Heart Eyes (2025): Peering into the Dark Psychology

Heart Eyes, released just before Valentine’s Day 2025, mixes the rom-com genre with slasher horror, creating a darkly satirical take on love and relationships. Directed by Josh Ruben, the film follows Ally and Jay, who become targets of a serial killer known as the “Heart Eyes Killer,” who stalks and murders couples every year on Valentine’s Day. However, Heart Eyes delves deeper, exploring the dark side of love through its villains, Detective Shaw and her husband David, who commit murders together, motivated by a twisted sense of intimacy.

A Skewed Perception of Love

Heart Eyes presents a chilling view of how love can become distorted. The killers, Shaw and David, find pleasure in inflicting pain on others, showcasing a form of sadistic intimacy. Their actions highlight the importance of empathy, trust, and care in healthy relationships. Without these elements, love can devolve into something dangerous.

Folie à Deux: Shared Delusions

The relationship between Shaw and David embodies folie à deux, a shared delusion where both partners adopt the same psychotic beliefs. Their bond transforms into a compulsion to kill, illustrating the power of attachment and its potential negative outcomes. This underscores how unhealthy behaviors can lead individuals down a dark path.

Unhealthy Attachments and Cautionary Tales

While the actions of the characters in Heart Eyes are extreme, the movie touches on the dangers of unhealthy attachments. When love becomes a source of control, pain, or obsession, it ceases to be love and turns into something destructive. The film serves as a cautionary tale, urging viewers to recognize and address toxic behaviors in their own relationships.

Protecting Love from the Shadows

Heart Eyes reminds us to nurture and protect our emotional connections. True intimacy thrives on mutual respect, understanding, and care. By embracing empathy, trust, and open communication, we can safeguard our relationships from the darkness depicted in the film. Heart Eyes isn’t just a slasher film, it’s an exploration of love’s potential dark side, urging us to cherish and cultivate healthy relationships.