Be still our (Paper) Heart

We can’t speak for every indie movie lover regarding Paper Heart. There will be some people who love the docu-comedy starring comedienne Charlyne Yi. You just couldn’t count us in that crowd. Not that we hated this movie, but it just didn’t do it for us. Here’s why.

In the beginning of the flick, Yi admits that she’s never believed in love, no matter footage of her as a child making her dolls get married says differently. So, Yi sets out across the country to interview couples and see if she can figure out exactly what love is. Her interviews with regular folks—rowdy bikers, Elvis wedding officiants and long-time couples—are intertwined with a fictional account of a relationship developing between Yi and George Michael Bluth…er…we mean Michael Cera. No wait, we mean that dude from Superbad. Aw, screw it; they’re all the same, no matter how cute and awkward they are. Anyhoo…some people might believe these scenes are also part of the documentary given how spontaneous they feel; however, given recent reports that Yi and Cera broke up—oh, wait, no they never “ever dated”—there is no doubt that these scenes are faked.

Knowing this going into Paper Heart, the storyline between Yi and Cera feels so incredibly manipulative. No matter how much they tout that it’s a made up part of the documentary to enhance the film, it’s all so phony-feeling. More manipulation in the film is also evidenced by the fact that director Nick Jasenovec is really played by actor Jake Johnson, which is a shame because the scenes between Fake Nick and Yi are perhaps the best part of the film. Even though it is indeed two actors again rather than a director and his muse, they have better chemistry than Yi and Cera, who make us feel like we’re watching a home video of two 13-year-olds who giggle incessantly at the phrase “do it.” It’s all very awkward.

But in spite of all of the manipulation and awkward scenes Paper Heart is still a cute movie and worth your hard-earned cash. The real-life interviews are incredibly sweet and would make anyone in the audience believe in love, even if Yi claims to not know it. And, after each interview, Yi has created homemade, crafty dioramas and paper (ha, get it?) dolls that reenact a story from the interview. These cutesy segments are very inventive and creative and almost make up for the falsification the faux-narrative piles on.

All in all, Paper Heart is just what the title suggests—it may be cute to look at, but it’s ultimately superficial and fleeting.

Paper Heart opens in Austin this weekend. [Trailer] [Showtimes]

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By Darcie D in Arts & Entertainment on August 21, 2009 9:45 AM 0 Comments

Comments [rss]

Brian Kelley

summer - I did not say the fact that it was fake was off putting. I said the parts that WERE fake were terrible. Boring. Snore. Wake me up when it gets interesting. But then it would switch to a real interview which was fascinating, Yi became less obnoxious and her "illustrations" of the stories were fantastic. Therefore, I only enjoyed 50% of the film and that back and forth of excellent (which HAPPENED to be the real parts) and tedious (which HAPPENED to be the "fake" parts) was a structural failure (because of the weakness of the "fake" love story). *I* really don't understand why I'm not supposed to have my own opinion...

You say "I really don't understand why you're so put off by the fact that they did a good job of being convincing and cute...". My difference of opinion is that they did not do a good job of being convincing and cute.

It's that simple.

summer anne

Weird. Do you dislike Spinal Tap for the same reason? They never claimed it was a documentary and they don't "insist" the romantic parts are real! It's a fictional story about making a documentary, with some real elements.

I really don't understand why you're so put off by the fact that they did a good job of being convincing and cute but you "knew it was fake" and that bothered you. Are you only interested in documentary film?

Bort

really REALLY don't see the spinal tap connection here. The writer and subsequent commenter were saying the staged parts were bad, not enjoyabale to watch, etc etc. the staged parts of spinal tap (i.e. the entire fucking movie) are all classic and fun to watch over and over again.

we'll see which stands the test of time. i give paper heart 2 more months.

Brian Kelley

I think I would argue against this movie deserving anyone cash. I saw this a while back and was extremely frustrated by the structure. The interviews with people telling their love stories were real (as discussed by the director at the Q&A at the screening I attended) and those were FANTASTIC. They found some gems. Then everything fake with Cera was formulaic and boring. I would only pay 50% of the ticket price to see this movie since only 50% is good.