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The Heartbreak Kid

Catalog Number
M 238
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VHS | N/A | Slipcase
106 mins (NTSC)
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The Heartbreak Kid (1972)

Additional Information

Additional Information
The Heartbreak Kid is a 1972 dark romantic comedy film directed by Elaine May, written by Neil Simon, and starring Charles Grodin, Jeannie Berlin, Eddie Albert, Audra Lindley, Doris Roberts and Cybill Shepherd. It is based on the short story "A Change of Plan", written by Bruce Jay Friedman.

Jeannie Berlin was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, and Eddie Albert was nominated for Best Supporting Actor.

It is #91 on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs, a list of the funniest American movies ever made.

It was remade in 2007 as The Heartbreak Kid starring Ben Stiller and Malin Åkerman.


A black comedy examination of love and hypocrisy, the satire begins with the New York City traditional Jewish marriage of emotionally-shallow, self-absorbed, "nebbish"-man-boy, Lenny Cantrow, who is a sporting goods salesman (Charles Grodin). While on honeymoon at the Doral Hotel on Miami Beach, he meets and pursues a tall, blonde, Midwestern, seductively bitchy, but sarcastically witty and gorgeous, student named Kelly Corcoran (Cybill Shepherd). His unsophisticated and emotionally-needy bride, Lila (Jeannie Berlin, daughter of director, Elaine May), refuses to use sunscreen and consequently develops a severe sunburn, which quarantines her in their hotel room. Lenny begins a rendezvous with Kelly, lying to his wife as to his whereabouts. Lenny recklessly and impulsively decides to dump Lila, ending his ephemeral marriage, in order to pursue unloving Kelly, his false ideal, and ultimate fantasy shiksa-goddess. (The girl he was "waiting for all of his life". He just "timed it wrong".) She is attending college in Minnesota, where her somewhat bigoted, suspicious and overly-protective, hostile father (Eddie Albert) is a relentless obstacle.

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The Heartbreak Kid (1972)
Release Year
Catalog Number
SV10193
Primary Distributor (If not listed, select "OTHER")
Catalog Number
SV10193
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N/A (NTSC)
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