Movie Review: "Heart Eyes" (2025)
Heart Eyes Movie Review
Written by Stuart D. Monroe
Released by Screen Gems
Directed by Josh Ruben
Written by Phillip Murphy, Christopher Landon, and Michael Kennedy
2025, 97 minutes, Rated R
Released on February 7th, 2025
Starring:
Olivia Holt as Ally
Mason Gooding as Jay
Jordana Brewster as Detective Shaw
Devon Sawa as Detective Hobbs
Ben Black as Collin
Chris Parker as Tommy
Latham Gaines as Nico
Review:
Crafting a quality romantic comedy is a bit formulaic, but it’s still hard to find leads with the chemistry and charm to make you care about their romance. Similarly, crafting a good slasher is also quite formulaic, but you must bring the gore and push the violence pedal to the floor. Then there’s that tricky borderland where the genres meet, and there is no exact formula to make it all mesh. There’s a little bit of magic involved.
Valentine’s Day is drawing near, and the country is wondering where the Heart Eyes Killer (or “HEK”) will strike next. For the past few years, HEK has slain numerous couples on the amorous day in a spree that has no discernible pattern or reasoning. This year, Ally (Olivia Holt; Disney’s Kickin’ It) has fallen for a coworker (and professional rival) named Jay (Mason Gooding; Scream VI). Their awkward, budding romance is about to be doomed, however, as HEK has come to town. No couple is safe this Valentine’s Day, but this couple is especially screwed.
Director Josh Ruben (Werewolves Within) has leveled up with Heart Eyes. He’s also shown nuanced comedic chops and even a flair for the truly romantic. It doesn’t hurt that there is great chemistry between the two leads, either. Olivia Holt and Mason Gooding are downright adorable together, and when you balance that with the balls-to-the-walls performances from Jordana Brewster (Fast and the Furious series) and Devon Sawa (Idle Hands, Final Destination) as Detectives Shaw and Hobbs (I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE), you get a seriously entertaining flick that hums along (though admittedly a bit more so in the first two acts).
Then there’s the horror side of things. Heart Eyes does not fuck around. All the slasher tropes are there in all their glory, and the kills go hard in the paint. HEK is one of the more creative killers to slice and dice in some time. The humor remains in the horror in perfect harmony. It’s a lot of bloody fun, and the packed house in the screening laughed as much as they screamed. That’s the sweet spot.
Most importantly, Heart Eyes is a flick that can appeal to both the gorehounds and the romance lovers in your life. So, even if your partner “doesn’t like horror” OR “hates romantic comedies”, they’ll dig on Heart Eyes. In that way, it’s the ideal movie for a Valentine’s date. Holiday-themed horror has a long and wonderfully twisted history, and Heart Eyes is one of the best to come along in quite some time. Bridging the gap between horror fans and non-horror fans while being an unapologetically visceral slasher? That’s what I call doing God’s work.
Or maybe it’s just that little bit of aforementioned magic that’s needed. Either way, I fell for Heart Eyes.
Grade:
4.5 stars out of 5.0
