Heart Eyes
More rom-coms should consider adding a serial killer
Olivia Holt and Mason Gooding have killer chemistry in this slasher movie.
Ally McCabe (Olivia Holt) is about to be fired. She was behind a huge campaign for a jewelry brand that featured doomed romantic couples. Ally saw the campaign as clever and ironic, but the timing couldn’t have been worse.
Ally’s dead couples through history and pop culture ads are released the same day that the Heart Eyes Killer strikes again. The killer murders dozens of couples around Valentine’s Day every year, disappearing without a trace, before reappearing in a new city and starting the mayhem again on February 14th. The internet has decided that Ally’s brand (and Ally herself) are cancelled for this insensitive timing.
On the verge of losing her job, Ally has no choice but to acquiesce when her boss brings in Jay Simmonds (Mason Gooding), an expert at saving companies after a marketing disaster. She agrees to meet Jay to work on the campaign, but their business dinner gets misinterpreted by the Heart Eyes Killer, who decides they are his next doomed couple.
Can Ally and Jay survive the night? And is Heart Eyes right that the two would make a cute couple?
Blending all the cliches of romcoms and slasher films into a feature seems like a bad idea, but the resulting concoction is a frothy, fun romp that is the perfect light viewing in the dark months of winter. Director Josh Ruben brings out the best in both genres with excellent timing and a very cheeky sense of humor. One of the writers of Heart Eyes is Christopher Landon, the man behind the excellent horror comedies Happy Death Day and Freaky, so it’s easy to see where the genre bender gets its pedigree. There’s plenty of laughs, including a pair of dullard cops named Hobbs and Shaw, as well as some great chemistry to keep viewers enthralled.
The strength of Heart Eyes lies in how much the movie honors both of its parent genres. If you removed all the blood from the film, it would be a sweet rom-com featuring tons of chemistry between the leads. If you ditched the romance storyline, Heart Eyes turns into a respectable slasher with an interesting premise.
But beyond genre blending, Heart Eyes’ strength is in its lead performances. Gooding is a wonderful Prince Charming as Jay. He’s handsome, funny, and calls Ally on enough of her nonsense to seem like a worthy partner for her. Gooding accomplishes it all with a knowing twinkle in his eye.
As Ally, Holt does a lot of the heavy lifting from a story perspective. She’s got to be a feisty romcom girl next door and a final girl. Holt manages both well as she both resents Jay’s presence at her job but is charmed by him despite her ire. The duo has some excellent chemistry, and it’s easy to see why Heart Eyes would assume they were a couple.
The movie also does something rare in slasher films: it shows a moment of cowardice that’s called out, but ultimately forgiven. One of the characters ditches the other in the midst of an attack. It’s clearly panic-driven, but it’s also a particularly human reaction. Instead of it ruining the film, it’s addressed frankly, and the character sees it as a pattern in their behavior that they will work to change. Growth through serial killers — who knew?
Whether your Valentine’s Day plans involve a date or a solo evening, you can’t go wrong with a trip to see Heart Eyes. Breezy and clever, it’s the perfect way to toast a holiday based on hearts and flowers.
Verdict: Taking a stab at genre mixing pays off for this utterly charming horror romcom.
Heart Eyes is rated R and available in theaters February 7
