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Movies / On DVD / Heathers
Heathers

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Heathers (1989)

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Reviews Counted:37

Fresh:35

Rotten:2

Average Rating:7.8/10

Consensus: Dark, cynical, and subversive, this high school satire gleefully lampoons high school culture with a deft mix of the hilarious and the gruesome.

Runtime: 1 hr 59 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Veronica Sawyer (Winona Ryder) has sacrificed everything in order to preserve her place in Westerburg High's most impenetrable social clique, the HEATHERS. As the only member of the group not named... Veronica Sawyer (Winona Ryder) has sacrificed everything in order to preserve her place in Westerburg High's most impenetrable social clique, the HEATHERS. As the only member of the group not named "Heather", Veronica has to work extra hard just to stay afloat. Going against her own morals and intelligence, Veronica succumbs to peer pressure on a daily basis, faking her delight in the humiliation of the school's less popular students. Bored of the frat parties and cow tipping so popular among her friends, Veronica's curiosity is peaked when a mysterious new guy named JD comes to town. The dark, brooding JD (Christian Slater at his best) observes Veronica among her pack in the lunchroom (where social hierarchy is most clearly displayed), concluding that Veronica is not a Heather at heart. When Veronica confides in JD that she hates her friends and wishes Heather #1 was dead, she never expects her words to have such dire consequences. Before she knows what's happening, JD is dragging Veronica on a killing spree staged as a teen suicide outbreak. But as Veronica soon learns, even death cannot stop the HEATHERS. As one Heather dies, her red scrunchee (the symbol of all power) gets passed on to the next Heather in line, and the clique that was the HEATHERS starts to feel like an inescapable social disease. How far will this war for popularity go? By far the darkest of teen comedies, HEATHERS invented a vocabulary of teen-speak all its own, asking questions like "What's your damage?" and introducing phrases like "How very." Director Michael Lehmann successfully blends the horror, comedy, and teen movie genres, creating a truly original film. Full of dark humor and deeply sardonic messages, HEATHERS takes a fresh look at the often-sugarcoated cinematic world of high school. Set in the 1980s, the film feels timeless in its relevance because of the daring nature of its themes. Filled with great performances, a candy-colored set, and an infectious soundtrack, murder has never been so much fun! [More]

Starring: Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Kim Walker

Starring: Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Kim Walker, Lisanne Falk, Penelope Milford, Glenn Shadix

Director: Michael Lehmann

Director: Michael Lehmann
Screenwriter: Daniel Waters
Producer: Denise DiNovi
Composer: David Newman

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Release:

Mar 30, 1999

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Heathers

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1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating)
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Its inanities and glib pretensions are so thick that it mainly comes across as tacky and contrived.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment 1 Comment
07/18/07
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

For a long time, we're not even sure of the point of view: Is this a black comedy about murder or just a cynical morality play? The traveler in the foreign country is not sure, but he knows the film inspires thought.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Dark, cynical, but deliciously funny, Heathersis a fascinating look not just at high school but at the way we look at high school.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
07/18/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide

This film is dark as night but great fun, taking teen issues by the scruff of the neck and holding them up as the rather unpleasant exhibits they are.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
04/08/02
Amber Wilkinson
Amber Wilkinson
Eye for Film

A wonderful savage satire on high school life.

comment Comment
12/19/02
Bob Bloom
Bob Bloom
Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

An amazing black satire filled with vicious biting words that snap like firecrackers.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Brad Laidman
Brad Laidman
Film Threat

So grab your croquet mallet, load up on "Ich luge" bullets, and crank up the Big Fun: Heathers is a motion picture that continues to impress and disturb, even 20 years after release.

Full Review Source: BrianOrndorf.com | comment Comment
07/01/08
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
BrianOrndorf.com

No review available.

comment Comment
09/26/03
Carol Cling
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal

A scathing lambasting of the American teen in the late 1980s, but its presence will be timeless.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

May be the nastiest, cruelest fun you can have without actually having to study law or gird leather products.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Lehmann's audacious feature debute transforms teen suicide into a wild and mean satire with a giddy tone. Good year for indies: The movie premiered at Sundance in 1989, along with sex, lies and videotape, thus heralding Gen-X Cinema.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
12/04/06
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

... the film paints high school as a veritable hell where the only way to alleviate suffering is by making others suffer more.

Full Review Source: DVD Review | comment Comment
08/11/08
Felix Gonzalez Jr.
Felix Gonzalez Jr.
DVD Review

Lehman's delightfully dark and deranged take on adolescent angst and isolation. Heathers is heuristic in its haughty examination of teenaged alienation

comment Comment
05/25/03
Frank Ochieng
Frank Ochieng
Movie Eye

No review available.

comment Comment
10/28/04
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion

The points it makes about the violence-prone absurdity of American adolescence are perhaps even more incisive today than they were [in 1989].

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
10/09/01
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

A poisoned candy apple that'll bring a sardonic smile to the lips of those who remember it and entertain those who haven't experienced it before.

Full Review Source: Netflix | comment Comment
11/07/02
James Rocchi
James Rocchi
Netflix

As snappy and assured as it is mean-spirited.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/20/03
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Director Michael Lehmann and writer Daniel Waters keep things dark and tasty, and the dialogue and high school politics still resonate with a sharp sting.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
05/17/04
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

No review available.

comment Comment
01/30/03
Jeffrey Westhoff
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

Blistering comedy run aground by cop-out ending.

comment Comment
03/01/04
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating)
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Latest News for Heathers

August 27, 2009: Fox, Sony Plot Heathers TV Series Opens in new window
Twenty years (and a million sequel rumors) after it originally graced theater screens, "Heathers" is coming back -- as a TV show. More...

July 03, 2009: Michael Lehmann Says No Heathers Sequel Planned Opens in new window
Despite what you may have heard from Winona Ryder, director Michael Lehmann wants you to know there is no "Heathers" sequel in the pipeline. More...

March 12, 2009: Heathers Heads to Broadway Opens in new window
"Race to Witch Mountain" director Andy Fickman is developing a stage musical version of the 1989 cult classic "Heathers." More...

February 01, 2007: Box Office Guru Preview: Keaton and Kids Hope to Score Touchdown
As the Chicago Bears and the Indianapolis Colts get ready to rumble at the Super Bowl on Sunday, Hollywood goes into counterprogramming mode and targets female moviegoers with a... More...

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