'Sweetheart' is a Creature Feature for the Me Too Movement (Review)

Image Courtesy of Universal Pictures and Blumhouse

Sweetheart is a creature feature for the Me Too movement and its message is clear: Believe women. They expose monsters.

The film wastes no time introducing its heroine, Jennifer Remming (Kiersey Clemons), who has washed ashore a tropical island and is in the process of gaining consciousness. Brad, a shipwrecked friend of Jenn, is barely clinging to life in the water, and he succumbs to his injuries after being pulled onto the shore. Now alone, Jenn explores the island, discovering the possessions and graves of a family who visited there some time ago. Seeing the graves of the family members prompts her to bury Brad in the sand, but when she wakes the following morning, she finds his body uncovered and heavily feasted upon. With very few supplies and something deadly roaming the island, Jenn is forced into the ultimate battle for survival. 

What director J.D. Dillard (Sleight) accomplishes here is worthy of praise. On the surface, Sweetheart works as a straightforward monster movie. A woman washes ashore on a deserted island and is terrorized by a creature that only comes out at night. Dillard is tremendously effective at building suspense and revealing the creature at his own pace (one distant shot of the monster was so great that I had to rewind and see it again immediately), then showcasing a knack for horror action when it finally attacks. Sweetheart could’ve been nothing more than a simple monster flick and it would’ve been just fine, but in the hands of Dillard, co-writers Alex Hyner and Alex Theurer, and star Kiersey Clemons, it’s much more than that. 

Sweetheart is an allegory for the here and now and always. For the plight of women and other victims who have come forward during the Me Too movement and had their stories met with hesitation or flat-out disbelief. When two more survivors of the shipwreck make their way to the island, Jenn warns them. This place isn’t what it appears to be. It’s dangerous and you’re not safe. These characters, one of them being Jenn’s own boyfriend, do not believe her. How could this gorgeous island paradise be harboring something nasty and violent? They tell her she’s crazy, bring up her troubled past and write off her claims. Sound familiar? It’s in this commentary that Sweetheart truly shines.

As good as the film and its message are, though, none of it would be nearly as effective without the mesmerizing central performance from Kiersey Clemons. The actress is tasked with carrying the film and a vast array of emotions almost entirely by herself and she nails every little nuance. In a decade that’s been filled with special performances by women within the horror genre, Clemons closes it out by joining their ranks. 

Final Thoughts:

Sweetheart is one of the best horror offerings of 2019. It’s equally as effective of a creature feature as it is an allegory for coming forward with your story, and Kiersey Clemons dominates every frame of it. It’s a strong recommendation from me.

Sweetheart is now streaming on Netflix!