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Movies / On DVD / Heavenly Creatures
Heavenly Creatures

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Heavenly Creatures (1994)

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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

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Heavenly Creatures

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21 - 40 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Stylish and eerily compelling before it overplays its campy excesses, Heavenly Creatures does have a feverish intensity to recommend it.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/20/03
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
02/13/03
Mike McGranaghan
Mike McGranaghan
Aisle Seat

Beautifully, horribly passionate.

comment Comment
01/27/03
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
San Francisco Examiner

One of the most genuinely disturbing films I have ever seen.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/08/02
Michael Dequina
Michael Dequina
Film Threat

Despite the undeniable merits of Jackson's other works, Heavenly Creatures strikes me as the best film he has made.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
11/06/02
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Powerful

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
09/27/02
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

A beautiful, haunting masterpiece from Peter Jackson, and proof that The Lord of the Rings isn't the only rabbit in his hat.

comment Comment
09/06/02
Rob Vaux
Rob Vaux
Flipside Movie Emporium

Reveals how pernicious fantasy can become when it is based on a deep-seated hatred of the world.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
08/26/02
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

The single best film in Jackson's filmography, and a compliment to New Zealand cinema.

Full Review Source: CinemaBlend.com | comment Comment
08/12/02
Joshua Tyler
Joshua Tyler
CinemaBlend.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Movieline | comment Comment
01/09/02
Movieline
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

1994 spellbinder.

Full Review Source: Rolling Stone | comment Comment
05/12/01
Peter Travers
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone

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.

Full Review Source: Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus
N/R

A movie that begins with high tension gradually fizzles out.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Chris Hicks
Chris Hicks
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Jackson's unique style and uncanny ability as a director make this one of the best and most powerful films of 1994.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

The acting by Winslet and Lynskey is superb.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

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.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Edward Guthmann
Edward Guthmann
San Francisco Chronicle

Powerful, evocative movie.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Hal Hinson
Hal Hinson
Washington Post

Revealed in unforgettable fashion by a capable director, the events that unfold in this film are not easily forgotten.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
01/01/00
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews

...A work of remarkable clarity and vision, as well as one of the most original pictures of this or any other year.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Joey O'Bryan
Joey O'Bryan
Austin Chronicle
 
 
21 - 40 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 >> >|
all

Latest News for Heavenly Creatures

December 13, 2005: Critical Consensus: Crown This "Kong"
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