Stylish and eerily compelling before it overplays its campy excesses, Heavenly Creatures does have a feverish intensity to recommend it.
Heavenly Creatures (1994)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:41
Fresh:39
Rotten:2
Average Rating:8.2/10
Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: HEAVENLY CREATURES represented a departure of sorts for horror director Peter Jackson and was the first film to earn him widespread critical acclaim. Jackson both co-wrote and co-produced the... HEAVENLY CREATURES represented a departure of sorts for horror director Peter Jackson and was the first film to earn him widespread critical acclaim. Jackson both co-wrote and co-produced the picture, which is based on an actual 1954 murder case. The two protagonists, New Zealand schoolgirls Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme, first meet when Juliet (Kate Winslet in her silver-screen debut) is introduced to Pauline's class as a new student. Pauline (Melanie Lynskey), an introvert who feels misunderstood by her family and peers, is instantly smitten with the sophisticated and self-confident newcomer, and the girls become best friends. Eventually, Pauline and Juliet begin spending more and more time together, withdrawing into a magical land of their own invention--Borovnia, a fairy-tale kingdom populated by lifesize clay figures. The girls' distraught families fear that the friendship is becoming unhealthy, and Juliet's parents decide to end things by sending their daughter away. Faced with their impending separation, the girls decide nothing will tear them apart, leading to an unexpectedly grisly denouement made even more unnerving by the ignorance of their own delusion. A harrowing story of misdirected adolescent creativity, Jackson's HEAVENLY CREATURES is chillingly unforgettable. [More]
Starring: Melanie Lynskey, Kate Winslet, Sarah Peirse, Diana Kent
Starring: Melanie Lynskey, Kate Winslet, Sarah Peirse, Diana Kent, Clive Merrison, Simon O'Connor
Director: Peter Jackson
Director: Peter Jackson
Reviews for Heavenly Creatures
Despite the undeniable merits of Jackson's other works, Heavenly Creatures strikes me as the best film he has made.
A beautiful, haunting masterpiece from Peter Jackson, and proof that The Lord of the Rings isn't the only rabbit in his hat.
Reveals how pernicious fantasy can become when it is based on a deep-seated hatred of the world.
The single best film in Jackson's filmography, and a compliment to New Zealand cinema.
The film's structure demands rational and beautiful segues from the real world into fantasia, a ballet of sensibilities that Jackson pulls off without a misstep.
Jackson's unique style and uncanny ability as a director make this one of the best and most powerful films of 1994.
Jackson (who wrote the script with Frances Walsh) evokes the girls’ fantasy world with scenes featuring plasticene figures, creating an eerie, metaphysical dimension to the movie.
Revealed in unforgettable fashion by a capable director, the events that unfold in this film are not easily forgotten.
...A work of remarkable clarity and vision, as well as one of the most original pictures of this or any other year.
Latest News for Heavenly Creatures
December 13, 2005:
Critical Consensus: Crown This "Kong"
The original "King Kong" is a movie so loved, and so emulated, that it would seem a foolhardy task to try to remake it. But Peter Jackson is a director who dreams big,... More...
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