Heartless (2009)

This movie is a failed attempt at real horror and drama. It kind of leaves you feeling like you just meandered through a film with an aimless plot that only skimmed the surface of the occult and demon world. There's so many obvious questions that aren't asked or answered by the main character, Jamie, in places where common sense would suggest there should be.

The writer's left out key elements that could have made this film something more than an empty plot, to a believable story that actually had meaningful dialog - it didn't. While the acting was film-worthy and the gritty urban dark feel and tone of the film gave it presence, the script did nothing to support the look of the film nor it's characters from what laid just below the surface of the macabre.

I believe Ridley, the director, was trying to convey looking into oneself and discovering the beauty within. But what he did was turn it into a tragic affair of the heart leaving you feeling "Heartless" for the film.

There are characters thrown in that begs the question, "who are they," and why are they there. Having someone just pop in with no back story then attaching themselves to the main character in the film is like plopping a kid in your lap and having it call you "daddy." It kept you wondering, but not in a good way, that would make you get up and walk out of the theater if you weren't watching it at home.

Towards the middle of the movie, it takes on an entirely different mode, which should have been played out further with the two main characters, Tia and Jamie and their relationship - that's where the real meaningful story was.

In conclusion, the story leaves you feeling empty like you didn't have any meaningful or profound message that you could take away from it spending almost two hours of your life, which you'll never get back.

Do yourself a favor and pass on this trite scare tactics with a pointless ominous soundtrack and plot with a myriad of stories that take an abrupt turn into one another and make no sense.

This film isn't Heartless, it's pointless!

Fmovies: This is the kind of movie that makes you realize how shallow all of the Hollywood movies are these days. I watched HEARTLESS intently last night, hanging onto every word - it was spellbinding and intellectually thought provoking. The characters were intense...I found myself wanting more.. The range of emotions I felt while watching the lead character was unbelievable - I found myself right there with the lead character - feeling what he must have been feeling. Ridley was terrific. I wanted to watch it again so I recapture all of the subtleties of the plot and could appreciate the mastery of the script. Additionally, the message in the final scene was so beautiful.

I was very fortunate today to see an early screening of Heartless at the American Film Market (AFM) in Santa Monica, CA. I went into the film thinking it would be a horror film, but found it to be more of a psychological thriller with moments of horror.

I can honestly say this film absolutely blew me away! The story is brilliant and the acting superb. Jim Sturgess' obvious empathetic grasp of Jamie's insecurities as well as innocence is mesmerizing, and he gives the audience his full range of emotions throughout the film – which his fans will especially appreciate.

From the moment he first appears on screen, you just know that Jamie is a troubled soul. Jim's moving yet subtle performance as a disfigured and self conscious young man is totally convincing and elicits all the empathy this character warrants. When tragedy occurs, we see Jim's talents shine through as an emotionally distraught and unbalanced individual caught up in something he not only doesn't understand, but cannot control. Especially poignant is when a physical metamorphosis into beauty takes place. Jamie's nuanced transformation retains his persistent, underlying insecurity, never straying far from who he truly is on the inside, thus allowing us to accept, or question, what truly makes us human or a monster. The other characters in the film seem to simply support the storyline, and none of them alone has too much screen time. It's truly Jim who carries this film. However, I did find Joseph Mawle's performance as "Papa B" to be especially creepy.

With unending edge of your seat tension, my adrenaline was pumping the entire time and there were a few unexpected moments that made me jump. The story is unique and engaging, the cinematography artistically stunning, the effects dramatically appropriate for the dark subject matter, and it has a wonderful soundtrack that allows us to hear Jim's beautiful voice again throughout.

All in all, I believe that (with proper distribution) audiences will embrace this film. I can't wait to see it again!

From www.jimsturgessonline.com

Heartless fmovies. This is a "psychological" thriller as much or more than a horror film. First, Jim Sturgess is excellent and has a brilliant career ahead of him. Why we haven't seen more of Joseph Mawie, the "devil" character, over the years is beyond me. Mawie is extremely creepy and steals his scenes. Timothy Spall and Ed Marson are underrated, though you've seen them a thousand times.

The depiction of dark London is well done. And the supernatural elements are well introduced, conservatively used and blended well with the psychological travails of our main character. But there is so much going on that at times I caught myself trying to piece bits together to guess at what I was supposed to be guessing at. The "neighbor" functions as a good foil but we're led to believe he has/will have something to do with the plot, which he really doesn't. The "nephew" subplot, though of some importance to a a late plot explanation, becomes annoying early on and the actor is less than convincing.

Fun nonetheless. Difficult to make a passable horror film these days.

Now,... I never feel motivated to write reviews; This is my first. Although in the past I've seen many great motion pictures and thought about it, I just didn't want to spend the time putting my feasibly mundane typed words into a critique.

To the people that rated this a 1 star and said don't waste your time, I'm happy I decided to anyway. To anybody reading this, don't pay attention to those people. Actually, I feel sorry for those reviewers, because they completely missed the point of this piece of art. It is not your typical horror. To call it a horror would be like calling moonlight sonata just a piano song; or the person closest to you just a human. This film is beyond deep. Philip Ridleys portrayal of facing your own demons, your fears, and exposing some rays of happiness through darkness, is one of the most strange yet gorgeous things I've seen ever in a movie.

If you watch this film and are not moved in some way, I honestly wouldn't know what to say. Because this visual masterpiece is in my eyes one of the greatest I've ever seen. I don't care what the critics say, or some random individual who has the mind to dismiss it as just a complex meaningless thriller. To me, this was a heart-moving, near perfection, possibly life-changing viewing; possibly due to the fact that I instantly related to scenes in the movie. It was like looking at my soul in the clearest of mirrors. The ending was..well there's no word for it.

I really hope more people have watched this one and understand what I feel right now. I feel..reborn.

After hearing from the Director , Philip Ridley , about this movie on radio five i decided to to give it a go and i'm really pleased i did. You cant really put this film just into the Horror genre because it is much more than that. The movie looks stunning and the acting is of the highest quality (although i would have liked to have seen more of Eddie Marsen). To say it is thought provoking is an understatement and a great deal of praise should go to the Director for taking on such a heavy subject. My only criticism is i felt it began to lose it's way a little bit about 90 minutes in , but thankfully it's conclusion pulled it around wrapped up things very nicely.

Recommended.