ADDICTED TO LOVE

Stars: Meg Ryan, Matthew Broderick, Kelly Preston, Tcheky Karyo, Maureen Stapleton. Written by Robert Gordon. Directed by Griffin Dunne. Rated R for sex, profanity, violence, brief nudity.

When Sam's (Matthew Broderick) girlfriend Linda (Kelly Preston) leaves the small town they both grew up in to visit New York City, little does he know that their relationship will soon cease to exist. While there, Linda falls in love with French restaurateur Anton (Tcheky Karyo) and moves in with him. Sam, whose life is thereby shattered, sets up camp in the deserted building across from Anton's apartment. He "borrows" some equipment from the observatory at which he works to project an image of the apartment onto a nearby wall. No sooner has he started charting the ebbs and flows of Linda's new romance than he is forced to share his little hovel with an interloper.

Maggie (Meg Ryan), as it turns out, is Anton's ex-, and a bitter one at that. In contrast to Sam, who wants to win his former lover back, Maggie intends to exact excruciating revenge on he who jilted her. Before long, they team up to help each other attain their goals. But will they be willing to part company when their business is concluded? One guess.

"Addicted to Love" is a romantic comedy with a twist. The twist is that the romance itself is laughable, while the rest of the film is not. It also manages to accomplish the formidable task of being both utterly predictable and completely unbelievable. Not even the performances are worth mentioning, because the characters are completely two-dimensional. I do feel sorry for Kelly Preston, though, because after this film and "Jerry Maguire", she is in danger of being typecast as the expendable girlfriend. Do as she should have and avoid this film at all costs.


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