I am not usually a slasher girl, those movies just don’t interest me very much. Unless there are monsters and weirdness, the whole thing just feels kind of empty. With the exceptions of Freddy Kruger and Leslie Vernon, I have the tendency to shy away from that whole genre. That level of violence just feels exploitative and empty. That being said, I am a huge Josh Ruben fan. “Scare Me” (2020) is one of my absolute favorite films. It’s artistic, witty, and important on so many levels: He is one of my favorite directors working right now, and he is in the middle of an epic moment with his episode of “The Creep Tapes”(streaming on Shudder), and his new film Heart Eyes, in cinemas right now.
I had the pleasure of seeing Heart Eyes last weekend in a quiet theater at 11:00 in the morning. I was not going to see this movie. “My Bloody Valentine” is absolutely not my favorite horror film, nor is Valentine’s Day my favorite holiday. I had every intention of avoiding this film like the plague, until I found out Josh Ruben directed it. To be blunt, this movie is brilliant fun. It is not just a slasher comedy, it is a slasher comedy poking fun at rom-com stereotypes from the 90’s, and also the meta slashers like “Scream” (1996).
For those of you obsessed with gruesome kills and body counts, this film definitely has that, and its sense of humor is aggressive. It pokes fun at romantic tropes, while being a pretty damn good rom-com in its own right. It treats our obsession with romance with a cynical touch that just might make you glance at your partner skeptically. However, I still bought this movie’s silly romantic plot. You have two characters who obviously belong together; They wear the same colors, same sweater with a collar, they work the same job, but the girl, Ally McCabe, played by Olivia Holt, from "Totally Killer" is burnt out and anti-love.
References and clever casting provide callbacks to classic and not-so-classic movies from days past. Devon Sawa from low budget schlock film, “Idle Hands” (1999) and Jordanna Brewster from “The Faculty” (1999) both have really fun roles in this one; even Josh Ruben makes a cameo during the drive-in scene. If you’ve seen “Scare Me,” by the way, there’s a fun easter egg during a scene that takes place in an airport. Watch for an ad on the top of a cab for a movie called “Fanny’s Revenge”. If you know, you know!
As far as body count goes, there’s a tire iron kill that is absolutely brutal and gives a nod to pulling the sword from the stone. As silly and campy as this film is, it definitely has the layers of an onion. It’s not quite a spoof, but Heart Eyes leans into the tropes of its genres in a very pointed way; there is even a “find the right dress" montage where the two girls dance around in Romy and Michelle dresses.
For those people that love, gore, romance, and what boils down to silly movie trivia, I highly suggest seeing this film. It’s like eating a whole box of chocolates, no nutritional value, but sweet and comforting.
