The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy

Just saw this on TV in 2018. Am 58 and gay. The movie was well acted and the dialogue rang true most of the time. However, my impression of the LA gay scene involves a lot of sex, drugs and alcohol. This movie only suggested mild drug abuse via pot. The characters were mostly likeable, somewhat shallow and not too overly gay acting. The Cole character, in particular, was normal, attractive and masculine. There wasn't a central, driving message to this movie except to say that being gay in a large American metropolis doesn't afford a very stable and healthy existence, although this "club of friends" did seem to have a strong commitment to one another. At times, I felt this group's bonds were contrived and not likely to be typical in LA. Overall, entertaining and ending on a happy note.

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The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000) D: Greg Berlanti. Timothy Olyphant, Zach Braff, Dean Cain, Andrew Keegan, Nia Long, John Mahoney, Mary McCormack. Slightly amusing tale of a group of gay friends living in West Hollywood and the struggles that they go through together, especially after an unexpected tragedy hits. This more than likely served as the mold for Showtime's QUEER AS FOLK, although the TV series is much better than this film. Although there are good performances by all the leads, the film doesn't really seem to have a plot and drags on towards the end. RATING: 7 out of 10. Rated R for profanity and sexual situations.

Of course that in itself is not a reason to see a movie. Luckily, there are many reasons to see this one. It's hilarious, sweet, smart, and did I mention SEXY? If you think all the good men are gay, you're absolutely right! And if Timothy Olyphant's performances in average films such as `Scream 2' and `Go' caught your interest, run to the video store for this movie. Free from the burden of playing weird, intense psychos, Olyphant finally gets a starring role as a normal guy, and he does a wonderful job of making the character true to life. The subtle change in his body language was mesmerizing. He left me wanting more. A great film about love and friendship.

I live just outside of West Hollywood, California, where this picture is supposed to have taken place. Every weekend, I drive into the city to see my friends and venture out socially. We are all gay and around the same age. Funny how when we're out and about, we don't recite dialog from `Auntie Mame,' `Steel Magnolias,' or vintage Bette Davis movies. We don't call each other ‘bitches,' nor do we camp it up by dressing in drag periodically. If you saw us all together, you wouldn't think anything. And why should you? We act just like anyone else. Sadly, the writers of this film would make you believe otherwise. I was very disappointed when I saw this film drag out all the old stereotypes, almost as if they had a checklist. Even the gratuitous funeral scene (in every gay movie there has to be at least one!). Give me a break! I'm tired of screaming queens representing the gay community in film! Get a grip! Why can't Hollywood tell the truth? To the masses, we'll always be monkeys in cages, thanks to films like this.

We watched this film when it first was released. On second viewing, thanks to the IFC channel, "The Broken Hearts Club" looks a bit dated since more daring films and television series have come out of the closet recently. It must have been a courageous undertaking by its director, Greg Berlanti, in 2000, at a time that gays were not as prominent as now. The director shows a positive side of the gay life that is not seen often, in that all the characters have values and integrity, something not often seen in mainstream films. The film is an excuse to bring together a group of young men trying to cope with their lives in that environment. There are different stories that mesh well together. At the center of it all is Dennis, a photographer that seems to have his feet well planted on the ground and knows what he wants. The friends are united by Jack, the restaurant owner, who has taken most of the guys under his wing, at his bistro and as a coach them in the softball team. We watch the different situations and how the guys react to whatever comes their way. The acting is good, in general. Timothy Olyphant makes an impression as the serious Dennis. Zach Braff, a film director, himself is good as Benji. Dean Cain is the fickle Cole, who loves a variety of lovers, rather than quality mates. John Mahoney appears as Jack, the older influence on the group in an impressive performance. What director Greg Berlanti succeeded was in presenting young men that appear not to be clichés as in other films of this type. The film is pleasant without breaking new ground.

This is possibly the worst gay romantic comedy i have ever had the misfortune to watch. Every character is a stereotype, no cliche is left unturned. The token black character is also the token queen! It's impossible to believe that any of these people who speak to each other, let alone be close friends. It's set in West Hollywood but is filmed elsewhere. Unfunny and offensive, Broken Heart's Club is perhaps the nadir of my filmgoing experience.

How un-promising does a gay male Sex In The City sound? This one took me quite by surprise. It's a frequently very funny romantic comedy, that only occasionally dips into cliche. Why America remade Queer As Folk when they already had this is beyond me. Is "Queer as folk" ever an expression over there? Anyway, this includes Frasier's Dad and Superman amongst its gay baseball team, so it's good in my book.

There is not much point in wasting more than one line on this film; it couldn't have been worse even if they tried. However, IMDb insists that I go on for at least ten lines. Let's see...every single idea in this film has been done before... and BETTER! Not only that, but they didn't even have the decency to give us one even mildly titillating sex scene. That's probably because no-one in the film was committed enough to the film to even dare to attempt one. Besides the fact that it was not funny (I think I smiled once during the entire film)there was no-one in the film that you could seriously care about. Even the worst of TV situation comedies comes across as more witty than this... I think they should have added a laugh track. At least we would have known what was supposed to be a joke. Have I done my ten lines yet? Please, let me out of here! I want to forget this film as quickly as possible.

OK, so the movie may p**s a bunch of people off because of the subject (GAY) or because it looks like a bunch of hotties that just want to mess around (isn't that what all gay people do?) My offering is, isn't that what most people do, gay, straight, or bi? The film works because the characters are real, the druggie, the pretty boy who sleeps with everything and anyone, the one who has the wonderful marriage to the guy who is screwing around. Don't we know people like this all the time? So the guys in the film remind me of my husband's crowd. And the main character reminded me of when I said, NO MORE to the bar scene and just screwing around to be screwing around. I especially liked the scene with the movie star where he says, "Wait ten minutes before leaving and make sure nobody sees you." How many times had I been told that line of bull? Several. So who am I, probably Purple Guy. The movie accurately portrays all those jerks who line the walls on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights claiming they want a relationship when all they want is to get into a Newbie's pants.