My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To

None of these are just minor nitpicks, or slightly unresolved subplots. Each question asked in the above paragraph would add a greater dimension to their family dynamic and how they interact; the answers could potentially even get to the heart of Jessie’s barbaric rule of the household. How she wields this much power over the other two is murky and hurts the emotional core of the contemplative drama. As the film plays out, there is not some grandiose mystery afoot (vampirism almost seems to be the right answer, but if it is, there are still a lot of unclear elements to the plot), so her rules and why they do these things are the sole focus. Not receiving answers means the characters remain flat and unchanging, save for Dwight, whose transformation actually morality catches up to him before, or right around, the 30-minute mark.

This vagueness would be a more significant detriment, if not for the fact that Cuartas is a fantastic director. Each scene oozes emotionality and atmosphere. The cinematography by Michael Cuartas is spellbinding, as the use of light and shadow perfectly captures how each person feels. The editing is also excellent, ably crosscutting between Jessie at work, Dwight wrestling with his thoughts, and Thomas’s attempts to make a friend. It is all so intense and sumptuous as it plays out, that the characterization problems are only put into perspective as My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To comes to a close.

“This vagueness would be a more significant detriment, if not for the fact that Cuartas is a fantastic director.”

But it is the cast that is the real saving grace of the movie. Patrick Fugit is one of the most underrated actors of his generation, and he is terrific as Dwight. Every conflicting thought, all the self-doubt, and his genuine compassion for others (something his sister lacks) all registers with his body language and demeanor. While Jessie needs to be fleshed out more, Schram makes her a foe worth liking. The audience buys that she believes that these rules and doing things this way is best for her and her family. With just a hard stare, she can send a cold shiver down the viewer’s spine. Owen Campbell is able to overcome the vaguely defined disease to be sympathetic and interesting. The viewer will want to be his friend; if he is ever allowed to have some.

My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To would have benefitted from another pass, or two, at the typewriter. Its characters’ predicament and arcs are not as developed as they need to be for the audience to invest in thoroughly. But, on a technical front, the directing is sublime, the editing and sound design are both masterful, and the cinematography is ravishing. Plus, the cast, especially Patrick Fugit, is astonishingly great in their somewhat underwritten roles. I admire and respect this movie more than I liked it.