‘Torn Hearts’ Review: Country Music Bleeds In Brea Grant’s New Splatterfest
Mary Beth McAndrews
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Horror movies and country music don’t typically go hand in hand. Horror is seen as scary, gory, and gross, while country music is seen as saccharine. It oozes sentimentality and is often seen as vapid. But horror has that in common with the music genre, as critics often cite a scary movie’s violence as vapid and unnecessary. So, it only makes sense to bring the two together. Director Brea Grant and writer Rachel Koller Croft have done just that with their latest film Torn Hearts. Blumhouse TV and EPIX’s high-femme country horror is covered in tassels and blood, with a twisted game of torture at its core.
Leigh (Alexxis Lemire) and Jordan (Abby Quinn) are a country music duo trying to make their big break in the industry. They play small gigs around Nashville, but they want to be stars. So, Jordan has the wild idea to go find their idol Harper Dutch and pitch a duet with her. The only problem is that Harper has been in living as a recluse since the death of her sister decades previously. But the women throw caution to the wind; what’s the worst thing she can do?
Well, they sure find out the worst as Harper surprisingly agrees to the collab. But with quite a few conditions. The longer Leigh and Jordan stay with Harper, the more they realize that their hero isn’t what she seems. Secrets hide in the recesses of her giant house and the more whiskey they drink, the meaner they all become. Leigh and Jordan find themselves ensnared in a twisted game with seemingly no way out.
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Torn Hearts is really about the trio of performances by Sagan, Lemire, and Quinn. Their chemistry and ability to work off one another solidify the stakes at hand. This isn’t just about making it in the world of country music. This is about internalized misogyny and pitching women against each other where only one of them can come out on top. Sagal shines in her first horror movie role as Harper Dutch. There’s an aura that Sagal emanates in the film, oozing an uncomfortable charisma that’s equal parts terrifying and alluring. She sells the part of disillusioned country music star at the highest possible value and I am investing, no questions asked.
While Sagal often steals the show, Lemire and Quinn hold their own as the dysfunctional up-and-coming duo who are colleagues first and friends second. They each play their respective parts as the bubbly one and the creative one, each believing they’re the group’s leader who deserves the fame. They establish this tension between friendship and working relationship that any of us who have worked with friends are all too familiar with. And that makes Torn Hearts all the more terrifying.
A majority of the film takes place in Harper’s giant home that is plucked straight out of a Southern Gothic horror novel and doused in a few hundred gallons of pink and glitter. It’s menacing but welcoming. There are tchotchkes on every surface, but they don’t feel cute; instead, they feel like they’re watching your every move. Beautiful costumes stand like dead bodies on stiff mannequins, ghosts haunting well-lit corners. It’s a mausoleum disguised as a home; no shade of pink or well-placed piece of furniture can hide that truth for too long.
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The story itself is simple and one we’ve seen before, yes. But placing it in a new horror setting with three incredible performances makes it worth watching. From Croft’s tight script to Grant’s clear directorial vision, a tale of three women fighting each other becomes a game of cat and mouse that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
In a landscape dominated by heady psychological horror that aims to get under your skin, Torn Hearts is a breath of fresh, pink air. Now I love a good deeply upsetting horror movie. But Grant and Croft prove that a high femme aesthetic and a simple yet downright nasty story deserve just as much recognition. It revels in taking the over-the-top sensibilities of the country music scene and makes them a shocking, twisty horror show. Torn Hearts is the type of horror we need more of: unafraid of being fun, entertaining, and shocking all wrapped in a sugar-coated package that quickly melts away once the violence starts.
Torn Hearts comes to digital via Paramount Home Entertainment on May 20.
Summary
Brea Grant’s Torn Hearts has it all: Katey Sagal, music, tassels, and one nasty game of psychological torture.
