land.

Part of the current wave of titles people are actually watching, Heartbreakers earns its spot. Heartbreakers gets the fundamentals right first, then finds room to get weird with it. Max and Page are a brilliant mother/daughter con team who have their grift down to a fine science. Max targets wealthy, willing men and marries them. Page then seduces them, and Max catches her husband in the act. Sigourney Weaver and Jennifer Love Hewitt lead a cast that brings real weight to the material. It was released in 2001. What keeps Heartbreakers from feeling disposable is a cast that clearly understands the material better than the format usually demands. It delivers reliably on what it promises, which is more than most of its competition manages.

Heartbreakers is the kind of thing you put on in the background and end up fully watching. It stands on its own even without an obvious comparison point. Best experienced as a single, sustained watch from start to finish. Sigourney Weaver's comic timing carries it through its weaker moments. The kind of comedy you recommend to someone who claims they do not watch much.