Heartstopper

As direct to video horror flicks go, there have been much worse. Hell there has been worse in the theatres. So if after reading the DVD box description or seeing that cover and you're expecting something greater that this, whatever. Playing against type for a change, Englund plays the minor role of the Sheriff who has a grudge against the "Heartstopping" psychopath stalking the hospital in the picture. The biblical spouting psycho is pretty amusing in a total cornball sort of way and there is the barest minimum of tension developed throughout. Englund's good for the record but the movie is simply what it is: A cheesy horror film.

Slutty suicidal Sara (Meredith Henderson) is 'saved' by Sheriff Burger (horror film mainstay Robert Englund) after she gets hit by a car, dislocating her shoulder She taken to a local hospital where the body of a notorious serial killer who likes to rip hearts out of his victims' bodies, is being held whom obviously comes back to life or their wouldn't be a movie (not that I would've minded such a scenario mind you). But ANYways, Sara teams up with an equally unlikable fellow classmate with a chip on his shoulder and is prone to play the race card to escape the 'heart stoppers' undead clutches.

This is a very generic teen slasher film that has absolutely nothing new to bring to the table, the gore is not that good and the acting even worse. At the end of the day though I was less angry with the people who made this bottom-of-the-barrel sludge & more mad at myself for wasting my time watching it.

"Heartstopper", directed by the always-reliable special effects wizard Bob Keen (he worked on the effects for no less than "Hellraiser", "Candyman" and "Hardware"), is a sadly forgettable effort that combines the plot of a typical late 80's cheesy flick with the outrageous gore and brutality of nowadays 'Torture Porn' movies. The concept of a serial killer with supernatural powers who desperately attempts to transfer his murderous spirit into a new body after his own execution is dreadfully unoriginal and already featured (more or less) in at least four movies, namely Wes Craven's "Shocker", the atrocious third entry in the "House" series, the criminally underrated film "Prison" and the overall lamentable film "The Chair". This movie has absolutely nothing new to tell in its plot, but at least it remains somewhat entertaining thanks to the incredibly high body count, explicit on screen bloodshed and the cast of clichéd characters. A young interracial couple have to defend themselves against the sneering and overly talkative psychopath Chambers (who enjoys ripping hearts out of people's torsos whilst they're watching), and they receive little to none help from an indecisive nurse and from the Sheriff, played by Robert Englund. "Heartstopper" is never really scary or disturbing because the plot is overly grotesque and incoherent. The setting of the nearly abandoned, ramshackle and soon-to-be-closed down hospital adds some morbid atmosphere to the wholesome. The surreal elements in the plot are totally ridiculous and the ending sucks, but hey, I'm sure you've seen newly released horror films that were a lot worse.

Heartstopper wasn't to bad for a low budget B slasher movie. Took a large number of queues from Halloween with events taking place in a hospital. The film is about a killer who is hit by lightening while getting sitting in the electric chair and becomes an unstoppable killer after he's taken to the morgue in the hospital. The acting was pretty good and the effects were a little on the silly side, but it held together. Some religious connotations as the killer seemed to be living a life of eternal torture and was taking souls. Lots of gore and blood as plenty of people get their hearts ripped out as food for the killer. About an average B slasher movie. Nothing terrific, but nothing really bad.

A girl stands in the middle of the road, gets hit, and ends up sharing an ambulance with a serial killer who allegedly died in the electric chair. Well, he didn't die. And he is looking for the girl (Sara Wexler), which is coincidentally fairly easy, being in the same hospital.

Some of this movie is pretty good. The electric chair scene is alright, the coroner scenes are pretty good. And I especially have to give a hand to Robert Englund. I was afraid he would show up for five minutes and then disappear, or give a lackluster performance to get a paycheck (like Jeffrey Combs and Lance Henriksen seem to be doing lately). But Englund gives a great performance, and plays a hero brilliantly and with more passion than I've seen from him since "Slashed Dreams". Thank you, Mr. Englund.

The plot is shaky. A killer who survives the chair... well, I want to reference "Shocker", but should I? (If the director has a Shockeresque killer and casts Robert Englund, does he have a Wes Craven fetish?) Anyway, it's something hard to pull off because there are already many immortal slashers out there. Further ,the plot is just weird -- the string of coincidences around the Sara Wexler character... I don't know. Hard to believe.

And what's with the ripping out of the hearts? Okay, I get it -- he's a "heart stopper". But he puts his hand through a chest -- bones and all -- and pulls the heart out without blood and with neatly sawed off arteries. Weak, very weak. Maybe I can believe this in "Temple of Doom", but not here.

So yeah. I might be a little harsh. After all ,this isn't pure rubbish like "Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis" or any number of other films I could name. But I felt I was short-changed as a viewer. You set me up for what could be a great supernatural slasher flick and then really drop the ball at the key moments. Thanks a lot. I make no recommendations for this film to anyone.