History Film / Heartless

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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/heartless.jpg]]
Jamie Morgan is an aspiring photographer who has very prominent birthmarks on his face (which is shaped like a heart) and arm. He tries living a normal life, but is continually stared at and teased by various people. He receives a summons to a dilapidated flat block and given a chance by the sinister Papa B to be rid of his marks for a price. Jamie takes it and feels much more confident and happy in his life, getting a chance at a relationship with aspiring model Tia. However, he must hold up his end of the deal with Papa B and is forced to cut out a man's heart and place it on a church's steps or suffer the consequences.

A very well done indie film and star turn by [[Film/AcrossTheUniverse Jim Sturgess]]. While having a simple story, it's very well written and acting and can be genuinely frightening at several points.

Not to be confused with TheHeartless, or the 2014 UsefulNotes/{{Bollywood}} medical thriller of the same name.

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!!This film contains examples of:

* ApologeticAttacker: Jamie when he cuts out the heart of the prostitute.
* BeatStillMyHeart: Jamie's end of the bargain is for him to cut out a man's heart and leave it on the steps of a church on the night of a full moon.
* BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy: It's heavily implied that UsefulNotes/JackTheRipper was actually working under Papa B's, um, payroll.
* DealWithTheDevil: Done between Jamie to get rid of his birthmarks.
* DisappearedDad: Jamie's dad is mentioned to at least vanished or dead.
* DisposableSexWorker: For his sacrifice, Jamie finds a gay prostitute on the streets to kill.
* DoItYourselfThemeTune: The film's major songs were written by director Phillip Ridley and his friends in order to save money.
* FateWorseThanDeath: "Unhappily ever after, mate!", considering what Papa B does to Jamie ...
* FreakinessShame: It's revealed that [[spoiler:Tia still slept with Jamie despite him still having his birthmarks.]]
* GainaxEnding: [[spoiler: '''And how'''. After TheReveal that Jamie never lost his birthmarks, he also ends up pacing together that the "demons" he saw were just a violent gang obsessed with Molotov cocktails and Belle was ''just'' a girl he saw in a news report. Plus the fact he reunites with his father in the end makes it weirder if Papa B really ''is'' a demon or was it just in his damaged mind]].
* {{Jerkass}}:
** [[spoiler: Perfection]].
** Pretty much ''everyone'' that isn't Jamie, Tia, Belle, and Jamie's parents
* KubrickStare: Jamie has a rather unnerving one.
* LizardFolk: The demons, [[spoiler: at least until the reveal]].
* LouisCypher: Papa B, with the "B" obviously meaning "Beelzebub".
* ManOnFire: Happens three times during the film, [[spoiler:even with the ending]].
* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: [[spoiler:Were there really demons? Did Jamie really see demons? Was it all in his mind? The film is pretty vague about this]].
* MoralityPet: Jamie's father and girlfriend, which helps with [[spoiler: helping Jamie pass on]].
* ShowerOfAngst: Jamie takes one after he completes his end of the bargain.
* StartOfDarkness: [[spoiler:subverted, as it never happened. [[MindScrew Maybe.]]]]
* ThroughTheEyesOfMadness: [[spoiler:At the film's end, it's revealed that Jamie imagined all the supernatural elements of the film, meaning that he never lost his birthmarks.]]

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* BuryYourGays: For his sacrifice, Jamie finds a gay prostitute on the streets to kill.

%% ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.

Not to be confused with TheHeartless, or the 2014 {{Bollywood}} medical thriller of the same name.

Not to be confused with TheHeartless.

* FateWorseThanDeath: "Unhappily ever after, mate!", considering what Papa B does to Jamie..

* [[spoiler: GainaxEnding: '''And how'''. After TheReveal that Jamie never lost his birthmarks, he also ends up pacing together that the "demons" he saw were just a violent gang obsessed with Molotov cocktails and Belle was ''just'' a girl he saw in a news report. Plus the fact he reunites with his father in the end makes it more weirder if Papa B really ''is'' a demon or was it just in his damaged mind]].
* {{Jerkass}}: [[spoiler: Perfection]].

* LouisCypher: Papa B, especially in the end.
* ManOnFire: Happens three times during the film, [[spoiler: even with the ending]].
* [[spoiler: MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: Were there really demons? Did Jamie really see demons? Was it all in his mind? The film is pretty vague about this]].

* LizardFolk: The demons, [[spoiler: at least until the reveal].

* [[spoiler: MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: Were there really demons? Did Jamie really see demons? Was it all in his mind? The film is pretty vague about this.

%%* DisappearedDad

%%* FateWorseThanDeath: "Unhappily ever after, mate!"

%%* GainaxEnding
%%* {{Jerkass}}: [[spoiler: Perfection]].

%%* LizardFolk: The demons.
%%* LouisCypher: Papa B.
%%* ManOnFire: Happens three times during the film.
%%* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane
%%* MoralityPet: Jamie's father and girlfriend.

%%* StartOfDarkness: [[spoiler:subverted]]

* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic: After immolating himself with a Molotov cocktail, Jamie peels off his burnt flesh to reveal himself to be healthy and birthmark-free.

* DisappearedDad

* FateWorseThanDeath: "Unhappily ever after, mate!"

* GainaxEnding
* {{Jerkass}}: [[spoiler: Perfection]].

* LizardFolk: The demons.
* LouisCypher: Papa B.
* ManOnFire: Happens three times during the film.
* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane
* MoralityPet: Jamie's father and girlfriend.

* StartOfDarkness: [[spoiler:subverted]]

* [[spoiler:ThroughTheEyesOfMadness: At the film's end, it's revealed that Jamie imagined all the supernatural elements of the film, meaning that he never lost his birthmarks.]]
** [[{{OrWasItADream}} Or did he?]] [[spoiler: Maybe the Devil was just being a jerk who doesn't keep his promises but gives the illuson that he has in order to mess with people.]]

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[Film/AcrossTheUniverse Jude]] makes a deal with the Devil. His friend is [[Series/DoctorWho Mickey Smith]] and his dad is [[Film/HarryPotter Peter Pettigrew]]

* ButYourWingsAreBeautiful: Invoked when it's revealed that [[spoiler:Tia still slept with Jamie despite him still having his birthmarks.]]

* TearJerker: [[spoiler:Jamie's mom being killed by a gang of hoodies early in the film.]]

* FateWorseThanDeath: [[{{HighOctaneNightmareFuel}} "Unhappily ever after, mate!"]]

* Protagonist'sJourneyToVillain: [[spoiler: averted]]

* MaybeMagicalMaybeMundane

* ProtagonistsJourneyToVillain: [[spoiler: averted]]

** [[{{OrIsIt}} Or did he?]] [[spoiler: Maybe the Devil was just being a jerk who doesn't keep his promises but gives the illuson that he has in order to mess with people.]]

* FateWorseThanDeath: [[{{HighOctaneNightmareFuel}} "Unhappily ever after, mate!"]] [[{{I'mAHumanitarian}} Chomp!]]

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[AcrossTheUniverse Jude]] makes a deal with the Devil. His friend is [[Series/DoctorWho Mickey Smith]] and his dad is [[Film/HarryPotter Peter Pettigrew]]

A very well done indie film and star turn by [[AcrossTheUniverse Jim Sturgess]]. While having a simple story, it's very well written and acting and can be genuinely frightening at several points.

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[AcrossTheUniverse Jude]] makes a deal with the Devil. His friend is [[DoctorWho Mickey Smith]] and his dad is [[Film/HarryPotter Peter Pettigrew]]

* Jerkass: [[spoiler: Perfection]].