Heavenly Creatures

[Guybrush]

Hi there, movie buff!

The SCD Film Club have decided on the first movie to watch and discuss and it is Peter Jackson's Heavenly Creatures from 1994.

The movie was suggested by myself and I described it like this:

Heavenly Creatures (Peter Jackson, 1994)



Before Lord of the Rings, Peter Jackson is perhaps most known for his gory horror comedies Bad Taste and Braindead (aka Dead Alive). However, he is a diverse film maker and also made movies like the mockumentary Forgotten Silver, the very adult Muppets parody Meet the Feebles and the PG fantasy horror movie Frighteners starring Michael J. Fox.

A little more obscure perhaps is the movie Heavenly Creatures, a drama based on a true crime story about the intense friendship between two girls Pauline and Juliet, their shared fantasy world Borovnia, and the dire consequences when their friendship becomes threatened.

The movie is Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey's first feature film and was generally well received by critics upon its release. It was also nominated for an Oscar for best screenplay.

I humbly ask film club members and anyone else who'd want to participate to watch this movie at your leisure and return here to give us your comments. How did you like it?

If you wonder where you might watch it, I believe it is available on Netflix.

[Guybrush]

So just watched this. I did NOT find it on Netflix in my region, although I'm pretty sure it was there earlier. I also couldn't rent or buy it digitally anywhere I could see. What the hell internet? I had to resort to buccaneer cove or Corsair's dock or whatever you call it. I hope you guys can find it!

As for the film, I still like it a lot. It's the fiercest portrayal of a friendship that I can think of at the moment. I think the film does quite well in being entertaining while showing the inner and outer pressures that lead them to the awful conclusion.

Kate and Melanie are very well cast, I think. The way they giggle and play communicates the age of the characters well. Kate's Juliet is just a bit or way too much in everything she does (which suits the character very well). Melanie's Pauline is probably my favorite of the duo. She plays her well and is just fun to watch or listen to when she narrates. I'm endlessly fascinated (or fescineted?) by her New Zealand accent. The way the two of them sort of enable each other comes across well.

Peter Jackson's direction from that time is familiar. It's not as pronounced here as in, say, Braindead aka. Dead Alive, but I found it effective. I notice things like the camera hovering above the car as Juliet arrives at school, then panning down. The camera appearing from behind someone and panning sideways as we enter the classroom. The use of color and especially colored lights (blue / red) is also familiar.

By the way, I also love that Lionel's mother from Braindead plays their teacher.

I'd say it's a strong 4 out of 5 for me. 4 and one quarter.