HEAVEN

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 3 out of 5

Because of: a scene of sexual content

Rated:

Foreign films have a distinctly different flavor than Hollywood. They more more slowly and often, like Heaven, are filmed entirely or mostly in Italian or French. This interesting film is actually a subtle allegory and part one of what the director hopes will be three films, Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory. The ending may leave some people scratching their head (unless you're an intellectual) but Cate Blanchett truly shines in what might be her most challenging role to date -- that of a guilt-ridden English-teacher-turned-killer. She should have gotten an Oscar for this film.

The film opens with a young woman carefully reading instructions on how to put together a bomb. She wraps it in a towel, places it in a handbag, and walks through the streets to a large, mostly glass and chrome office building. Going up several flights of stairs, she distracts the secretary and places it inside a trash can in the office of a businessman. She then rings the prefect of police and warns him that because they didn't listen to her she's going to blow the man up. But her plan goes wrong. The cleaning lady empties the waste basket and gets into the elevator with a man and his two children. A moment later the elevator is ripped apart by a massive explosion. The woman, whose name is Philippa, is arrested for murder.

Believing her to be part of a terrorist organization, the police demand to know all of her contacts. Through an English interpreter (she refuses to confess in Italian, although she can speak the language beautifully) named Filippo (Giovanni Ribisi), we learn her history. She's an American citizen who teaches English at the local school. Her husband died of a drug overdose six months before, while divorce papers were being processed. The man in whose office she planted the bomb is a drug lord responsible for not only her husband's death but many of her students as well. Then she learns the truth -- that four innocent people were killed by her bomb. She is overcome with remorse and Filippo becomes determined to help her.

Devising a plan for her escape, he finds himself falling in love. But even after their successful release there is nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. Philippa believes she should pay for her crimes because she murdered four people unintentionally. But not until she brings the drug lord down. Through their journey they will discover complete harmony with one another, develop a bond stronger than friendship and greater than love, and ultimately make a great sacrifice. It's an intellectual piece, not very fast moving but as beautiful as a painting. Every shot in the film is just gorgeous and the charisma between Cate and her costar Giovanni Ribisi is intense. You can actually believe the pair of them are devotedly in love.

Truthfully, this movie is a paradox. It's mesmerizing through the first half and then takes a slightly darker twist. I consider myself to be intelligent but even I had trouble understanding what the writer was trying to get across. Basically the movie is about love and "connections" rather than morals. The two main characters are flawed. One of them is guilt-ridden, the other innocent but also imperfect. I found it fascinating to watch the effects of their guilt, both in Philippa after she learns the truth about the bombing and in Filippo as he mourns setting up the death of the drug lord. It's not about whether or not they were right; it's about the conflict of the human soul. Few movies dare to tread on these grounds and Heaven does it beautifully.

From a Christian perspective it wouldn't be hard to point out the allegory here. Philippa represents mankind -- our sin nature, followed by repentance (grief). Filippo very well could represent Christ -- the savior who comes, pulls us out of darkness and walks with us on the difficult road toward Heaven. The "cleansing" of both characters comes in the form of shaving their hair off to identify with one another and wearing matching outfits (perhaps a subtle hint toward how we desire to become like Christ). Of course it's not a full allegory; it's merely a film with allegorical possibilities, but they are strong enough to give the viewer something to think about. It does move slowly and sometimes there are moments of complete silence, but it's like a peaceful painting; something we enjoy at the time and don't regret when the film builds to its shocking but profound conclusion.

I do wonder therefore why the director chose to incorporate sexual content. Without a rowdy scene between a milkman and a maid in the front of his milk truck, the movie could have earned a PG13 rating (PG if one f-word didn't make it into subtitles). There is very little language altogether (I think three profanities, an f-word, and one minor abuse of deity) and all the violence is implied rather than seen. (We witness the elevator door being blown apart after it closes and see a bloody corpse on the floor after a man is shot and killed.) The sex scene has no relevance on the plot and is definitely worth the R-rating. (I might add, however, that I didn't see it by skipping to the next scene on the DVD.) Close to the end we see a far-off shot of two people on a hill undressing and embracing in a silhouette. It's not graphic. We also see Philippa briefly in her panties. It's not a perfect movie and is at times intellectually confusing, but there's something beautiful and sincere about it. If you're prepared to do a little remote work and have an interest in theology, I'd recommend Heaven.