‘Heart Eyes’ (2025)

Marrying the worlds of rom-coms and slashers, ‘Heart Eyes’ is a horror comedy that follows Ally (Olivia Holt), a painfully single pitch designer who is hung up on her ex. With Valentine’s Day looming large, the impending holiday summons fear amongst lovers as the Heart Eyes Killer (a.k.a. HEK) is rumored to have come to town to wreak havoc on the happy couples.

Established as a serial killer, HEK had committed mass killings of couples on February 14th over the past two years, with the opening showing the masked killer to have arrived in Seattle as they take out a couple getting engaged at a vineyard.

Zeroing in on Holt’s Ally, the young woman is facing career difficulties as her personal life has taken a downturn recently, reflecting negatively in her work. An abysmal commercial campaign prompts Ally’s boss, Crystal Cane portrayed by the incomparable Michaela Watkins, to summon famed freelance designer Jay (Mason Gooding) to aid in the campaign.

Jay invites Ally to dinner under the guise of a business meeting, where Ally’s dejected view on romance prompts the two to leave abruptly. Ally kisses Jay as she sees her ex approach, watched by HEK from a distance. After an awkward cab ride to Ally’s the two are targeted by HEK.

With the evening taking the two on the run, ambushed at an abandoned amusement park by HEK and eventually to a police station where Jay is taken in unders suspicion of being HEK, the two are eventually chased by the killer to a drive-in movie theater. Deciding to stand up to HEK, they confront the murdered and kill him, uncovering the assailant as a previously unseen man.

Almost stopping the film dead in it’s tracks, ‘Heart Eyes’ picks up as the film enters its climax. Staged at an abandoned church, Ally is summoned as the killer calls her, as Jay has been taken hostage. Going to the church, she discovers one of the investigating officers of the case and an IT guy from the police station had been committing the murders together. As a form of release and their kink, the two had seen the chemistry between Ally and Jay and decided to target them. The struggle that ensues sees the killer couple perish gruesomely, with Ally and Jay deciding to start a relationship.

Executing both the romance and horror to perfection, ‘Heart Eyes’ delivers a story that we didn’t know we needed. Containing schlocky and sappy rom-com tropes, it imbues the clichés with new life through well executed and funny slap-stick. The film shines as it addresses well known yet lovable tropes, delivering the familiar with a breath of fresh air as the quick and sharp writing, thanks to Phillip Murphy, Christopher Landon and Michael Kennedy, garners well deserved laughs that fit the tone of the story like a glove.

Not skimping on the gore, ‘Heart Eyes’ opens on the engaging couple at the vineyard as they bicker about having captured the right moment. Saving the audience from the overly entitled duo, HEK hacks and slashes his way through to the opening title of the film, signaling that even though the tone is comical, blood and guts are also on the menu.

Theoretically unlikely to form an amicable union, the film flows effortlessly and switches from sincerely heartfelt moments of personal revelation to chase scenes straight out of well known slasher classics like ‘Scream’ or ‘Halloween’. Energetically and ambitiously its own beast however, ‘Heart Eyes’ radiates silly romance comedy whilst coupling with hilariously grim gore, giving us an unexpectedly purging experience, allowing for a gruesome and hilarious adventure.

Absolutely nailing the combination of genres, ‘Heart Eyes’ is a movie in and around Valentine’s Day, but amounts to much more than cheap thrills by way of overly sentimental flings and tired horror clichés. Both genres playing off of each other and enhancing one another, ‘Heart Eyes’ proves that opposites attract and can work well together.

Score: 3/4