FemaleFirst.co.uk: DVD: Heaven [DVD] [2002]

Heaven [DVD] [2002]
enlarge	Director: Tom Tykwer Actors: Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Remo Girone, Stefania Rocca, Alessandro Sperduti Studio: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainm Category: DVD List Price: ~~£14.99~~ Buy New: £2.91 as of 21/11/2009 05:07 GMT details You Save: £12.08 (81%) New (12) Used (5) from £2.32 Seller: rsdvd Rating: 10 reviews Sales Rank: 9070 Format: PAL Languages: English (Original Language), Italian (Original Language) Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over Region: 2 Discs: 1 Number Of Discs: 1 Running Time: 93 Minutes Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2 Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6 EAN: 5017188889018 ASIN: B0000AE7CO Theatrical Release Date: February 21, 2002 Release Date: October 4, 2004 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days


Similar Items: Hell [DVD] [2005] The Princess And the Warrior [DVD] [2001] Little Fish [DVD] [2006] Oscar And Lucinda [1997] [DVD] L'Enfer [DVD] [1994]


Customer Reviews: Showing reviews 1-5 of 10 1 2 Next » How high can you fly? January 18, 2006 E. A Solinas (MD USA) 26 out of 27 found this review helpful What is true love? What would we do to keep it, once we find it? Is this what it is like to find a true soulmate? What is wrong and right if we seek redemption, but are dragged down by a lust for justice? The quietly beautiful "Heaven" will leave those thoughts in your head as you watch it.pIn Italy, young schoolteacher Phillipa Paccard (Cate Blanchett) sneaks into drug kingpin Vendice#x27;s office and plants a bomb in his trash, little knowing that the trash is about to be collected by the cleaning lady. The resulting explosion kills the lady, a father and his two children. When Phillipa is arrested and told this, she is aghast. She only intended to kill the kingpin, because his distribution of drugs has been killing her pupils, and killed her husband. She has asked the cabinieri to help, but no one has answered. So she took justice into her own hands.pA young Italian cabinieri, Filippo (Giovanni Ribisi), serves as a translator for Phillipa, and he is struck by her self-recrimination and sorrow. When her evidence is destroyed by a spy in the police, Philipo creates an elaborate escape plan, then helps her kill Vendice. From there, they escape into Tuscany, where their bond grows deeper. The soul mates live in what seems like a paradise, shaving their heads and wearing identical clothes. But Tuscany is not heaven, and they are still not safe.pTom Tykwer gave the film its focus (lovers in jeopardy) and unearthly direction, but Krzysztof Kieslowski provided the heart and soul of it. In that sense, it is wholly his movie. Themes of guilt and redemption, love and salvation, punishment and forgiveness run deep in "Heaven." Symbolism clings to it like ivy (the white shirts, the bright lights), and there are definite religious tones to it -- Phillipa#x27;s confession to Filipo in a church, the wistful watching of a wedding, and the ascension into the skies -- not the triumph of law, but the triumph of love and forgiveness.pThe handling of Phillipa and Filippo is exquisite, such as the scenes where they shave their heads and wear identical clothes, run and walk in unison. He was born on the day of her first communion, and their names are male and female versions of each other#x27;s, yin and yang. Not exactly subtle, but convincing. The direction is otherworldly, even in scenes like Phillipa shooting Vendice. In the latter half of the film, this dreaminess pervades everything -- the trees, sky, ruined stone churches and the tiny running figures.pThe main problems, it seems, would be the ocasional clash between Tykwer and the late Kieslowski#x27;s style. Some parts are more Tykwer, some are more Kieslowski, so it seems sometimes that the focus is less on the storyline and more on the lovers (which is more Tykwer). Additionally, when the lovers arrive in Tuscany the tone changes to a less hard-edged, more romantic one. Some viewers may find this disconcerting, but I found it a natural progression as the two grew closer and sought some kind of haven, even if Phillipa doesn#x27;t want to go unpunished.pCate Blanchett is in amazing form here, expressing grief, love, pride, and anger with only a slight change of expression. Giovanni Ribisi is almost as good; he#x27;s a little stiff in the beginning, but loosens up and becomes fully believable as a very young man who is very deeply in love. Remo Girone appears in only a few scenes as Filipo#x27;s dad, but is heartbreakingly good.pWith the best of Tykwer and Kieslowski carefully woven together, "Heaven" is a quietly passionate, deeply romantic movie. An amazing, heartbreaking movie, and not one to be missed. Amazingly different and challenging January 3, 2004 18 out of 19 found this review helpful When I rented this film I had no idea what I was getting. The back cover seems to imply a thriller in the standard hollywood mode for blockbuster sellers. I can not be more emphatic in my expression of delight that it was not the easy ride I had hoped for and expected. This film will challenge you from the first moment. I watched it twice straight through and then watched all the extras provided on the DVD - some of the best and most worth while use of additional material. In particular the directors commentary. Please watch this one. Brilliant! Cate is excellent (again!) September 13, 2003 Peter J. Hewitt (Hull, UK) 12 out of 13 found this review helpful WOW! What a fantastic film.brI watched this film with no knowledge of it at all, the selling point was the talent of Cate Blanchett, and once again she has proved herself. It seems that no matter what film or subject she acts, she takes the roll to it's max and shines, she has done comedy (Bandits) brilliantly, drama (The Gift) and my all time favouite film Elizabeth where she is just perfect.brBut there is also the talent of Giovanni Ribisi (Saving Private Ryan, X files, Friends and The Gift with Cate), this guy can also shine in his acting ability.brThe movie itself starts mainly in Italian and progresses into more english (subtitiles for the Italian spoken parts) but please don't let that put you off as it adds to the beauty of the film.brSet in Italy the film has some beautiful locations and some fantastic cinematography, especially a scene with the two stars and a sunset near the end.brThe film seems complex then yet simple and is moving at times in a strange way consider the acts of Cate's character.brTo top it all, the film is giving a beautiful musical score.brWell worth getting. A deeply beautiful and tragic film April 17, 2006 David Welsh (Oslo, Norway) 15 out of 17 found this review helpful The screenplay for this film was written by the celebrated Polish filmmaker Krzysztof Kieslowski and his writing partner Kryzysztof Piesiewicz and is rumoured to have been intended as the first part of a new trilogy of films (Heaven, Purgatory and Hell). When Kieslowski died, the script for Heaven was finished, but he had not had the chance to direct it, so Tykwer was chosen to follow the project through to completion. The film is a powerful combination of thriller and love story, with wonderful performances from the two leads, Cate Blanchett and Giovanni Ribisi. The direction and cinematography are superb - this is an outstandingly beautiful film. Tykwer has provided a fitting epilogue to the career of one of Europe's greatest filmmakers. worthy use of kieslowski's idea July 8, 2009 bluegnu an enigmatic title since there is no literal reference to heaven at all: this is a story about injustice, powerlessness, moral dilemmas, how we judge people, love, redemption, losing the burden and fear of life's limitations... risky movie-making in that both central characters make morally repugnant choices early on... perfectly paced with artistically pleasing images supported by a beautifully minimal soundtrack Showing reviews 1-5 of 10 1 2 Next »

CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON EU S.à.r.l. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED ‘AS IS’ AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME.