Heavy Petting

Romantic comedies tend to routine, teary pap for the average single woman (some people think lonely guys like porn films, which is far from true). Boy meets girl, boy and girl falls in love, old lover comes in, boy and girl break in, climatic event, boy and girl reunite. Pass, I say. But I can't say that about "Heavy Petting" a surface-silly, but down-to-earth opus that love can go to the dogs.

Brooklyn coffee shop proprietor Charlie (Brendan Hines of the TV drama "Lie To Me") hangs with his equally single pal, jobless pack rat Raz (Kevin Sussman), looking for their Dream Girls while abhorring the lack of etiquette by dogs. Charlie gets lucky with party dame Daphne (sunny Malin Akerman of "Watchmen", "The Proposal" and "Couples Retreat") and the two have chemistry. Thing is, Daphne hasn't gotten over the passing of her dog, getting a bit blotto during one date. So, she save a mutt, a girl named "Babydoll", from getting put down. The canine becomes a wall to Charlie's libido, since he's no dog lover. . .at first. Surprisingly, Charlie falls for Babydoll, leaving Daphne out in the cold.

Though his direction's standard, Marcel Sarmiento's script is likable and sweet. Hines, a younger version of Tom Everett Scott of the TV cop drama "Southland" is reliable and modest while Akerman, like in "Watchmen" (mainly Zack Snyder's cut), is an interesting surprise here, being more than a cute face. Sussman's a drip in the humor dept, but is nicely upstaged by a "dog whisper" jerk played by Mike Doyle (formerly of Law and Order: SVU), who shamelessly wants Daphne. The dog's cool, being more than a prop.

Sure, there are gross-out moments, but the production's low-beat aura gives "Heavy Petting" a quirky charm. There's love in downtown Brooklyn…dog gone it!

Charlie (Brendan Hinds) runs a small coffee shop, where he also sells his personal blends of java. One day, he meets a beautiful woman, Daphne (Malin Akerman) and is very smitten. Courting her with a new coffee concoction, named for her, Charlie tries to attract her gaze in his direction. Unfortunately, Daphne has just buried her precious dog French Fry and is not really interested in romance at the moment. Nevertheless, non-animal lover Charlie is persistent, aided by his roommate's (Kevin Sussman) moral support. Making some progress, Charlie receives a happy phone call from Daphne, asking him over to her apartment. But, oh, no! There is a new dog, Baby Doll, who is now nicely ensconced in the young lady's apartment and she can't wait for Charlie and Baby to become friends. Fat chance, especially since Baby is a royal terror and/or pain in the neck! Can Charlie really get the girl here, despite the fact that his dislike for critters may surface at any moment? For romance lovers and animal lovers, this film will do very well for a future evening of viewing pleasure. The cast is quite nice, with the sunkissed Akerman very lovely and sweet, and with Hinds and Sussman displaying a deadpan wit and sarcasm that is most entertaining. Also, the darling little dog playing Baby Doll is very lively and comical, with an adorable independent streak. The setting in California is beautiful and the costumes, production values, script and direction are above average. The storyline goes a bit awry in the last third of the film but directs itself back to finish with gusto. If you are always combing the video stores or the Internet in search of new choices in the romcom genre, you should give this one a try. Although light as a cotton ball, it still has the required elements to charm its target crowd very nicely.