Heaven (2002)

A woman takes the law into her own hands after police ignore her pleas to arrest the man responsible for her husband's death, and finds herself not only under arrest for murder but falling in love with an officer.

Director:

Tom Tykwer

Writers:

Krzysztof Kieslowski (trilogy "Heaven, Hell and Purgatory"), Krzysztof Piesiewicz (trilogy "Heaven, Hell and Purgatory")

Stars:

Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Remo Girone

6 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Cate Blanchett	...	Philippa
Giovanni Ribisi	...	Filippo
Remo Girone	...	Filippo's Father
Stefania Rocca	...	Regina
Alessandro Sperduti	...	Ariel
Mattia Sbragia	...	Major Pini
Stefano Santospago	...	Mr. Vendice
Alberto Di Stasio	...	The Prosecutor
Giovanni Vettorazzo	...	The Inspector
Gianfranco Barra	...	The Lieutenant
Vincent Riotta	...	Chief Guard
Mauro Marino	...	Doctor
Stefania Orsola Garello	...	Vendice's Secretary
Fausto Lombardi	...	Father High Rise
Giorgia Coppa	...	Older Daughter

Storyline

Love, retribution and redemption. Devastated by her husband's death from a drug overdose, Philippa, a British teacher living in Turin, Italy, tries to bring justice to the biggest drug dealer in Turin when the local police ignore her information about him. In building a home-made bomb and setting off a plan that fails miserably, her status changes from young widow to that of a criminal in custody. Young police officer Filipo descends into Philippa's life, changing her bleak outlook on existence into one in search of tranquility among corruption, as they become unlikely soul mates and lovers.

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Plot Keywords:

love | death | bomb | police | justice | 

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Taglines:

What Would You Risk For Love?

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for a scene of sexuality

Did You Know?

Trivia

Cate Blanchett jumped at the chance of shaving off her hair for the film, finding the experience to be very liberating.

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Goofs

Crewmembers are briefly reflected in the front of a train as we see the main characters walk away from the train. Specifically, look for a man in a red tee-shirt.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Helicopter Pilot: [in Italian supervising simulation] Follow the terrain. Good. Keep it perpendicular to the ridge. That's it. Under real conditions you might have to compensate for the wind here. Now, maintain you height. Watch your height, careful.
[climbing higher simulator switches off]
Helicopter Pilot: In a real helicopter you can't just keep flying higher.
Filippo: How high can I fly?

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Connections

References The Gift (2000)

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Soundtracks

6 Variationen zur Gesundung von Arinushka
Composed by Arvo Pärt
Performed by David Arden (piano)
Koch International
Courtesy of Universal Edition, Vienna

User Reviews

thin, short, refined

'Heaven' is a wonderfully subtle film, full of refined camera work and scarce in dialogue. It stands as a good representation for the 'X Filme' project that Tom Tykwer co-heads, which aims to create films both new and thought-provoking as well as successful in their theater runs.

At roughly an hour and a half, 'Heaven' is a cinematic triumph that nudges open the gates to the philosophy and psychology of the lone man or woman along with those of society on the whole. It takes place in Italy, but Tykwer himself stated in an interview that really it could have been shot in any number of places with the message remaining the same. 'Heaven' is a thinly-scripted, in-depth commentary on issues prevailing throughout the modern world. Drugs, sex, sexuality, identity and the fibres that make up humans as a race are what this film revolves around: it is not a film for tourists or spectators. The excellent performances of Giovanni Ribisi and Cate Blanchett (apart and together) should only be missed if you are mainly looking for external adventure and action. Though it shares its part in weapons, scheme and drama, 'Heaven' is not blockbuster material: it is art material.

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax [United States]

Country:

UK France Italy Germany USA

Language:

Italian English

Release Date:

21 February 2002 (Germany)

Also Known As:

En el cielo

Filming Locations:

Bottrop, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

$11,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$51,909, 6 October 2002

Gross USA:

$784,399

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$4,247,089

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax, X-Filme Creative Pool, Mirage Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1