The Violent Heart Review: A Slow Burning Story With Surprising Revelations

Release date: February 19, 2021
Running time: 107 minutes
Starring:  Jovan Adepo, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Grace Van Patten, Mary J. Blige, Lukas Haas, Cress Williams, Jahi Di'Allo Winston
Written and Directed By: Kerem Sanga

Fifteen years after the murder of his older sister, Daniel finds himself falling for Cassie, a vivacious high school senior.

The Violent Heart has a really dramatic setup with a good combination of beautiful cinematography and music to let you know that this film is something special.  The music especially at the start is wonderful and helps to get you invested in the opening sequences.  It has a dramatic, dreamlike quality to it that goes perfectly with the softer, often idyllic camera work.  And then the film sets up the major event and that takes you down a whole different path.

The drama in The Violent Heart is brought to life by the complicated cast of characters.  Jovan Adepo is a revelation as a conflicted young man trying to make it but haunted by his past.  He has to be both reserved and vulnerable, careful because of people's perceptions of him based on his past actions and traumas.  Grace van Patten is an outspoken high schooler that has a lot of charm.  She can get a littler overbearing at times, but it is all in service of the story.  And the two of them have a wonderful chemistry that really shines through in this film.  The movie is about their cautious, star-crossed love and the pair are magnetic on screen.  Their relationship starts off innocently enough but they lean on each other as their bond--and the drama happening around them--grows stronger.  It is a sight to see that even when there is no dialog, you can feel the chemistry on screen.  And I also can't forget to mention the wonderful performances by Jahi Di'Allo Winston (who we saw in Charm City Kings) and Mary J. Blige, both of whom showcase their serious acting talents and add drama to this already dramatic story.

And the story of The Violent Heart is mixed bag.  It has some really surprising revelations that occur in the movie, some that put the whole movie in context and some that appear to come out of left field.  But in service of this, the film does not do a great job of explaining some aspects of the story and family at the start.  I felt like I didn't really know what was going on until the very end, which allowed me to enjoy these great revelations, but also left me confused at the start.  It also does not do a great job of setting up the main conflict, as a character's attitude towards another changes fairly abruptly, in service of the story but still it didn't feel earned.  Perhaps there is a longer cut of this film where more of that is revealed, but as it stands, some thing just seem to happen without much setup.  But they do help to set up some truly shocking revelations that tied the whole story together.  

And through these characters and stories, The Violent Heart seeks to explore a variety of important and very human themes.  It tackles loss, love, family, and dreams very well.  I really loved Daniel's conflicted character, and the egg shells he has to walk on and the realistic view he takes of his life due to his past actions.  And I also loved the overall theme of the story, about the circle of violence and how somethings can affect you that are outside of your control.  And finally, this film is just a well made movie, an indie that was made with passion and love that comes through on the screen.

The Violent Heart will capture your heart with its interesting characters, surprising revelations, and slow burning story.

Watch it.

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The Violent Heart is available digitally and on demand on February 19, 2021.

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