Art Dodge Art Dodge is a former artist trying to keep his struggling gallery afloat. Bills pile up, and his assistant Gloria can't cover everything, while his own artist Manny longs for his next big break. To scrape by, Art resorts to a grim, if unusual, hustle: he reads the obituaries and tells grieving widows that the deceased had bought a painting shortly before dying, hoping to drum up a quick sale. It’s a risky gambit that barely sustains him, but it also drags his life into a new kind of trouble when he targets a mobster named Gene, whose father has just passed away. The plan goes awry in a hurry, and Art is roughed up by Gene’s henchmen. He escapes by crawling into the Rolls-Royce of Betty Kerner, a wealthy heiress who is Gene’s estranged two-time ex-wife.
Betty, drawn to the handsome stranger, offers help—and soon they fall into a passionate, impulsive romance. Betty wants Art to marry her within two weeks, and the tabloids grab onto the meteoric couple, turning their fledgling relationship into a public spectacle. Caught between Betty’s insistence on commitment and Gene’s lingering, if complicated, love for her, Art keeps playing along, not fully sure of where it will lead him but unwilling to back down from the thrill of the lie.
One morning, Art’s luck takes another turn. In Betty’s home, he is surprised in the shower by Liz, Betty’s sister, an art professor who is cool, distant, and wary of any man who comes on too strong. Art is immediately drawn to Liz, but she sees him as a gigolo rather than a sincere partner. To navigate the chaos of two simultaneous loves, Art fabricates a fake twin brother named Bart—someone who wears glasses and sports a different hairstyle—who he claims has just returned from Italy as a painter in need of inspiration. The ruse buys him time, as Bart and Liz instantly hit it off, a twist that both complicates and intensifies the web he’s woven. Meanwhile, Gene keeps pressing Betty for a wedding, even as he tries to romance her anew.
A surprising discovery helps the deception: Liz’s favorite painting in Manny’s studio turns out to be a work Art himself had given to Manny “as an advance” on what he owed him. With that revelation, Bart and Liz grow closer, while Art juggles the two sisters by exploiting the impossibility of Bart and Art being in two places at once. He enlists a reluctant Gloria to help keep the charade afloat, and the two menacingly comic balancing act continues: two dates on one night, one staged life, and a desperate hope to keep the truth from crashing down.
As the fake twin narrative unspools, Art’s situation tightens. At a restaurant where he’s supposed to be on a date with Betty, he drugs her wine to shorten the evening, then slips away to be with Liz at the same venue. The next morning, Bart must dart between the sisters’ bedrooms, all while pretending to be the legitimate brother who can’t be in two places at once. The tension peaks when Gene’s henchmen close in on Art’s house; with his father’s help, Art escapes again and considers fleeing town.
A plan to run takes on new urgency when Manny’s studio becomes a battlefield of misaligned loyalties. The night ends in a chaotic mix of painting, fear, and the constant threat of exposure. Gene insists Art proceed with the wedding to Betty, threatening to physically punish any sign of heartbreak. The wedding day arrives with all the bells and nerves, and Liz confronts Bart with a painful truth—her sister’s near-kiss and Bart’s misrepresented closeness have tested her trust. Betty’s fear for her love and Gene’s selfless devotion push her toward a dramatic choice.
In a decisive moment of clarity, Betty abandons the wedding and elopes with Gene, leaving Art to reckon with the consequences of his schemes. Liz, watching from a distance, notices something revealing: her dog’s reaction to Art signals that Bart is really Art in disguise. Bart excuses himself to go back to Italy in a bid to salvage what little dignity remains, but the truth can’t be contained forever.
Months pass, and Art’s gallery begins to thrive in a different light. Gloria now owns and runs the operation, while Art has become a recognized artist in his own right. At the inauguration of his latest work, Liz appears again, torn by lingering feelings but uncertain about who Art truly is. In a quiet, heartfelt moment, Art convinces Liz that he is the man she once felt drawn to, not just the persona he created to win her. The film ends on a hopeful note as Art and Liz walk down the street together, hand in hand, with the promise of a more honest future ahead.
