Paper Heart
You could think of "Paper Heart" as sort of a benevolent version of the Sacha Baron Cohen model, with its mixture of documentary and fiction. Only instead of providing raunchy satire or exposing people's prejudices, it seems all Charlyne Yi wants to do is sweetly entertain.
You could think of Paper Heart as sort of a benevolent version of the Sacha Baron Cohen model, with its mixture of documentary and fiction. Only instead of providing raunchy satire or exposing people's prejudices, it seems all Charlyne Yi wants to do is sweetly entertain.
The writer, actress and standup comic travels the country interviewing regular people about being in love, a phenomenon that has eluded her in her early 20s. She goes to a biker bar in Oklahoma City, a playground in Atlanta, and everywhere in between. She also gleans insight from friends, including her Knocked Up costars Seth Rogen and Martin Starr.
At the same time, Yi (playing a version of herself) finds that she's unexpectedly falling for a new guy she's met named Michael (Michael Cera, playing a version of himself). They court at hipster hangouts in Hollywood - Cera in a wide array of hoodies, Yi in her messy ponytail and dark-rimmed glasses - play music for each other, and hold hands in the grocery store while shopping for frozen pizza.
Paper Heart is a charming little movie based on a clever concept that will leave you with a genuinely positive feeling afterward.
Yi is a nerd goddess - goofy, tomboyish, unapologetically awkward with an off-kilter sense of humor - and the fact that she's so self-deprecating and seems so earnest in her quest to find the meaning of true love makes her pretty hard to resist.
For the most part, Paper Heart is way more innovative than the formulaic romantic comedies that all too often trek through the multiplex. It's a much-needed, refreshing change.
- Christy Lemire, Associated Press