‘Heartbeats,” the sophomore effort by precocious Montreal filmmaker Xavier Dolan, is an example of style over substance. There’s lots of slo-mo and jittery hand-held camera work, and references to the French New Wave (especially François Truffaut), but little depth.
Dolan stars as Francis, a gay guy with relationship problems. His best friend is Marie (Monia Chokri), a 25-year-old femme fatale who smokes too much and wants to look like Audrey Hepburn.
Their relatively uncomplicated friendship is thrown into disarray when they meet the charming Nicolas (Niels Schneider), setting up a “Jules and Jim”-style relationship.
Marie and Francis both want to bed Nicolas, who seems willing to go either way. But this turn of events, needless to say, can mean trouble.
“Heartbeats” looks good, and it has some funny dialogue. But there isn’t enough to sustain the film’s running time.
That said, Dolan — whose 2009 Cannes sensation “I Killed My Mother” has yet to be released here — definitely has talent. Now the 22-year-old has to learn how to channel it.