The HeartSmith

The Heartsmith written and directed by Scott McQuaid which is his second full-length feature film. Starring Imogen Storm, Aniq Durar and Sylvester McCoy. The Heartsmith delves into a whimsical captivating fable relished in steampunk. Reading as an untold tale full of childlike wonder and also glimpses of grit and thrills.

The Heartsmith who is played by Aniq Durar fixes peoples broken hearts, healing them from their traumas and sorrow. Putting the pieces back together, but he himself is filled with melancholy. Helped by the mysterious umbrella man played by Sylvester McCoy (who you may recognise as he played the seventh doctor) they hide in the shadows wanting to draw no attention to their cause of fixing hearts. But when cold blooded crime lord Mr Cross played by Diego Cresta discovers he is dying from having a blackened heart. He stumbles across local waitress Sundae played by Imogen Storm who has a heart of gold, filled with kindness. He then sets his hitman Dr D played by Zhang Quan onto finding her and stealing her heart to cure him. When the Heartsmith uncovers this plan, he and Sundae set out on a journey to save her and their world.

Imogen Storm really shines as Sundae whenever she is on screen. Her performance reminded me of the old Alice In Wonderland animation with her tone of voice, movements and her characters actions. Which is also a lot to do with the screenplay as all the innocence Sundae has the audience really falls in love with her. The onscreen relationship between her and Aniq as the heartsmith was heartwarming feeling straight out of a fairy tale. On the other hand audiences might find it jarring when we cut to Dr D and the crime lord Mr Cross as their performances are over the top that it feels like a different film entirely. With it being more action packed focused on using guns, martial arts and some cringe dialogue especially when they talk over the phone. It takes you out of the worldbuilding of The Heartsmith. Whilst I appreciate they were going for a modern twist I think it actually harms the story.

The use of an almost dreamlike haze over the camera feels nostalgic; you can tell they have plucked inspiration from classics such as The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. But with that being said unfortunately whenever Sylvester McCoy was onscreen it was very evident he had filmed his scenes separately and wasn't with the main cast. When the editing keeps cutting back and forth it's too noticeable to not fixate on it and it becomes uncanny. Some scenes almost felt irrelevant to the story and were added just to fill runtime. I think it would confuse audiences with a sudden switch in tone or added characters who aren't fleshed out or explained.

The Heartsmith is a tale about healing our broken hearts with time and love, that good always triumphs evil. Despite its flaws The Heartsmith shows that even with a low budget you can really achieve something grand and successfully build a fantasy you could dive into.