Are you searching for a complex and queer horror film all about love, obsession, and porn to watch this Valentine’s Day? Perhaps you’re shaking your head quizzically because that description was awfully specific, but now that I mention it, yeah, that sounds right up your alley. Either way, I have the perfect movie for you! It’s Knife+Heart!
A Queer Horror Gem for Valentine’s Day
Yann Gonzalez’s Knife+Heart (2018) is a queer French horror film in Paris in 1975, right before the AIDS crisis began. Anne Parèze (Vanessa Paradis), a troubled gay porn producer/ director, is deeply in love with her editor, Loïs (Kate Moran). Lois loves Anne too but refuses to be with her because of Anne’s erratic and often abusive behavior. As Anne films her porn movies, her gay cast is dropping like flies, and it becomes apparent that the attacks are targeted by a masked killer (Jonathan Genet).
The murderer’s queerness is established almost immediately; the movie is only a few minutes in when one of Anne’s stars is killed naked, tied to a bed, with a knife hidden inside a dildo. In an interview with Filmmaker Magazine, Yann Gonzalez says Anne and the killer were written to parallel each other, almost as if the killer was Anne’s evil twin.
While watching K+H, I was struck by this parallel, and felt suspense around who the villain of this story truly is. What I realized is that both Anne and the killer, Guy, are simultaneously victims and villains of obsessive love.
Love and Obsession in Knife+Heart
Anne, our dear, fanatical protagonist is a victim of alcohol abuse and trauma—both heavily hinted at throughout the story. She is a relatable victim to many because the love of her life doesn’t want to be with her. However, at the same time, Anne is a villain. She is incredibly abusive towards Lois. Anne refuses to respect her boundaries from the first moment we see her on-screen to the last time she tries to contact Lois on the phone. At one point, she even loses it and sexually assaults Lois, grasping at her body and claiming loudly, “this is MINE!”
Guy, the antagonist of the story, is a villain. He is a murderer, and incites fear in the already heavily marginalized gay community of the 1970s. However, at the very end (BIG SPOILER ALERT!), the audience learns that when Guy was young, he had a gay lover, Hicham (Teymour El Attar). His father walked in on them in the barn and became so angry that he set the barn on fire with the two boys inside. My feelings about Guy are a lot more muddled now that I know why he’s a killer: he can’t handle his repressed gay feelings, his hatred for his father, and his never-ending love for the man he can never be with.
What’s genuinely horrifying and intelligent about K+H is its complex portrayal of characters and their relationship to obsessive love. It explores the very queer themes that no one is good nor bad, that love is complex, and that those who love us may not have our best interest in mind. Best of all, it reminds us of the darkness within ourselves. It portrays the destructive power of trauma and loss. What could be better suited for a romantic Valentine’s evening?
A Fresh Take for LGBTQIA+ Viewers
For LGBTQIA+ viewers, this film is even more impactful. For starters, it doesn’t tell the traditional story of coming out and facing stigma in that literal sense. Instead, it dives into the heart of the underground queer community of the 1970s in Paris, and we can assume that almost every character in this film is queer. What a breath of fresh air!
K+H also deals with discrimination and fear experienced by the LGBTQIA+ community with a raw, honest take. Internalized homophobia and obsessive love are the true villains of the story rather than the characters themselves. In this way, K+H provides brilliant societal commentary on who and what is truly evil.
Valentine’s Day is coming up, and I have already found you the perfect movie to watch with your date. Together, you can cuddle up on the couch with some popcorn and witness love when it turns evil. Maybe it will make you feel a little bit wary about getting too close to your companion. Or perhaps you’ll find falling in love even more intriguing. No matter; this is an excellent queer horror film that every LGBTQIA+ horror lover needs to put on their list ASAP!