Review: "2 Hearts" tells two stories of romance, but withholds the connection that makes the audience care

There’s a heartfelt, inspirational story buried somewhere within the based-on-a-true-story “2 Hearts,” if only director Lance Hool knew how to tell it with any clarity or authenticity.

The movie presents two parallel stories, and then takes its sweet time telling us how one connects to the other — enough time that anyone with any movie-watching experience should be able to figure it out.

One story centers on Chris Gregory (Jacob Elordi, from HBO’s “Euphoria”), a college student who, when we first meet him, is being wheeled into the emergency room, unconscious. The story flashes back to Chris as a high school senior, being lectured by his dad (Tahmoh Penikett) about his grades, and barely getting into Loyola University in Louisiana. At college, he becomes smitten by a senior student, Sam (Tiera Skovbye, from “Riverdale”) — and immediately volunteers to help with her campus safety patrol program.

Cutting away from this burgeoning college romance, the movie introduces us to Jorge Bolivar (Adan Canto), scion of a famous rum-making family. (If you know anything about liquor, you can probably guess the real family name, which somehow the filmmakers couldn’t use.) Jorge suffers from a congenital lung problem, and is told by doctors that he may not live past 20. Still, he makes it to his 30s, which is when he meets Leslie (Radha Mitchell), a Pan Am stewardess (they weren’t calling them “flight attendants” yet), and a whirlwind romance ensues.

There must be a way to present these parallel romances — and hint at the link that connects them — that isn’t as hamfisted as what Hool does here. He serves up painfully awkward transitions, time jumps that make the connection less believable, and gorgeous but dull scenery of tropical vacation spots from wherever Jorge has followed the Pan Am-flying Leslie.

There’s a sweet message after the central plot twist is revealed, about sacrifice and lasting effect of thinking beyond one’s own life. But one must slog through the contrivance and forced sentimentality of the script — by Robin U. Russin and Veronica Hool (one of several of the director’s family in the credits) — to get to it, and audiences shouldn’t have to hold their breath to get to it.

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‘2 Hearts’

★★

Opens Friday, October 16, at theaters where open. Rated PG-13 for brief strong language. Running time: 100 minutes.