ReelBob: ‘The Valet’ ★★★

By Bob Bloom

“The Valet” is a huggable rom-com that deviates from the familiar path taken in such genre films.

The movie’s premise, of course, is improbable, but that does not dilute its enjoyment.

In a nutshell: Olivia Allen (Samara Weaving), a famous actress, is having an affair with billionaire Vincent Royce (Max Greenfield), a married real estate magnate. During a public argument after one of their trysts, paparazzi snaps pictures of them together, which would ruin both their lives.

Also in the frame is Antonio (Eugene Derbez), a hard-working valet, who had crashed his bicycle into a car waiting to take the actress home.

Vincent’s lawyer devises a plan to extricate his client and Olivia from their situation: Vincent will pay Antonio to pretend to be Olivia’s boyfriend, to fool Vincent’s wife, Kathryn (Betsy Brandt).

Antonio is a kind and polite person. He accepts the lawyer’s offer and asks for $12,850. That is the amount Isabel (Marisol Nichols), his wife from whom he is separated, needs to finish her last two semesters of school.

Antonio lives in a crowded apartment with his mother, but lots of people always are underfoot — in-laws, friends and the apartment building supervisor, Mr. Kim, with whom Antonio’s mother is having an affair.

Yea, a lot is going on in this 124-minute movie.

But the crux of the film is the growing relationship between Antonio and Olivia.

As portrayed by Weaving, Olivia is your typical egocentric movie star, caring only about her own needs and image. People such as Antonio are mostly ignored by luminaries such as Olivia.

Over the course of the movie, Olivia slowly begins to appreciate Antonio as well as close family ties.

I do not want to give too much away, but their “romance” does not go in the direction a person familiar with the genre would expect.

The movie, directed by Richard Wong, is based on a 2006 French comedy, which ran a brisk 85 minutes.

“The Valet” tries to stuff too much into its presentation, touching upon the displacement and gentrification of immigrant-heavy enclaves and the invisibility of people in service industries, who rich people casually ignore.

Still, “The Valet” is sweet because, with the exception of one or two individuals, the characters are good people.

Derbez brings a pleasantness to Antonio that is contagious. He’s a guy you’d enjoy as a drinking buddy or going bowling.

Weaving’s brittleness and self-centeredness slowly melts as she begins, thanks to understand, thanks to Antonio, the importance of family and being true to herself.

“The Valet” will not win any awards; it could easily have been trimmed by a few minutes. Still, it’s a comfort-food movie that is enjoyable and easy to digest.

I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. I review movies, 4K UHD, Blu-rays and DVDs for ReelBob (ReelBob.com), The Film Yap and other print and online publications. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com. You also can follow me on Twitter @ReelBobBloom and on Facebook at ReelBob.com or the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My movie reviews also can be found at Rotten Tomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.

THE VALET
3 stars out of 4
(PG-13), some sexual content, strong language, brief drug use