When roles are hard to come by, why not star in, write, and direct your own independent comedy, as Alvaro Orlando does with The Pickup Artist. The film is a strange romantic comedy with a charming and engaging lead performance from Orlando.
The Pickup Artist stars Orlando, Evan Ross (ATL, The Hunger Games), and Alexis Knapp (Pitch Perfect).
According to the synopsis, the story is inspired by a real-life experience. Alvaro is a real-life dating and relationship coach, and the winner of VH1s hit dating series, Pick Up Artist.
After Drew is dumped by his girlfriend, he enters the world of dating and soon learns that confidence and humor are key to the laws of attraction.
Drew’s best friend drags him to a love guru’s (Ross) group to learn the ways of seduction. However, Drew’s progression into a ladies’ man is rushed, making his transformation difficult to believe.
The plot isn’t particularly exciting, yet Orlando’s charisma carries the film. You’re invested in Drew’s happy ending, but his character’s motives remain vague throughout much of the film until the end.
The indie film’s production value is commendable. At times, the dialogue is overly melodramatic, a la Spanish telenovelas, with exaggerated emotions, particularly during the finale.
The comedy is lacking in this attempt at a rom-com, which is better described as amusing than laugh-out-loud funny.
The Pickup Artist is currently making the rounds at film festivals.