Heaven

Rating:
Summary: A poetic thriller
Review: It begins as what feels like a routine crime film, but gradually morphs into a poetic thriller. Heaven's storyline never rises above the level of a sketch, and the revelations of its central characters' motives are superficial. Nevertheless, it hits psychological and emotional notes that will resonate for most viewers.

Cate Blanchett is Philippa, an Englishwoman who teaches in an unnamed Italian city (the exteriors were apparently shot in Turin). As we are introduced to her she is attempting to plant a bomb in the office of a powerful industrialist. What happens next results in her being jailed and interrogated by the Carabinieri (Italy's most hard-boiled police).

Fillippo (Giovanni Ribisi) - yes, the characters have the same name in the feminine and masculine forms - is a young policeman, perhaps in his first day on the job, who is serving as a scribe during the interrogation. When Philippa asks to be allowed to speak in her native English language, Fillippo bashfully offers to act as interpreter.

I won't describe what happens next, for fear of giving spoilers, except to say that Fillippo falls instantly for Philippa, seeing a lost and hurting soul in her, despite the beastly crime she is accused of. He helps her to escape from her cell in the building where the interrogation is being performed and goes on the run with her, throwing away his law-enforcement career almost before it has started.

Blanchett is, as usual, riveting. This fine actress isn't, thank goodness, content to rely on her ethereal beauty. She allows us to experience Philippa from the inside. Ribisi isn't in the same class, and the film at times feels unbalanced. Yet his is not a bad performance; it just lacks Blanchett's finesse. The supporting actors are well cast, particularly the one who plays Ribisi's father, a Carabinieri officer whose pride in his son's following in his footsteps is shattered.

The screenplay was co-authored by director Krzysztof Kieslowski, the critics' darling famed for his Red, Blue and White trilogy. I haven't seen any of his films, but on the basis of this script, I doubt that whatever merits those films can boast are owing to the dialogue.

I almost didn't rent this DVD when I saw that it was made by Tom Tykwer, who directed the popular but slipshod Run, Lola, Run. (What persuaded me to watch it was seeing Sidney Pollack and Anthony Minghella credited as producers.) It would seem that, having gotten Lola out of his system, Tykwer has calmed down. Once Philippa and Fillippo have escaped from the city, the film takes on an agreeably lyrical tone without abandoning the suspenseful undercurrents. Tykwer has even managed in places an expressive understatement that is far more involving than the tweaked-up kineticism of Run, Lola, Run.

There is, for instance, a beautiful scene in which the lovers wake up side by side in the room where they have hidden for the night just after Philippa's escape. He opens his eyes to look at her; she opens hers to gaze on him. No words are said. None are necessary.

Estonian composer Arvo Part's moody, reticent musical score is another plus. The slightly over-ripe cinematography is generally well transmitted by the DVD authoring, although there is a touch of pixel freezing and thawing in the static backgrounds.

The movie's last shot is unbelievable and aerodynamically impossible - but it's so memorable that it may haunt you long afterward.

Be sure to watch the first of the deleted scenes, which should have been left in. It clarifies the relationship between Fillippo and his father. (In fact, I recommend you watch it before the movie.) Did Tykwer really think that those extra two minutes would send his audience into spasms of boredom?

Rating:
Summary: Heaven Sent
Review: Once again Cate Blanchett and Giovanni Ribisi are teamed up (see also The Gift) to give us a riveting performance. Ribisi has emotional range that belies his years and Blanchett again earns our rapt involvement. Her performance resonates. Director Tykwer has incorporated the fine performances of these two actors into a stylish yet intimate landscape. This is a film to be revisited.

Rating:
Summary: Stunning
Review: One of the most inspiring movies of 2002.Its incredibly well set up and brilliantly executed.The poetic amplification rings true.The performances are beautiful with a very hard hitting narrative.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting First Half, But Mismatched Second Half
Review: Phillipa Paccard (Kate Blanchett) is an Englishwoman living in Italy. Her husband has died of a drug overdose, as have some of the students to whom she teaches English. Phillipa knows the identity of the drug kingpin who supplied them and wants the police to take action. But when her repeated phone calls and letters to the police get no response, she decides to take matters into her own hands. She plants a bomb in the office of the man she knows to be the city's major source of drugs. She is arrested and accused of being a terrorist, and a corrupt police captain covers all evidence of her past communication with the police. But Filippo (Giovanni Ribisi), the young police officer assigned as her translator throughout her interrogation, falls in love with Phillipa. He helps her escape police custody but finds that, once free, she only wants to finish the task she set out to do. Phillipa and Filippo escape to the Italian countryside. While eluding the massive manhunt that has been organized to find them, the couple find love and new reasons to live.

Giovanni Ribisi and Kate Blanchett are both terrific actors, and Kate Blanchett is particularly good in "Heaven". I really liked the first half of this movie. Phillipa's desperation and determination and the police force's confusion in the presence of a criminal who doesn't act like they expect her to made me curious to see how it would all turn out. The problem is that the way things turn out in the second half of the movie doesn't seem to follow the first half. The themes, the tone, and even the style of "Heaven'"s second half are so totally different from the film's first half that it seems like we are watching two movies, the first of which is never resolved satisfactorily. It is not so much that the film's second half is bad as that the second half seems like it should be part of a different movie. I suspect that "Heaven"'s writer and director were trying to avoid a cliche thriller resolution to the plot line of the first half, and so moved the movie to the countryside and in the opposite direction of a typical thriller ending. It just doesn't work. The ideas of "Heaven"'s first half seem not to go anywhere, and its second half seems superfluous. English and Italian with English subtitles.

Rating:
Summary: a lot of subtitles kinda gets boring after awhile
Review: The beginning is the most shocking thing in the movie. Giovanni Ribisi and Cate Blanchett share nice chemistry but enough with the subtitles already. I just cant stand that, it numbs my brain. It was alright in The Passion Of The Christ but this movie it just doesnt pass. I had a hard time keeping up with the subtitles as they went along and it confused me even more, but that's just me and Blanchett bald is not that attractive

Rating:
Summary: A Beautiful Film
Review: The cinematography is amazing in this film. Although I am a big fan of Tom Tykwer's other films, Heaven is definitely my favorite. If you're looking for something fast-paced like Run Lola Run, this is not the film for you. Heaven is fairly slow paced-but it definitely fits. Its slower pace is important, as it makes the film more moving, and gives the viewer time to reflect, etc.

In summary: if you enjoy slower-paced, thoughtful, beautiful films, you should definitely watch Heaven.

Rating:
Summary: Unintended Consequences
Review: This beautiful film from a script by the late, great Polish director Krisztof Kieslowski (Red,White & Blue etc.) and directed by Tom Tywker (Run Lola Run etc.) is an unusual film that will surprise and delight the viewer wishing something different with some depth.

A tragedy of the unintended consequences that result from an act of righteous anger, the aftermath of this vengeful event and the ensuing investigation of the perpetrator is just the starting place for what develops into an unusual and touching love story, a different sort of unintended consequence (which love so often is).

There is corruption in high places, the vile masquerading as the just, further violence, an escape and pursuit. These are background and side themes to what becomes a quiet character study of two people touching and redeeming one another.

Filmed with tasteful restraint and poetry, this film reveals rather than explains. The dialogue is minimal and pointed, and the actors superbly express their characters through look and gesture. Well done in all departments, Blanchett, Ribisi and the supporting cast are excellent, and Tywker has done an admirable job of direction. Worthwhile.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, Sentimental, And... a rental
Review: This is actually a fantastic movie that I feel everyone should watch at some point in there life. The visuals are amazing, and the movie is at some points suspenseful, however, that being said, there are flaws, the characters are poorly developed (personally I like this because I made my own interpretations of the film) and many people will have problems with this.

Rating:
Summary: A beautiful, thought-provoking film
Review: This is one of the most beautiful films I have seen in a long time. The director knows how to create magic moments, and the slow tempo of the film allows the viewer to reflect upon not only the intrigue, but also the visual pictures. If you like films where something happens all the time, this is not a film for you. Instead, the film is almost floating forward in a way that makes you think about not so much what happens, but the deeper issues that are embedded in the film.

Human beings are not good or bad, and there is no such thing as a black and white world. Instead, the nuances matter. Being human is to make mistakes, sometimes. The director does not spell out any answers to the questions that the film poses, rather, provides one perspective on how they could be viewed, but is not trying to convince the viewer that this is THE truth.

Rating:
Summary: hopeless - but a moment of love
Review: Very suspenseful - very touching.
Tykwer shows the abysses of a corrupt society. High police officers are involved in drug dealing, so how could ever the truth be revealed.

The sad truth about an arrested, righteous young lady, who couldn't bear any more the destructive influence of drugs to her beloved ones. Seeking revenge on one of the most responsible dealers, instead she killed four innocent other people by mischance. No way for her, ever to be happy again. A hopeless life without sense.
Just at least there's this little hope, by help of a young police apprentice, who fell for her, to flee and finish her revenge on the right person.
But accepting his help, she realizes the unconditional big feeling that he has towards her, and she returns his love.

Now there are two hopeless lives.
But a wonderful moment of love, and a heaven!