"Heartless" Movie Trailer Review

"Heartless"

Movie Trailer Review

By our guest blogger, Jeremy Wilkinson

Director Philip Ridley (whose last film is “The Passion of Darkly Noon”) has not made a film in fifteen years. It looks as if he’s ready to come back with a bang with the upcoming horror/sci-fi flavored flick “Heartless.”

The “Heartless” trailer introduces us to Jamie, a photographer with an unfortunate birthmark on his face. This mark causes the crueler members of society to mock him and generally make his life more difficult. Somehow, he stumbles upon creatures living in our world and he’s the only one who sees them. One of these things makes him an offer--Jamie’s various problems will be solved, if he helps the creatures to “evolve.” What that entails is a mystery at this point. Jamie takes the deal, but he soon finds out there’s a price.

Visually, the film looks very nice. The creatures look creepy--they look like a snake-person who was caught in a fire. You don’t see many of their twisted visages in the short trailer, which is probably a boon. Jamie’s rebirth, which involves being set aflame, is a nice little touch, working far better to compel one to see the movie than if he had just woken up with his changes.

This notion of another world next to our own or making a deal with a devilish figure is certainly nothing new, but there’s still plenty of material to work with for both scenarios, and “Heartless” has potential. Jamie’s plight garners sympathy for the most part, though I’m a little baffled that his birthmark causes him so much trouble. It’s really not so bad. Still, it’s hard not to feel sympathy for a guy who’s having things thrown at him.

There’s enough in the two-minute trailer to get this reviewer interested. It’s got monsters, Faustian deals and moral ambiguity, which, if it stays on course, will be a recipe for success.

Watch the trailer below: