Heavenly Creatures

In the early 1950s, the small-town New Zealand community of Wellington is a place where everyone knows each other, and gossip spreads quickly. Against this backdrop, 13-year-old Juliet Hulme, a free-spirited and imaginative teenager, arrives with her wealthy and well-educated family. As she struggles to adjust to her new life, Juliet finds solace in the quiet, enigmatic Pauline Parker, a shy and introverted girl from a lower-middle-class background. The two girls, seemingly from different worlds, form an unlikely bond over their shared love of fantasy and literature, including books by Lewis Carroll, George MacDonald, and C.S. Lewis. They spend hours reading, imagining, and fantasizing together, finding freedom in their own parallel universe. This shared passion allows them to temporarily escape the constraints of their mundane lives, as well as the expectations placed upon them by their families and society. As their friendship deepens, Juliet and Pauline's imagination and sense of adventure become increasingly intense. They engage in elaborate role-playing games, creating their own characters and stories within their fantasies. Their bond evolves into an all-encompassing obsession, with each girl relying heavily on the other for emotional support, validation, and a sense of belonging. Pauline, in particular, is drawn to Juliet's charismatic and confident nature, and is captivated by her seemingly carefree spirit. Juliet, on the other hand, is drawn to Pauline's sensitivity and vulnerability, and is fascinated by her inner world of imagination and creativity. This symbiotic relationship allows them to express themselves freely, unencumbered by the constraints of their everyday lives. However, as their obsession intensifies, the boundaries between fact and fantasy begin to blur. Juliet and Pauline's conversations become increasingly elaborate, as they weave elaborate stories and scenarios around themselves. Their interactions take on a ritualistic quality, with each girl playing both the active and passive roles in their elaborate games. This blurring of reality and fantasy creates a sense of disconnection from the real world, and from their own families and friends. Their relationship reaches a turning point when Pauline's father, Stan Parker, begins to disapprove of Juliet's influence on his daughter. He sees Juliet as a "bad influence" and accuses her of "turning" Pauline into a "tomboy." Juliet's parents, who are initially supportive of her friendship with Pauline, eventually begin to share Parker's concerns. The tension builds, as Juliet becomes increasingly isolated from her parents and from society at large. The film's title, "Heavenly Creatures," refers to the girls' fantastical world of imagination and fantasy, but it also hints at the darker, more sinister undertones that begin to emerge in their relationship. The title is a reference to the works of C.S. Lewis, whose "Heavenly Creatures" trilogy explores the idea of a magical realm that exists alongside the real world. Juliet and Pauline's obsessive bond has created a similar realm, one that is all-consuming and all-encompassing, but ultimately doomed to collapse. In the film's shocking and tragic climax, Juliet and Pauline's fantasy world is shattered, and the boundaries between reality and fantasy are finally revealed. On a fateful day in June 1952, Pauline kills her mother with a brick, after Juliet has orchestrated the event. The crime is a devastating culmination of their obsessive bond, one that has led them down a path of destruction and despair. The film's ending is a bleak and unsettling reflection on the destructive power of obsession and the blurred lines between fantasy and reality. The Heavenly Creatures, as a metaphor for the girls' relationship, has been revealed to be a fragile and ultimately doomed fantasy, one that has consumed them both.