It is set in modern-day Turin where Philippa (Cate Blanchett), an English teacher, plants a bomb in the office of a drug dealer (Stefano Santospago), who is responsible for the death of her husband and many of her students. However, through a tragic set of circumstances, the bomb kills four innocent people.
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 Director: Tom Tykwer
Screenwriter: Krzysztof Kieslowski, Krzysztof Piesiewicz
Cast: Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Stefano Santospago, Remo Girone
Classification:
Running time: 96min
In Turin, four innocent people are victims of a bomb attack. An English teacher named Philippa is taken into custody - she does not resist her arrest. Philippa is, nevertheless, utterly destroyed by what has occurred, because the bomb was intended for someone else altogether. |
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The police insist that Philippa's motives for the attack were political, but she is emotionally destroyed by the loss of innocent life. Filippo (Giovanni Ribisi), a young police officer who translates Philippa's statement into Italian while she is being questioned, is the only one who believes her story. Filippo is convinced that he and Philippa were made for each other.
Heaven is the first part of a trilogy planned by the late Polish director Krzysztof Kieslowski. However, Kieslowski's death in 1996 has led to Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run) taking over the director's role. Miramax has already made plans to make the next two, Hell and Purgatory, but it is uncertain whether Tykwer will direct them.
Whereas some people might argue that the developing relationship between Philippa and Filippo becomes too sentimental as the movie progresses, it is important to keep in mind that this relationship is necessary for the denouement of the movie.
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Giovanni Ribisi plays the role of police translator Filippo in Heaven |
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On one level, the relationship could be interpreted as a way for Philippa to redeem herself for her actions. By allowing herself to fall in love with a police officer, the very symbol of antithesis for her actions, she can be renewed as a person. However, on another level, the relationship shows the viewer that her actions and those of Filippo are an escape from its consequences. They can develop as individuals through their interaction with one another, but society will not forgive them for what they have done. In this sense they are almost the ideal tragic characters.
Blanchett gives a powerful performance as the English teacher who has to deal with the consequences of her actions. Her transformation in the movie is almost inspiring to watch. Ribisi, while being overshadowed by Blanchett in some of the scenes, still manages to convey the sense of hopelessness they are faced with.
Heaven is successful in the way it combines the different elements of the narrative. It shows how seemingly non-related events influence the main characters and the way they interact with each other. It is a poignant movie without going over the top with the emotions on offer. A definite must-see for those with slightly non-conventional tastes.
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