Romantic comedies have had a resurgence in the past five years. Remember the late nineties and early aughts when a large portion of the films were comedies with “romance” thrown in? I do and I don’t miss those days. While some romantic comedies from those days have not aged well, the re-emerging of the new romantic comedies will become timeless twenty years from now. I’m thinking of “Always Be My Maybe” and “The Half of It” which use the rom-com tropes and subvert them.

While “The Broken Hearts Gallery” will be tucked away into the drawer of generic romcoms that don’t really change the formula, you’ll remember the performances and wonder about the gifts you’ve received from your exes (if you still have them and if so, why?). Visit the “gallery” for time travel, to re-live a previous relationship, stay for Geraldine Vishwanathan’s star power, and Dacre Montgomery trying so hard to cover up his Australian accent!

Lucy (Geraldine V) has a ritual of collecting knick-knacks that hold memories of her exes. She shares these stories with her besties, Nadine (Philipa Soo) and Amanda (Molly Gordon), and participates in a break-up ritual that includes drinking wine through Twizzlers. Fast forward eight years and her room are full of these mementos. With her most recent ex treasure in hand (a silk blue tie), tears streaking her face, she gets into a car, that’s not a ride service and blurts out how awful her night was. Nick (Dacre Montogomery), the driver, decides to kindly take her home even though he didn’t have to because Lucy is a stranger, and she didn’t request a ride from him. While the way these two meets isn’t completely unbelievable, it’s pretty farfetched that you’d get into a car not checking if they were your driver or not. But disbelief – you actually have it while watching.

The rest of the film is off to the races. If you’ve seen the trailer, her idea about creating a gallery with stuff from people’s exes materializes. Vishwanathan’s portrayal has you rooting for her vision all the way. Nick and Lucy’s relationship is the best possible coupling to watch on your screen during the pandemic. A breezy film that isn’t too preachy or fluffy that you won’t forget it.

The actress Geraldine Vishwanathan carries this film completely. She’s in every scene. Her energy is infectious. You want to be her best friend. The other actors who play her friends also provide a great dose of comic relief. Of them all, I gotta say I’d love to see Arturo Castro in more films! He matched Vishwanathan perfectly on the screen; I would watch a show about them only. Dacre and Geraldine’s chemistry brought a sweetness to their relationship that didn’t feel rushed or exaggerated; Dacre, trying his darnedest to sound American coupled with Geraldine’s carefree spirit made this film.

The romcom is here to stay and this film absolutely belongs in the rom-com canon.