Heathers (1989)
Directed by Michael Lehmann
Written by Daniel Waters
Starring Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Kim Walker, Lisanne Falk
Release Date March 31st 1989
Published March 31st 2009
In the late 1980's, as the John Hughes boom began to wane, a film came along that exploded the teen movie genre and changed the way teen movies are seen forever. With it's twisted violence and sick humor, Heathers was a kick in the ass to any and all teen movies that came before it.Though it wasn't a huge hit in the moment, it worked to cement a budding legend in Winona Ryder while establishing Christian Slater as a heartthrob and a budding leading man in the Nicholson-Brando mold.
The film stars Winona Ryder as Veronica, a member of the popular clique in her school, the Heathers, named for the other three girls in the group whose names were all Heather. Veronica, being the only member of the clique not named Heather, is a bit of an outcast leaving one to wonder why is she even in the group, a question she often asks herself. Veronica goes through the motions of watching her friends play cruel tricks on classmates and generally being obnoxious until she meets JD (Christian Slater).
JD is a misanthropic outcast with an intense dislike of the Heathers. Veronica falls for JD and the two set about avenging the misdeeds of the Heathers. Veronica's idea of vengeance is slightly different than JD's though. With Heather #1 (Kim Walker), Veronica just thinks they are going to make her sick with a combination of milk and orange juice, JD, however, wants to use Drano and various other household items. After eliminating Heather #1, Veronica and JD make Heather #1's death look like suicide.
Just how trendy are the Heather's, Heather 1's suicide makes the uber-bitch into a saint and makes suicide another trendy teen accessory. Veronica is horrified by what happened but equally horrified by the reaction of others to what happened. JD then convinces Veronica to undertake another staged suicide, this time it's two asshole jock football players who are dispatched as if they were a lovers suicide pact.
Once again the suicides turn the jerks into hero's and Veronica realizes JD's romantic notion of saving the school from the cliques and the jocks is actually a psychotic obsession. Winona Ryder is spectacular in what may be the best role of her career. Her delivery and timing is flawless, not to mention her chemistry with Slater who also swings for the fences and nails it. Slater's slow boil from broody boy-toy to Jack Nicholson in The Shining levels of kooky psychotic behavior is a dark comic delight.
Heather's is cynical ironic and endlessly quotable. Nowadays, with political correctness being what it is this movie would be hard to make. That's not to say it can't be done but that it would take a great deal of savvy to find the right twisted buttons to push in this seemingly more sensitive time. Thankfully, Heathers exists as it is so who cares about whether it could be made again. The original is sharp, nasty, and completely hilarious today, yesterday and will remain so for years to come.
