While New Zealand director Peter Jackson is now, and likely will always be, known for his adaptation of The Lord of the Rings. Because of the huge success of those films, his legacy is now mostly high fantasy, and many would say that those fantasy elements are his signature style. What people might not know is that fantasy is not where he got his start.
Early on in his career, Jackson actually made mostly off-the-wall, cheesy, ultra gory, horror movies. This is of course far from what he would eventually be recognized for. It wouldn't be until the mid-1990s that he would make a movie where a viewer could likely recognize a more current Peter Jackson story. While this film is not a high fantasy film, more of a drama/horror/true crime story, it feels very fantastical in many of its elements.
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The 1994 film Heavenly Creatures is a dramatized version of a very infamous New Zealand crime story. In 1954 Christchurch, Honorah Parker was sadly murdered by her teenage daughter Pauline, and Pauline's friend Juliet. The girls were aged 16 and 15, respectively, and were close to the point of being obsessed with each other. After bonding over respective illnesses, they spent all of their time together writing stories and designing fantasy worlds. When their families began to suspect that their relationship may be romantic, something that was illegal at the time in New Zealand, they became worried and it was decided that Juliet would move away to South Africa. The girls came up with a plan to be together in South Africa, and unfortunately that involved murdering Pauline's mother whom they believed was the only thing standing in their way.
This is of course a very serious topic, and it may be surprising that Jackson could have added any fantasy elements to this story. It seems very dark, and very true crime-based, which doesn't often go with high fantasy. However, the way that Jackson approached this story is where his signature style comes in. Instead of focusing the film on the murder itself and the media storm surrounding it, nearly the entire basis of Heavenly Creatures is the relationship between Pauline and Juliet. He delves into their friendship in their bond with extreme detail and showcases the fantasies going on in their minds.
Whether it's the dream/hallucinations Pauline has during her sexual experiences in the film, or Juliet escaping to the safe place in her mind during a panic attack, Jackson really takes the time in this film to indulge in the fantasy elements. He paints the main characters as people instead of just murderers. It's widely known that the real Pauline and Juliet wanted to be writers and artists and spent much time pretending in their fantasy worlds. Jackson told the story from that perspective, while others chose to focus on the highly serious crime elements or their rumored lesbian relationship.
The scenes in which the girls escape into their fantasies, feel magical. They are detailed and incredibly artistic, and the entire film is beautifully shot. Using a lot of forest settings, with sweeping shots of the girls playing together and dancing and pretending, is hugely reminiscent of Jackson's work in The Lord of the Rings. Everything feels kind of like a dream, like the viewers have been transported to another world. This is of course interesting because the subject matters of these works, really couldn't be more different. While The Lord of the Rings is actually set in another world, Heavenly Creatures isn't. Yet, Jackson is still able to recreate that feeling. It's entirely Jackson's style, the way he directs and interprets things. While this might not have been established yet in 1994 when this film came out, it's highly recognizable now.
It can be a point of criticism that these girls were murderers and Jackson paints them in such a humanized light, and this is probably a fair point. However, the stylization and story direction of the film just make so much sense in hindsight. It's a real narrative story that is detailed, especially in its characters, and it has a focus on the surreal elements of life. New viewers of the film who are familiar with The Lord of the Rings probably won't be surprised at what they see, and people who don't know that Jackson directed this film could even possibly guess that it is him.
Looking to see where a very famous director, especially one with a trademark style, got their start is always interesting. Sometimes, their works are highly recognizable from the very beginning. Sometimes, like with Peter Jackson, it takes a few films to really see those recognizable qualities come to life. Heavenly Creatures feels like that turning point for Jackson. In the same way that The Lord of the Rings saw books come to life in the most detailed way, Pauline and Juliet's fantasy worlds were brought to life. Though the subject matter is near polar opposite, similar reactions are evoked, and that feels very special.
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