April 19, 2001 — "Heartbreakers" follows the adventures of a couple of female dirty, rotten scoundrels, a mother/daughter scam team, who chat up the guys, seduce them and then fleece them, just for the fun of it. And the money.
Max (Sigourney Weaver) is the crafty mother of Page (Jennifer Love-Hewitt) a sexy little number who learned the con art at her mother's knee. Apparently Max disdained teaching little Page how to bake peanut butter cookies or play hop scotch, in lieu of more lucrative pursuits.
Ray Liotta, a New Jersey semigoodfella, is one of the team's first victims. It's easy prey. Max seduces wealthy men into marrying her, and then Page provokes them to seduce her, after which Max files for divorce.
There have to be easier ways to make a living, but maybe they wouldn't provide much movie fodder.
Performances by Liotta, who is seeking revenge, and Gene Hackman as a prospective billionaire, are said to save the flick. Hackman is portrayed by one critic as having the funniest scene in the movie as a "wheezing, brown-teeth ash tray, trying to plant a kiss on Max."
The movie is directed by David Mirkin and written by six, count them, six writers, including Mirkin, which is a very, very bad sign. It is rated PG-13 for sex related content. My goodness! It is two hours long, so bring lots of popcorn or a good book.
It starts Thursday at Diamond Cinemas.
