The Heart Knows (2025) Movie ft. Benjamn and Peto

The Heart Knows is a 2025 Argentinian romantic drama that hit Netflix on May 30, 2025. Director Marcos Carnevale brings us this touching story about love, loss, and getting a second chance at life. The film stars Benjamín Vicuña as Juan Manuel, a wealthy businessman, and Julieta Díaz as Valeria, a widow from a working-class neighborhood.

The Story

Juan Manuel lives the good life – tennis courts, money, and corporate success. But when his heart fails, everything changes. The heart he receives belonged to Pedro, a loving husband and father who died in a motorcycle accident. Pedro was fighting to save his neighborhood, El Progreso, from being torn down by developers.

After surgery, Juan Manuel feels completely different. Something inside pushes him to learn about his donor. This search brings him to Pedro’s widow, Valeria, who’s still fighting to protect her community. Juan Manuel decides to help them, but he keeps his true identity secret – he never tells them that Pedro’s heart now beats in his chest.

The story gets complicated when Juan Manuel falls for Valeria. He’s helping save the very neighborhood his own company might have destroyed. It’s a beautiful mess of emotions, guilt, and unexpected love.

The Cast

Benjamín Vicuña does solid work as Juan Manuel. I appreciated how he shows the character’s change from cold businessman to caring community member. The transformation feels real rather than forced. He makes you believe that this heart transplant really did change everything about him.

Julieta Díaz steals the show as Valeria. She’s not playing a helpless widow – this woman has strength and determination. I loved watching her fight for her community while dealing with her own grief. She brings real fire to the role that makes you root for her character.

The supporting cast works well together. Peto Menahem as Juan Manuel’s friend and Gloria Carrá as his sister feel natural in their roles. The movie does a good job showing people from different social classes without making anyone look like a cartoon.

Direction and Style

Marcos Carnevale keeps things simple and focused. He shot the entire film in Buenos Aires, and you can feel the authentic locations throughout. The contrast between Juan Manuel’s fancy world and Pedro’s neighborhood is clear without being heavy-handed.

I liked how the director shows both worlds fairly. The rich people aren’t evil, and the poor people aren’t saints. Everyone feels like real people with real problems. The movie doesn’t try any fancy camera tricks – it just tells the story straight.

The only downside is that Carnevale plays it very safe. I wished he’d taken more creative risks to make the story feel fresher.

What Critics and Audiences Think

The movie got mixed reviews from critics but audiences seem to love it. On IMDb, it has a 5.8/10 rating, which shows the split between professional reviewers and regular viewers.

Critics weren’t impressed. Rotten Tomatoes called it a well-intentioned drama that doesn’t offer anything new. Many reviewers complained that the story is too predictable – you can guess what happens next from the very beginning. One critic said it was completely predictable and called it a formulaic film.

Audiences felt differently. Many people found it deeply moving. One viewer wrote: This is truly one of the most beautiful films I’ve seen. The story really touches your heart. Another said: I haven’t cried at a movie in years, but this one made me tear up.

The audience-critic divide is clear here. Critics wanted something more original, but viewers connected with the emotional story and authentic performances.

What Works

The movie succeeds because it has genuine heart. Even though the plot is predictable, the emotions feel real. I found myself caring about these characters and their community. The story deals with heavy topics like death and organ donation in a respectful way.

The social commentary works well too. Watching Juan Manuel learn about inequality and community responsibility feels meaningful. The movie shows how money can’t buy happiness and how helping others can change your life.

Julieta Díaz’s performance stands out the most. She brings depth to what could have been a basic widow role. Her character has agency and fights for what she believes in. That’s refreshing to see.

The Buenos Aires setting adds authenticity. You can tell these are real places with real people, not movie sets designed to look poor or rich.

What Could Be Better

The biggest problem is that everything is predictable. From the first scene, you know exactly how this will end. The story follows every romantic drama playbook without surprises.

I also wished the movie explored its interesting concepts more deeply. The idea of personality changes after organ transplant could have been fascinating, but it’s treated more like magic than something to really think about.

The ethical questions around Juan Manuel’s lies don’t get enough attention either. He’s basically manipulating a grieving widow, even if his intentions are good. The movie could have dug into that moral complexity.

Some characters feel more like symbols than people – representing their social class rather than being fully developed individuals.

Technical Stuff

The music by Gerardo Gardelín supports the story without getting in the way. It matches the emotions on screen and helps contrast the two different worlds. Nothing groundbreaking, but it does its job well.

The visual design effectively shows the difference between rich and poor areas. Juan Manuel’s world looks clean and modern, while Pedro’s neighborhood feels warm and lived-in. Both look real rather than exaggerated.

Bottom Line

The Heart Knows won’t win any awards for originality, but it delivers exactly what it promises. If you want a heartwarming story about love, community, and second chances, you’ll probably enjoy it. Yes, it’s predictable, but sometimes that’s exactly what you need.

I think the critics missed the point a bit. Not every movie needs to reinvent cinema. Sometimes you just want to watch good people doing good things and feel better about the world. This movie does that job well.

The film works best as comfort viewing for a quiet evening. It’s the kind of story that reminds you about the importance of community and helping others. While it follows a familiar path, it walks that path with sincerity and heart.

Rating: 3/5 stars – A predictable but sincere story that succeeds through authentic emotion and strong performances, especially from Julieta Díaz.