Heartbreak Hospital is a 2002 American romantic thriller comedy film by director Ruedi Gerber, starring Chelsea Altman, Diane Venora, Patricia Clarkson, Demian Bichir, John Shea, and Jeffrey Ross. In this whirlwind comedy, the line between fantasy and reality is seriously blurred'or rather, wiped out completely! Neely Kendall (Chelsea Altman) is an up-and-coming actress with big dreams and small prospects. Her equally ill-fated boyfriend, Tonio (Demian Bichir), is having similarly poor success with his attempts to make profit from his line of pasta sauces. The two are just about ready to throw in the towl and move to Mexico when Neely lands what is sure to be her breakout role'that of a main player on popular daytime soap 'Heartbreak Hospital.' And they all live happily ever after'or not. Neely's fame goes to her head, a Heartbreak Hospital fan's sanity takes a slip and everything goes careening out of control. Throw in a murder, some cheating, and lots of devious cunning and you have all the recipes for drama. Heartbreak Hospital keeps audiences guessing from start to finish.moreless