paper heart movie review

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Tv/streaming, collections, great movies, chaz's journal, contributors, an investigation of the mystery of love by america's twee-hearts.

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To describe Charlyne Yi as a whimsical comedian doesn't quite capture the full flavor. She may be the first female in the history of MySpace to claim she is 10 years older than she really is. She appears naive, clueless, a little simple, but she's playing us. She embodies that persona in "Paper Heart," a quasi-documentary about love that is sweet, true and perhaps a little deceptive.

Yi is a performance artist who makes stand-up comedy only one facet of her act. She's short, cute, likes sweat clothes, wears horn-rimmed glasses, isn't assertive, is a poster child for the melting pot: Filipino, Spanish, Korean, Irish, German, French and Native American. She always seems to be trying to figure things out. "Paper Heart" is about how she has never been able to figure out love.

The movie takes the form of a documentary about her partnership with director Nicholas Jasenovec to travel America seeking insights into romance from all sorts of possible authorities, all of them obviously real, many of them touching, and one of them an inspired choice. That would be the Elvis impersonator who runs a Las Vegas wedding chapel. These people share their own stories, drawn out by Yi's disarming persona.

But wait. Although Nicholas Jasenovec appears in the film, that's not the real Nicholas Jasenovec. It's an actor, Jake M. Johnson , who is taller and darker, and in my opinion, more handsome than the real Jasenovec. Photographs reveal the real Jasenovec is shorter, cute, likes sweat clothes, wears horn-rimmed glasses.

Then you have his good friend, the actor Michael Cera (Juno's boyfriend in " Juno "), who looks much more like Jasenovec than Johnson. When Yi goes to a party with Jasenovec, she meets Cera and it's love at first sight.

We see them meeting, and it feels absolutely real: You wonder which of these two diffident and soft-spoken people summoned the energy to speak first. But wait. In real life, before shooting on this film began, Charlyne Yi and Michael Cera were already girlfriend and boyfriend, and were celebrated by such gossip sites as Gawker as "America's Twee-hearts." Therefore their courtship in the film is scripted, although it feels uncannily real, perhaps because Cera and Yi have such enveloping personas that little they do is quite acting.

These matters give "Paper Heart" an intriguing quality on top of its intrinsic appeal. And the onscreen presence of "Nick," as the director, is uncannily well-acted by Johnson, embodying a hungry young L.A. filmmaker who thinks all human considerations are secondary to his film. There are moments when he insists on violating the privacy of Charlyne and Michael with his camera, and these scenes are so well-acted and handled that, in retrospect, you realize this is a very well-made film indeed. There's more than meets the eye.

But wait! In real life, the heartless Cera has just dumped Yi! Right in the middle of their national publicity tour for this film! Can this possibly be true, or is it a publicity stunt? Surely he would have been decent enough to keep it private for a few more weeks? No? Or is it possible that Cera and Yi, like many seemingly passive people, are in fact passive-aggressive and have anger seething just beneath the surface?

Don't ask me. But if the heartbreak is true, I have advice for Yi about how to cheer herself up wonderfully: Just go to your MySpace page and take off 10 years.

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

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Film credits.

Paper Heart (2009)

Michael Cera as Himself

Jake M. Johnson as Nicholas Jasenovec

Charlyne Yi as Herself

Screenplay by

• Charlyne Yi

Directed by

• Nicholas Jasenovec

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Paper heart, common sense media reviewers.

Quirky semi-documentary about love is cute for teens.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Although Charlyne is resistant to the idea of love

Many of the real-life couples featured in the movi

Charlyne and Michael flirt and hold hands; a coupl

Language is limited to a few utterances of "s--t"

Just Apple products: Mac computer and iPod. Young

At a party, young adults (they all look over 21) d

Parents need to know that this semi-scripted, semi-documentary-style movie co-starring Juno 's Michael Cera focuses on a young actress' search for the meaning of love. There's not much sexuality, since the focus is on romantic love, but there are a couple of scenes in which couples hold hands and kiss (sweetly,…

Positive Messages

Although Charlyne is resistant to the idea of love, the film suggests that not only is it very real, but it (at least in the form of a long-term, happy marriage) is something that many committed couples have accomplished.

Positive Role Models

Many of the real-life couples featured in the movie discuss what it takes to have a long-lasting marriage and relationship. Charlyne realizes that to further her relationship with Michael, she must sacrifice aspects of the movie's documentary nature.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Charlyne and Michael flirt and hold hands; a couple of brief kisses. There are several interviews of couples discussing their romantic relationships and marriages. One same-sex couple mentions having sex in a car on their second date (non-graphic discussion).

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Language is limited to a few utterances of "s--t" and "bastard."

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Just Apple products: Mac computer and iPod. Young girls talk about how they love singer Chris Brown .

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

At a party, young adults (they all look over 21) drink and smoke cigarettes. Charlyne and her director also smoke cigarettes on a couple of occasions.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this semi-scripted, semi-documentary-style movie co-starring Juno 's Michael Cera focuses on a young actress' search for the meaning of love. There's not much sexuality, since the focus is on romantic love, but there are a couple of scenes in which couples hold hands and kiss (sweetly, not passionately). For a PG-13 movie, there's not much language other than the occasional "s--t" and "bastard." The movie's message is ultimately positive: Love is out there, but it takes personal and emotional risk/commitment to find and feel it. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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• Parents say (1)
• Kids say (3)

Based on 1 parent review

What's the Story?

Young comedic actress/performance artist Charlyne Yi (best known as Martin Starr's zoned-out girlfriend in Knocked Up ) sets out on the ultimate adventure: to find out whether love truly exists. Skeptical of the concept of love, Yi; her director, Nick (played by actor Jake M. Johnson); and a tiny film crew embark on a cross-country journey to interview professors, novelists, divorcees, and couples -- all to determine the mechanics of love. Along the way, she gets to know the smitten, amazingly earnest Michael Cera ( Juno , Superbad ) and starts longing to be around him. But is it love?

Is It Any Good?

Yi is a refreshingly tomboyish Everygirl. Her incredibly expressive face lets you know exactly how she feels with every bulge of her eyes, downturn of her mouth, or lift of her eyebrows. Her skepticism about love makes the scenes with the geeky-but-adorable Cera sweetly predictable (the girl who doesn't believe in love discovers it on film for the very first time!), until she admits in front of him and her crew that she basically doesn't love him. Later, when she realizes how much she misses him, she begins to second-guess herself, which is, for a movie, pretty predictable.

The best part of PAPER HEART (a "hybrid" of documentary footage and scripted filmmaking) isn't the When Harry Met Sally -style interviews with couples, but enchanting little cardboard puppet shows used to depict the various love stories told in those interviews. Each interlude is magical, despite (or perhaps because of) the crude materials that look straight out of a preschool craft closet: aluminum foil, yarn, cardboard, and toy vehicles. Ingeniously crafted, the mixed-media, mixed-form film is charming and uplifting -- a welcome change from all the crass cynicism that's usually on display at the multiplex.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about adolescent and adult relationships, especially in light of the one couple who got married at 17. Do you think there are any rules about what makes a successful relationship?

Do you think this movie fits into the documentary genre, or should it be considered a comedy? Is it disappointing to know that the "director" in the movie was played by an actor?

What did you think of the puppet segments? How did they work (or not) with the rest of the movie?

Movie Details

• In theaters : August 7, 2009
• On DVD or streaming : December 1, 2009
• Cast : Charlyne Yi , Jake M. Johnson , Michael Cera
• Director : Nicholas Jasenovec
• Inclusion Information : Non-Binary actors, Queer actors, Latino actors
• Studio : Overture Films
• Genre : Comedy
• Run time : 88 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : some language
• Last updated : April 15, 2024

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Movie Review | 'Paper Heart'

Out on the Highways in Search of Love, an Endlessly Elusive Quest

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By Jeannette Catsoulis

• Aug. 6, 2009

At the outset of Nick Jasenovec’s “Paper Heart,” the actress and comedian Charlyne Yi (playing a purportedly fictional version of herself) claims neither to need nor believe in romantic love. Over the course of the movie, however, she will be nudged toward conformity by two parallel forces: the actual testimonies of firm believers and the fictional unfolding of a fumbling affair. And since this is an American story, Ms. Yi’s conversion will come about in the quintessentially American way: as the result of a road trip.

An unconvincing mash-up of the real and the fake, “Paper Heart” wavers between identities to no clear purpose and to its considerable creative detriment. The clumsy premise follows Ms. Yi and a director (named Nick Jasenovec but played by Jake Johnson) as they solicit love stories from a variety of regular Americans, most of whom are delightful and none of whom appears to be in on the movie’s meta-joke. Rather these segments, cherry-picked to enhance a loosely predetermined narrative (by Ms. Yi and Mr. Jasenovec), serve chiefly as props for a scripted romance between the leading lady and the actor Michael Cera, an attachment so tentative and pathologically gawky that it’s almost painful to watch.

Your enjoyment of “Paper Heart” will hinge almost entirely on your receptiveness to Ms. Yi and the extreme iteration of social awkwardness she represents. Either naturally or as a manufactured comic persona (there’s really no way to tell), she appears to be 23 going on 12. (When she dons a wedding dress, she’s like a little girl playing dress-up.) Wearing a permanently baffled expression and a succession of androgynous jeans and hoodies, she shuffles through the movie without acting ability or, it seems, basic survival skills. Lost in the aisles of a supermarket, she and Mr. Cera (who have been romantically linked in real life) are as helpless as kittens; you would think neither had seen packaged food before. Their extreme lack of sophistication is faintly disturbing, like a real-life example of one of Al Franken’s “lowered expectations” skits from an old “Saturday Night Live.”

Aggravatingly self-aware, “Paper Heart” achieves focus only in the engagingly candid, no-frills interviews. “I originally wanted to shoot a documentary because I felt the interview subjects were more interesting than me,” Ms. Yi explains in the press notes. She should have followed her instincts: from a judge in Texas to bikers in Oklahoma City, from a wedding-chapel proprietor in Las Vegas to a wryly affectionate gay couple in New York City, the interviewees are by turns funny, earnest and effortlessly touching. Illustrated by occasional snippets of charmingly primitive puppetry, their contributions cry out for the embrace of an authentic nonfiction film. Too bad no one was listening.

“Paper Heart” is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). Adult language and infantile behavior.

PAPER HEART

Opens on Friday nationwide.

Directed by Nick Jasenovec; written by Charlyne Yi and Mr. Jasenovec; director of photography, Jay Hunter; edited by Ryan Brown; music by Ms. Yi and Michael Cera; produced by Sandra Murillo and Elise Salomon; released by Overture Films. Running time: 1 hour 29 minutes.

WITH: Charlyne Yi and Michael Cera (themselves) and Jake Johnson (Nick Jasenovec).

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Paper Heart

Charlyne Yi is the 23-year-old LA standup who had a tiny role in Judd Apatow's Knocked Up and is now the star and executive producer of a world-beatingly annoying and pointless "docu-romcom".

It allegedly recounts her quirky attempts to investigate the nature of romantic love, an emotion she claims never to have felt, by travelling around America interviewing scientists, ministers, couples who've been married a long time – really anyone. The placidly grinning, giggling Yi undertakes her zany journey in parallel to what appears to be a burgeoning relationship with ­Canadian-born comedy star Michael Cera: their awkward dates are shadowed by a documentary crew.

This subplot is irritating not because it's phoney and staged, but because it's evidently sort of based on real life. Cera and Yi were once an item, but now it's all over – and with this coy and evasive reconstruction, the film is not being ­entirely candid about what their relationship, and the end of their ­relationship, was really all about.

This self-regarding vanity project would not have got off the ground without Cera in the picture, and it looks uncomfortably as if he has done his ­ex-girlfriend a really, really big favour by getting involved. He is only doing Yi the favour, though. Not us.

• Michael Cera
• Comedy films
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• DVD & Streaming

Paper Heart

• Comedy , Drama , Romance

Content Caution

In Theaters

• August 7, 2009
• Charlyne Yi as Charlyne Yi; Michael Cera as Michael Cera; Jake M. Johnson as Nicholas Jasenovec

Home Release Date

• December 1, 2009
• Nicholas Jasenovec

Distributor

• Overture Films

Movie Review

Paper Heart is a movie about love. It’s appropriate, then, that its structure feels like first love itself: sweet, awkward and incredibly perplexing.

This is a somewhat scripted movie about an unscripted documentary. Or more precisely, about the making of a documentary. Sort of. Comedian Charlyne Yi plays herself traveling around the country asking folks about love. Her interviewees range from biologists to romance writers, from neighborhood kids to old married couples, from divorce court judges to Elvis impersonators.

Some of that doesn’t seem to be scripted. But this part is: While making her doc, Charlyne meets Michael Cera (played by Michael Cera) and falls—well, if not head over heels, at least head over shoulders for the guy. Their relationship is complicated by the fact that the documentary crew—led by Paper Heart director Nicholas Jasenovec (who is not actually played by Nicholas Jasenovec)—is watching their every move.

Think of all of this as a piece of performance art—an ever-so-clever postmodern satire on the nature of reality in the digital age. Odd, isn’t it, that with all the texting and tweeting and blogging and reality showing we’re all engaged with these days, “reality” itself is as elusive as ever. Paper Heart takes aim at our 21st century fixation on ourselves and explores how ever-present documentary crews, rather than capturing reality, skew it.

Indeed, even this bit of satire bled into real life: Charlyne and Michael, we now know, have always been “just friends,” but the film’s makers were intentionally coy about whether there was something more between the onscreen couple—sparking strange tabloid rumors. Star confidently exclaimed at one point that Michael had broken up with Charlyne to date other women.

“Charlyne is beyond sad,” an unnamed source told the supermarket staple. “And the break up is so much harder because she’ll have to see him on tour.”

Could that be true?!

Enter the puppets. Yes, the puppets . Charlyne’s real-life interview subjects narrate critical moments in their relationships as handmade paper figurines mimic the action onscreen.

Confused yet? Well, if you’ve ever been in love, you know the feeling.

Positive Elements

As proudly postmodern as this film is, it’s also perhaps cinema’s first post -postmodern romance. Though Charlyne launches the film as a cynic, and there are many ironic flourishes throughout, its heart, paper though it may be, is unflinching in its sincerity.

Because while Charlyne is skeptical, her interviewees are not. In the affairs of men and maids, these folks are true believers, and many of them walk the talk.

Charlyne interviews a bevy of couples who’ve been married for 50 years—and still seem as in love with each other as the day they first met. “If you really love ’em, it gets better all the time,” says one. The first 50 years felt just like two or three, says another. Meanwhile, members of a biker gang boisterously proclaims that familial, sacrificial, platonic love is superior to all other forms. A romance novelist says her readers know if characters are really in love when one makes a massive sacrifice for another. Even one of the biologists Charlyne talks with, who contends love is largely a product of evolution and our drive to reproduce, concludes his thoughts by saying, “Somehow, there’s a little bit of magic to it, too.”

Many interviewees opine that couples these days are too willing to chuck it all. “When I took those vows,” laments a divorced man, “for me, it was for life.” A happily married woman says that “we’re not a very patient society,” and that when things get rough, we’re sadly more apt to “just give up.”

Love manifests itself in less healthy ways here, as well. But let’s be clear. Charlyne is on a quest for real, idyllic love—not infatuation, not sex. And most of the folks she talks with seem to understand that the ingredients that make love stick include mutual understanding, sacrifice, friendship and commitment.

Spiritual Elements

When a biker offers Charlyne a chance to ride on the back of his Harley, he asks her if she knows any Catholic prayers. She says, as she climbs aboard, “Please, God, let me live.”

A couple of interviewees wear conspicuous crosses around their necks. Charlyne and her director sit in on a wedding service presided over by a minister.

Charlyne visits a medium, who “reads” the comedian’s fortune with faded Tarot cards.

Sexual Content

Michael Cera and Charlyne Yi have both acted for raunchmeister Judd Apatow (in Superbad and Knocked Up , respectively), so one might expect this joint effort to be a crass, graphic mess.

But Paper Heart ‘s central love story is strangely sweet, almost innocent. It takes half the movie for the two “lovers” to hold hands, and their first (and only) shared kiss is an awkward smooch over a box of pizza. Walking down the street, they begin to talk about doing “the thing”—which proves to be simply running as fast as they can to get away from the television crew. They IM each other. They buy an accordion together. She writes a song that says Michael “smells like Christmas” and suggests (in the song) that he hold her tight. Neither of them talk about sex, and there’s no intimation they ever engage in it.

This is not to say the film steers completely clear of the subject. There’s talk of others making out. Charlyne interviews a homosexual couple who admit they had sex on their second date. “We’re gay,” says one, tongue-in-cheek. “That’s what we do.”

Some people talk about what attracted them to their significant others: One woman says that she ignored her future husband until the day he drove up in a Harley Davidson and tight blue jeans. Another says he first hit on his future wife when she still had a boyfriend (“If they’re not married or engaged, they’re fair game”).

We see the exposed breast of a biology mannequin.

Violent Content

A kid on the playground gets smacked upside the head by a playmate. A biker tells Charlyne he has a love-hate relationship with his wife: “I love to beat her, and she hates the beatings,” he says. “That’s a joke.”

Oh, and some of Charlyne’s puppets engage in dangerous activities: One nearly drowns in a raging river. (We see his little paper face contorted in a hand-drawn scream.) Other puppets lead police on a high-speed, bullet-riddled chase. (We see the bullets float through the air on strings; one punctures a motorcycle gas tank whereupon an explosion sends puppets flying through the air.)

Crude or Profane Language

Two s-words. God’s name is misused a half-dozen times. “H—,” “b–tard” and “a–” make cameo appearances.

Drug and Alcohol Content

Nick pretends to smoke and actually smokes a cigarette. Several folks drink beer at a party. Michael asks Charlyne if she’s high or still OK to drive, though there’s no indication that either have taken anything that might make them high.

Charlyne says she once dated someone she thought was really mysterious, partly because of the dark circles under his eyes. “Then I realized he was on drugs,” she adds.

Other Negative Elements

A few characters make light of marriage: One Las Vegas chapel proprietor tells a story of how a groom didn’t know his soon-to-be bride’s last name. Another chaplain remembers the time when a groom, as the ceremony got to the vows, flipped a coin before he said “I do.”

A handful of elementary-age girls proclaim their undying love for R&B star Chris Brown.

Felonious puppets walk off into the sunset—with the puppet police’s blessing.

“All of my ideas about love come from movies and fairy tales,” Charlyne tells us. And Paper Heart , through its minimalist approach to the subject, helps illustrate how far apart the romance we see in film and the love we experience in life are.

Movies and fairy tales teach us that love is revealed in a kiss, or in the explosion of fireworks, or in a violin-laden background score. And some of the people who appear in this film show evidence that they believe it. One couple married 50 years encourage Charlyne to “wait for the lightning bolt,” even as they acknowledge that love sometimes takes years to flourish. A newly married couple—still in high school and still in their wedding clothes—tell Charlyne that “you just gotta go with what feels right.”

We all know the odds are stacked against that young couple. What “feels” right now doesn’t always feel the same tomorrow or 20 years later, and lifelong relationships need to have more at their core. Charlyne seems to understand this better than most. And yet, she’s still hoping for that bolt of lightning.

In the end, she imagines herself and Michael speeding down the highway on a Harley—two rebels sustained only by … what? Charlyne admitted earlier that she’s not in love with Michael, but perhaps, she thinks, they’re still on the road searching for it. Life and love, she tells us, is all about risk, “and I, Charlyne Yi, am taking that risk!”

That ending, frankly, feels too pat, considering the complexities of the love stories she’s learned about during her journey.

Sure, love is risky. Love is exciting. Love sometimes does hit us like a electrical blast. But it’s more than that, too. Charlyne, on her sweet, disarming—confusing—cross-country search for it, comes close to finding the truth. But she doesn’t go quite far enough.

Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.

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Paper Heart Review

06 Nov 2009

Paper Heart

How cute is this movie? Totally! Adorable stand-up and musician Charlyne Yi doesn’t believe in love.

So she embarks on a whimsical road trip across America to find out what love is. Bikers, gay couples, scientists, elderly couples, starry-eyed teens, romance novelists, her pal Seth Rogen, and a Vegas Elvis impersonator offer musings on that happy state that leave her more bewildered. But when Michael Cera starts wooing her, her scepticism wavers in this captivating mix of documentary and mockumentary that plays with what’s real and what’s fantasy. You really want them to be a couple, they are that darling, in a heart-warmer to make a cynic grin.

Paper Heart

Where to Watch

Charlyne Yi (Self) Michael Cera (Michael Cera) Jake Johnson (Nicholas Jasenovec) Gill Summers (Self) Martin Starr (Self) Seth Rogen (Self) Demetri Martin (Self) Luciano Yi (Self) Lydia Yi (Self) Mike Modrak (Self)

Nicholas Jasenovec

Charlyne Yi embarks on a quest across America to make a documentary about the one subject she doesn't fully understand: Love.

Recommendations

More about Paper Heart

The kindest thing to say about Paper Heart —a new semi-pseudo-documentary starring musician/comedian/actress Charlyne …

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Paper Heart

If you're one of those people who's terminally allergic to the thing we call quirk, stay far, far away from Paper Heart . It's a movie dominated by the wide open, guileless smile of actress Charlyne Yi, one in which crude paper puppets re-enact scenes from couples' lives and Michael Cera plays a large role.

But Paper Heart is also a strong argument against writing off quirk entirely, given how many small delights there are in its shaggy faux-documentary frame. Ostensibly a story about a girl named Charlyne who falls in love while also traveling the country to interview people about love, Paper Heart is a far more complex arrangement of half-truths and outright fiction, combining the open honesty of the documentary subjects with a carefully crafted Hollywood romance that, put together, hit all the right notes. It's easy to spend the whole time trying to figure out what really happened and what didn't, but it's far more interesting to just be captivated.

In fact, even the parts of the film that are the most honest involve a little tweaking. Charlyne (ostensibly a character played by Yi, though the overlaps seem to be significant) is traveling the country to interview everyday people about their experiences of love. She's accompanied by her director, Nick, who is supposedly Paper Heart 's actual director Nick Jasenovec, but is actually an actor named Jake Johnson . Seriously, just go with it.

Charlyne interviews everyone from a lawyer-judge couple in Amarillo, Texas to a bar full of bikers, a lonely millionaire in Memphis to a bunch of kids on a playground in Atlanta. The stories she gets are almost always touching, even the jokes from the biker about beating his wife; they have the quality of a This American Life radio story, in which small and huge truths come out in a matter-of-fact way that suggest, hey, that's life.

Meanwhile, back in Los Angeles, Charlyne meets a guy named Michael (Michael Cera, again, supposedly playing a character), and they begin an awkward courtship made even more awkward by the fact that Nick has decided that their relationship is part of the documentary. As we watch this relationship grow between two people who were often rumored to have been dating in real life, we're made acutely aware of the fact that we're intruders on their personal lives. And then we remember that the filmmakers have been very honest about the fact that these scenes are scripted. It's all very complicated.

Much of the movie's depth comes from the viewer's mental gymnastics, trying to figure out what's real and what's not and questioning how much it matters in the process. The central problem that Charlyne is trying to solve from the outset-- she doesn't believe in love-- turns out to be more of a red herring. There's no lightning bolt realization at the end, nor do Charlyne and Michael ever admit they are in love, but the endless examples of lasting, true love in all the interview subjects is all the argument you need. The movie doesn't cover divorced couples, or arguing couples; even the engaged 17-year-olds get a free pass. Charlyne never admits it, but the movie is so enamored with the examples of love it has found that it's impossible for anyone to remain a cynic.

Paper Heart is fundamentally a small movie, plumbing only minor insights from both its documentary subjects and its main character. But the documentary aspect makes it feel less self-indulgent and wasteful than it might have, while the love story at the center gives it the cuddly feel of a more traditional romance. The quirk occasionally walks right up to the line of unbearable, but it's Paper Heart 's unabashedly bared soul that saves it in the end.

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Film review: paper heart.

The documentary form continues to evolve with screenwriter-actor Charlyne Yi's "Paper Heart," a self-regarding inquiry into the nature of love and intimacy that's semi-scripted and semi-verite.

By Justin Lowe , The Associated Press January 25, 2009 4:30pm

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PARK CITY — The documentry form continues to evolve with screenwriter-actor Charlyne Yi’s “Paper Heart,” a self-regarding inquiry into the nature of love and intimacy that’s semi-scripted and semi-verite.

Fans of Yi, a performer (“Knocked Up”) and stand-up comedian, no doubt will respond enthusiastically — particularly to the participation of her real-life boyfriend Michael Cera — but it’s unclear whether a wider audience also exists. Any theatrical strategy will need to significantly broaden the film’s appeal to gain viable traction, though a broadcast outlet ultimately might be the best bet for further exposure.

Whether experiencing genuine doubt and confusion or adopting a faux-naive demeanor consistent with the super-nerdy comic persona she cultivates for her stand-up routine, Yi claims to be a nonbeliever when it comes to love and resolves to launch a quest to gather the collective wisdom of ordinary people in her search for answers.

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She wrangles good friend and director Nicholas Jasenovec, along with a small crew, to assist with her survey as she crosses the country interviewing regular folks and academics in Las Vegas, Nashville, Atlanta, Amarillo, Texas, and a half-dozen other cities about the mysteries of love.

Despite Yi’s skepticism about true love, nary a naysayer appears in these interview segments, which include newlyweds, long-term partners, straights and gays. Most of these people’s anecdotes are so overwhelmingly prosaic that several are voiced over crude but cute paper-cutout puppetry re-enactments that marginally boost the inherent interest level.

Substituting a stand-in for Jasenovec on camera prompts the first obvious departure from conventional documentary; actor Jake Johnson is brought to play the part of the filmmaker. A parallel plot concerning Yi’s growing infatuation with Cera obviates any suggestion of objectivity, introducing a slippery slope of thorny issues, such as whether the film is largely spontaneous or mostly scripted, if participants were rehearsed or fed lines or if Yi and Cera are acting out their actual courtship or an alternate version created to satisfy narrative expectations.

Although some might find “Paper Heart’s” meta-film format intriguing, Yi’s pursuit of love’s secrets ultimately gets overwhelmed by the more conventional subplot tracking her budding “relationship” with Cera, an appealing narrative thread that remains unresolved. To the extent that she’s actually acting, Yi’s awkward humor elicits a degree of amusement, and Cera’s usual deadpan delivery is reliably entertaining.

The film’s casual DV production techniques are adequate and ironically most distinctive in the puppetry sequences.

Production company: Paper Heart Prods. Cast: Charlyne Yi, Michael Cera, Jake Johnson Director: Nicholas Jasenovec Screenwriters: Nicholas Jasenovec, Charlyne Yi Producers: Sandra Murillo, Elise Salomon Executive producers: Nicholas Jasenovec, Charlyne Yi Director of photography: Jay Hunter Music: Michael Cera, Charlyne Yi Editor: Ryan Brown Sales: UTA No rating, 88 minutes

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Paper Heart (United States, 2009)

Paper Heart is the latest in the so called "meta documentary" genre that mixes and tangles a fictional narrative with actual documentary footage. Like last year's American Teen , the ability to see the seams and sniff out the fictitious elements deflates a large portion of the movie's effectiveness. While there's some pleasure to be had spending about 90 minutes in the company of the easy-going Charlyne Yi, the end product feels trite and unfinished, with the romantic plot being awkwardly and unconvincingly shoehorned into a production that lacks focus.

The "idea" behind the film is that comedian/actress/musician Charlyne Yi, and 23-year old Asian American based on Los Angeles, is looking to understand the concept of "love." According to her, she has never been in love and believes herself to be immune to its raptures. So she wants to understand what she's missing and why it is considered so important to the human experience. After all, if she's content with her life and love brings pain to so many who suffer through it, why seek it out? A documentary filmmaker (played by actor Jake M. Johnson) films her as she travels from city-to-city interviewing people about love. Among those she meets are couples who have been married for more than a half-century, an Elvis impersonator who runs a wedding chapel in Las Vegas, scientists who explain about the chemistry of love, and members of a bike gang. She learns about platonic love and romantic love (but, except during a conversation with two gay men, the word "sex" goes unmentioned, which seems curious) but doesn't seem any closer to any "truth" than when she started.

Along the way, her path crosses with that of actor Michael Cera. This is where the fiction kicks in. Cera is attracted to Charlyne and pursues her until she gives in and agrees to go on a date with him. Soon, they are a couple, but Charlyne won't admit to being in love with him and the constant presence of the camera crew sours his enthusiasm for spending time with her.

The segments of Paper Heart purporting to chronicle the relationship between Cera and Charlyne (which may have some basis in fact, since the two were romantically linked at a point before the film went into production) are obviously fake. Cera plays a caricature of himself who is ill at ease whenever the camera is pointed at him. And the concept that there would need to be a camera crew present to record Charlyne's life is ludicrous - advancements in electronics would allow private moments to be captured without any sense of intrusion. The problem with this element of the movie isn't the concept that two people could fall for each other under similar circumstances, but the unconvincing manner in which the "documentary" footage is presented. The only one who seems real is Charlyne.

The genuine documentary moments offer little in the way of interest or insight. Recognizing this, the filmmakers attempt to liven them up with colorful dioramas to "re-create" memories and anecdotes discussed by the participants, but the overall effect is amateurish and overly cute. The filmmakers are unable to find one individual to make any insightful comment about love, which is surprising considering how rich the subject matter is. And the integration of the narrative and documentary aspects into a cohesive whole is, at best, uneven.

The fantasy that Cera and Charlyne are involved provides a reason to stick with the film - its observations about love are so trite that they would be rejected for a TV documentary - but it doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to recognize how little "reality" there is in this relationship. Building the movie around Charlyne (whose previous limited movie experience includes a part in Knocked Up ) is a sound move. She's comfortable in front of the camera, has an infectious personality, and is able to show the stages of love (which she denies) as her friendship with Cera deepens. Cera is disappointing playing a version of himself that amplifies the question of whether there's much of a line between the actor and the characters he portrays.

Paper Heart was a favorite at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, and it has the kind of vibe that only a festival audience could love. It's easy to see how this quirky, offbeat approach could seem refreshing within the rarefied, hermetic atmosphere of a festival. Elsewhere, however, it comes across as amateurish and considerably less charming.

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Search Reeling Reviews

Paper heart.

Film school student Charlene Yi is smart and artistic but there is one thing she does not get: love. Documaker and co-writer (with Yi) Nicolas Jasenovec, with camera in hand, follows the young woman on a trek across the US to interview people from all walks of life in a quest to find the meaning of that elusive emotion in “Paper Heart.”

Laura's Review: B

Offbeat standup comic Charlyne Yi ("Knocked Up," "Semi-Pro") claims to not believe in the concept of romantic love, at least not as every portrayed by Hollywood. Director Nicholas Jasenovec thought this was yet another odd bit of of his friend 'Chuck's' makeup and so the two decided to travel around the country investigating what love is in "Paper Heart." Chipmunk-cheeked tomboy Yi is a strange character with odd tastes, a desire to 'be one of the guys,' and an infectious laugh. She's got an awkward but likable quality that makes her a different onscreen interviewer that we're used to, yet she gets interesting stories from everyone she meets, be it a professor discussing pheromones, a Las Vegas Elvis impersonator, a bar full of bikers or senior couple married since their high school sweetheart years. Bopping around with her cowriter/director/pal Nick (played in the film by actor Jake M. Johnson, an unexplained choice that stretches the definition of documentary), Yi occasionally diverts from reality footage to her own visualization of the stories she is hearing - charming low-tech marionette tableaux that Jasenovec films to allow Yi's involvement with the animation to be seen. As with some of the best documentaries, something unexpected (unscripted?) happens when Chuck and Nick go to an L.A. party. Michael Cera ("Superbad," "Year One") arrives and has an immediate and palpable interest in Charlyne. Their courtship is quirky and sweet - and all captured by Nick's camera. Eventually, Charlyne's stubborn resistance to admitting feelings of love and the documentary cameras drive a wedge into the relationship and Nick's plan for a romantic climax in Paris comes down to earth with a thud. Bud will an unplanned trip to Cera's home town of Toronto change things? "Paper Heart" is unique, a rarity these days, and one of those films that should have you smiling when you're not laughing out loud. While Yi isn't your typical Hollywood glam girl, it's easy to see why Cera wants to be with her. But Cera isn't the only one tested by Charlyne's stubborn attitude - it's as if she has begun her film with an agenda and is resistant to change it, no matter how obvious her feelings are to everyone else. If you weren't already charmed by the low key Canadian, "Paper Heart" should cement regard for Cera, who comes across as premium grade A boyfriend/husband material. He's a sweetheart, and we cannot help empathize with his frustration with dating a reality documentary subject who doesn't believe in love. The longer the film goes on, the more Yi loses our sympathy. In addition to the oddness of casting the 'character' of Nick, we are never given any indication whatsoever as to why certain locations and people are chosen to be interviewed. From L.A. to Lubbock for a university professor? To Georgia for a playground of children (who epitomize the phrase 'out of the mouths of babes') or New York City to talk to a gay couple? Still, overall the film is an upbeat crowd pleaser that should break Yi out of the L.A. underground comedy circuit. Another unique offshoot of the Yi/Cera romance is their original music, as delightful as those wonderful puppet shows.

Robin's Review: B-

When the film started, I felt an extremely negative vibe toward Charlene Yi as the filmmakers lay out the intent of “Paper Heart.” Her naiveté seemed false and she bland as Yi tells the camera how she has never felt love. However, as the journey unfolds, she visits such far-flung locales as Oklahoma City, Lubbock, LA, Las Vegas, New York City, Amarillo, Albuquerque, Little Rock, Atlanta, Palm Springs and Nashville. In each city, she interviews all manner of characters, including an Elvis impersonator ministering a marriage chapel in Vegas, a divorce court couple, a gay couple, kids, an older coupled married for decades and many others and asks the question: What is love? As Charlene, or “Chuck” as her friends call her, visits each town, she gets the definition of love. Unfortunately, for Chuck, everyone has a different opinion and she does not get the answer she is searching for so fervently. A chance encounter with actor Michael Cera, though, sows the seeds of doubt about her adamant stance on love. The on again, off again romance between Charlene and Michael melds nicely with the film’s main subject, the journey, and the two paths weave well together. Chuck and director Jasenovec also incorporate some charming marionette animations used to allow the young woman to open up, indirectly, to the viewer. Deep inside, she has found what she seeks. “Paper Heart” grew on me as the first time feature filmmakers, quite professionally, crossed the continent and collected a myriad of interviews and anecdotes about love. Chuck’s emotional blossoming has a nice, charming arc, too. By the end, I took a liking to the diminutive Charlene.

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Paper heart.

2009 Directed by Nicholas Jasenovec

A story about love that's taking on a life on its own.

Paper Heart follows Nick and Charlyne on a cross-country journey to document what exactly "love" is. Interviewing ministers, happily married couples, chemists, romance novelists, divorce lawyers, a group of children and more, the determined young girl attempts to find definition and perhaps even experience the mysterious emotion.

Charlyne Yi Demetri Martin Jake Johnson Given Sharp Martin Starr Michael Cera Gill Summers Seth Rogen Derek Waters Matthew Bass Brendan Paul David Chandler Paul Scheer

Director Director

Nicholas Jasenovec

Producers Producers

Elise Salomon Sandra Murillo

Writers Writers

Nicholas Jasenovec Charlyne Yi

Casting Casting

Eileen Kennedy

Releases by Date

17 jan 2009, theatrical limited, 07 aug 2009, 01 may 2023, releases by country.

• Digital 12 Prime Video
• Premiere Sundance Film Festival
• Theatrical limited PG-13

88 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Owen Larkin ★★★ 1

Michael Cera breakdances in this movie

Review by clementine ★★★★ 1

give charlyne yi more lead roles pls

Review by Andrew ★★★★

Find someone in life who tells you you smell like Christmas.

Review by Hannah Brannen ★★★★

I found the scene where Michael Cera walks away from the table so funny, one of my top moments in film

Review by Matt ★★★ 1

A wonderfully weird experimental romantic docu-drama where Charlyne Yi and Michael Cera play themselves, but one of the most watchable actors around in Jake Johnson plays the director helping make a documentary about what love is.

Yi and Cera are massively awkward but in a cute way (quelle surprise) and the various interviews of real couples sharing their how-we-met stories often genuinely moving. Definitely worth checking out for an offbeat yet heartfelt watch.

Review by Ally ★½ 1

michael cera playing michael cera has to be my favorite damn thing on the planet.

Review by Lawrence ★★★★

sorry to everyone who doesn’t like this movie for being boring and sad :(

Review by Dave G ★★★½

Why does Charlyne Yi not have more lead roles? They're awesome! A very charming and fantastic "role" here that I just loved.

There's nothing groundbreaking or earth shattering here, but this is still a pretty great, light watch. The quasi-documentary style really works well, especially with this cast.

Just an extremely charming little movie.

Review by Tim :D ★★★½

Michael Cera was the villain idc

Review by rosiesmith ★★★★

“What’s the perfect date?” “You need to take somebody to Applebee’s and get them hot wings”.

I really loved this film, which I was surprised at. I thought it was a legitimate documentary at first, but it has fiction elements. Really interesting concept, I would love, love, love to make something this creative and eye opening. The story telling aspects, with the models and puppets are so sweet and I thought the interviews were so interesting. This is something I’d have loved to have been apart of. The idea of love is an interesting one, and I’m not sure anyone really knows what it is, but I really enjoyed hearing everyone’s thoughts and ideas on the topic.

Review by amanda 2

... how dare they call michael cera "mike"

Review by niamh 🧃 ★★★½

great idea to watch this on valentine’s day niamh 😃👍🏼very good at not making me feel lonely

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Paper Heart

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Charlyne Yi

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Jake Johnson

Nicholas Jasenovec

Elise Salomon

Quirky semi-documentary about love is cute for teens.

• Average 5.8
• Reviews 111

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Desperate to fill the hole in her heart, Scotland has found the one in Knight. However, she'll have to clear some hurdles first, including his fiancée. Desperate to fill the hole in her heart, Scotland has found the one in Knight. However, she'll have to clear some hurdles first, including his fiancée. Desperate to fill the hole in her heart, Scotland has found the one in Knight. However, she'll have to clear some hurdles first, including his fiancée.

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‘The Heart of Rock and Roll’ Review: Huey Lewis and the News Jukebox Musical Is Easy to Like, Harder to Love

By Frank Rizzo

Frank Rizzo

• ‘The Heart of Rock and Roll’ Review: Huey Lewis and the News Jukebox Musical Is Easy to Like, Harder to Love 1 week ago
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When a character in the new musical “ The Heart of Rock and Roll ” tries to convince his ex to leave her job at a factory that makes shipping materials, he is stunned: “Oh, my god. It’s cardboard !”

But there can be real appeal to the humblest of materials — and the same can be said of this unpretentious, silly and, in the end, rather fun show. For all the familiar jukebox musical templates of thin characters, unsurprising plot developments and oldie pop/rock songs shoehorned into the narrative, there’s something to be said for simple packaging that knows what it is and does it well.

Popular on Variety

But here the musical’s clever creators, led by director Gordon Greenberg and choreographer Lorin Latarro, decide to just go for the pleasant middle which neither offends nor inspires, just entertains. It also reflects the broad, easy-going appeal of the music — at least for certain generations — which makes this show’s future promising, if not in this Broadway run then certainly for the road.

Derek McLane’s colorful set design and Jen Caprio’s witty costumes (love the cardboard skirt) echoes the late ‘80s, and signal mindless escapism is the key.

The musical rom-com’s nutty exuberance is also reminiscent of another show: “Hairspray.” Here, too, are oddball jokes, loopy characters and winking period references (Sam Goody’s, Trader Vics, boom boxes and the Walkman — “Why not a Walkwoman?” snaps one female visionary.)

But he also doesn’t want to let down his old bandmates (F. Michael Haynie, Raymond J. Lee and John-Michael Lyles) when there’s a chance to get an unexpected record deal.

But there are complications, natch, with Bobby’s wooing of Fjord (Orville Mendoza), the Swedish furniture magnate, for a big contract while simultaneously competing with Cassandra’s ex-fiancee and Gordon Gekko wannabe Tucker (Billy Harrigan Tighe, a triple-threat performer, as well as a comic virtuoso in every scene and song.)

Humor and brightness is what fuels this engine whose musical repertoire is not infinitely varied. So “Hip to Be Square” is sung by the box factory workers with dancers doing tap on bubble wrap. “Stuck with You” becomes a hilarious fantasy of domestic doom. “I Want a New Drug” turns into Bobby’s love song to a seductive electric guitar.

Throw in a scene in a sauna and another in an aerobics studio led by a Richard Simmons-type (Tommy Bracco) and you have enough diversions to keep you from thinking too much about the story.

Adding sly comic asides is a very funny Tamika Lawrence as Bobby’s HR ally. She gets the biggest laughs with the subtlest of takes, and slays the show’s wind-up song, “The Power of Love” (a tune that also fuels Broadway’s “Back to the Future”).

“The Heart of Rock and Roll” only betrays itself when it dips its toe too deeply into the pool of seriousness with an overwrought 11 o’clock number (“The Only One”). Until then, Bobby is an appealing enough go-getter, but sudden father issues takes the show down a different road.

Cott, who was impressive as the lead in “ Bandstand ,” sings the hell out of the songs. But his striking good looks, not to mention his well-displayed biceps and abs, makes him perhaps too much of a slick outsider to be thoroughly credible in Huey’s working-for-a-living world.

Still, since the show keeps its ambitions in check with its sensibly-scaled production and low-stakes book, it doesn’t really matter that it thinks inside the box. After all, cardboard has its uses.

James Earl Jones Theater; 1084 seats; top ticket $288; Opened April 22, 2024; Reviewed April 18; Running time: 2 HOURS 30 MIN.

• Production: A presentation by Hunter Arnold, Tyler Mitchell and Kayla Greenspan and co-producers Chuck Schwab, Curt Cronin, John Joseph, Brad Freeman, Whitney Kiely Moehle, Nederlander Presentations, Stephens Brothers Productions, Gary & Marcia Nelson, Michael Wilsey Family, Mickey Gooch Jr, HLX Invest Co., Dagley Pottruck Productions, Primary Wave Music, Ken Siebel, Badlamp Productions and Will Meldman of a musical in two acts by Jonathan A. Abrams; story by Tyler Mitchell and Jonathan A. Abrams; inspired by the songs by Huey Lewis and The News; music by Huey Lewis.
• Crew: Directed by Gordon Greenberg; choreography, Lorin Latarro; musical supervision: Brian Usifer; sets, Derek McLane; costumes, Jen Caprio; lighting, Japhy Weideman; sound, John Shivers; production stage manager, Justin Scribner.
• Cast: Corey Cott, McKenzie Kurtz, Josh Breckenridge, John Dossett, F. Michael Haynie, Zoe Jensen, Tamika Lawrence, Raymond J. Lee, John-Michael Lyles, Orville Mendoza, Billy Harrigan Tighe, Mike Baerga, Tommy Bracco, TyNia René Brandon, Olivia Cece, Taylor Marie Daniel, Autumn Guzzardi, Lindsay Joan, Ross Lekites, Robin Masella, Michael Olaribigbe, Kevin Pariseau, Robert Pendilla, Leah Read, Jennifer Noble, Joe Moeller, Frederic Rodriguiez Odgaard.

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