Review of Heavenly Creatures (1994) by Cürtis W — 21 Jan 2014

A bleak portrayal of the end result of anti-LGBT measures in 1950s New Zealand, "Heavenly Creatures" shows the deteriorating minds of both Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme as they're confronted with a world that hates who they are and what they stand for. This, of course, leads to a grisly murder they immediately regret. Rifle with 1980s horror cinematography, a surreal mix of fantasy and psychological drama, and social commentary regarding various views on homosexuality, Peter Jackson's art house debut takes him away from his comfort zone and thereby allows him to sufficiently develop his own artistic dictionary to exploit from.

It's such a beautiful film to look at - the acting is perfectly melodramatic, the scenery perfectly uncanny, and the story in dire need to be told. I know this comes really close to another "gay people die because of plot contrivance" story, but the thing is that nobody should be torn apart from each other by force because of sexual orientation. While I'm not one to say the girls needed to kill Pauline's mother (or should have) because it's wrong no matter the reasons, I can see why they would be led to do such a thing. Granted they're not lesbians (according to Juliet Hulme herself), but nobody should have to go through this regardless of their sexuality. No forced separation, no month-long schemes just to lessen your own unhealthy paranoia, nothing.

But, um, yeah, their stories sucked.