agmtw logo
search
Heavenly Creatures (1994)

Heavenly Creatures (1994)

Kate Winslet's feature debut in Peter Jackson's hallucinatory world

7.4

Movie

New-Zealand
English
Drama, Fantasy
1994
PETER JACKSON
Barry Thomson, Ben Fransham, Clive Merrison
109 min

7.4

Lee Adams

What it's about

Wealthy and precocious teenager Juliet transfers from England to New Zealand with her family, and soon befriends the quiet, brooding Pauline through their shared love of fantasy and literature. When their parents begin to suspect that their increasingly intense and obsessive bond is becoming unhealthy, the girls hatch a dark plan for those who threaten to keep them apart.

The take

Peter Jackson made the transition from splattery gross-out movies like Braindead to more respectable fare with Heavenly Creatures, the true story of an intense relationship between two teenage girls that culminates in the murder of one of their mothers.

As the girls’ friendship becomes unhealthier, they invent a secret world for themselves, amusingly including a heart-throb Orson Welles. This gives Jackson the opportunity to indulge in his love of fantasy, creating some dazzling hallucinatory sequences.

The fantasy element contrasts beautifully with the humdrum setting of ‘50s New Zealand, and the final tragedy is heart-breaking. The film also provided an auspicious debut for Kate Winslet, who is terrific as one of the misguided fantasists.

imdb
rt
wiki

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

More like this in

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.

8.1

The Guilty (2018)

A minimalist, razor-sharp thriller that will have you gasping for air.

9.0

System Crasher (2019)

A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.

9.0

Wind River (2017)

Sicario's screenwriter directs this story of murder in an Indigenous reserve

9.4

Leave the World Behind (2023)

Shyamalan meets Black Mirror in this hugely entertaining, visually inventive apocalyptic thriller with a killer ending

8.2

Cold War (2018)

A quiet Polish masterpiece with ravishing music and dazzling visuals

9.2

Short Term 12 (2013)

Sweet, slow-moving, and possibly life-changing, this American drama shines the light on the chaos and crises of social work in America

9.9

Wild Tales (2014)

Co-produced by Pedro Almodóvar, this tumultuous Argentine anthology film tests the limits of human sanity when pushed to the extremes – and will also test yours.

9.9

The Farewell (2019)

Awkwafina shines in this complex culture clash comedy.

9.1

Contratiempo (2016)

8.0

Movies
Series
Lists
Chrome extension
Projektor
Browse by mood
Cord-cutting
About us
Contact us

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.

Privacy Policy
Terms and Imprint