The film that single-handedly sank the teen-movie whilst introducing Gen-X cinema, Heathers’ place in pop culture seemed all but assured until the tragic events at Columbine High School in 1999. Suddenly, school kids with guns wasn’t such a groovy topic. But recent years have seen a revival of this Michael Lehmann-directed classic. Its arch irony has found a new set of admirers inside the Gen Y intelligentsia, questions such as ‘what’s your damage?’ popping up at groovy weekend parties.
In all honesty, though, Heathers hasn’t really benefited from the time it spent on the dark side of social criticism. Films such as American Beauty and Donnie Darko, in particular, came and retooled the genre in their own subtle image. The downfall of Jason Dean (Christian Slater) hit you where it hurt back in the early 90s, but now he comes across as nothing more than a loose collection of ideas, pasted together into a paper-thin character, and you end up wondering what the fuck a smart cat like Veronica (Winona Ryder) saw in him in the first place.
Still, this is Veronica’s story, and when the film is focussed on her it can be undeniably engaging. Ryder is key, her many knockers needing to re-experience Heathers to be reminded of how the actress garnered such a name for herself. Veronica’s battle with the titular Heathers (Lisanne Falk, Shannen Doherty, Kim Walker) provides plenty of opportunity for Ryder to work her intimidating talent for physical comedy. The furious diary entries remain a personal favourite.
It’s perhaps in Heathers’ neutered ability to shock where it falls down most on a 2011 rewatch. The grim plot of Veronica and outsider Jason’s righteous yet deadly revenge against their high school bullies was earthshaking at the turn of the 90s, but is a bit blasé these days. What used to be pleasingly discombobulating now seems unlikely and perhaps out of character, even for the slightly bizarre universe in which Westerberg High exists. The stylised production design (Jon Hutman) and fuzzed out photography (Francis Kenny) have also been worked into the ground in the last 20 years.
Stripping back all these layers means that you’re left with characters, and it’s here that Heathers is really pushing its case uphill. Veronica is great, but she’s so cynical at the start of the film that it’s hard to believe how she ever became friends with the Heathers in the first place. Jason, on the other hand, is hardly ever sympathetic, to an extent where Veronica’s falling for him is unlikely at best. The audience’s lack of investment in these central characters and relationships hobbles Heathers badly, and as the film works itself into what should be a frenzied climax, you fall back on the clever set pieces and visual gags for entertainment.
It’s here that Heathers shows its worth in the new millennium. So much of the film is outdated, but the subtextual observations about teenage life supplied by screenwriter Daniel Waters are still dead-on for the most part. Likewise, Lehmann’s eye for sharp visual gags and humorous set pieces is hard to top – the shot of Veronica, hair shocked and face blackened, sucking on a cigarette in front of her school gymnasium, is still one of the classics of modern independent cinema.
Ultimately, Heathers isn’t quite the film its proponents would have you believe. It’s too expressionistic and lackadaisical with its characters for you to truly care about anything that happens onscreen. Still, two decades after its release this remains eye-opening filmmaking, featuring a great performance from Ryder and some classy set pieces. While it’s not the a-grade satire it once purported to be, Heathers is nevertheless an important milestone in the evolution of modern independent cinema.
I say:
An important film, in its own way, but not necessarily a great one. Heathers is worth checking out, but the years haven’t been totally kind to it.
See it for:
Winona Ryder. She is the best thing about this film by some margin.
For more movies like Heathers 1988 visit Hurawatch.
Also watch: