7.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.6 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.8 |
Veronica (Winona Ryder) is part of the most popular clique at her high school, but she disapproves of the other girls' cruel behavior. When Veronica and her new boyfriend, J.D. (Christian Slater), confront clique leader Heather Chandler (Kim Walker) and accidentally poison her, they make it appear a suicide. Soon Veronica realizes that J.D. is intentionally killing students he does not like. She races to stop J.D. while also clashing with the clique's new leader, Heather Duke (Shannen Doherty).
Starring: Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Lisanne Falk, Kim Walker (I)Dark humor | 100% |
Teen | 71% |
Coming of age | 59% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.84:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English SDH, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Greetings and salutations!
The Teen Angst genre is certainly nothing new to Hollywood, and the decade of the 1980s
seemed
to have the market cornered for such films. Two prime examples immediately spring to mind,
the
1985 John Hughes soul-searcher The Breakfast Club and the 1989 Michael Lehmann
cult
classic Heathers. A staple of the home video market and a cornerstone of cable
television
broadcast schedules, The Breakfast Club is certainly the more popular of the two, and is
arguably the better film. Certainly more refined, boasting a bigger and better cast, higher
production values, and a director who has established himself as one of Hollywood's elite power
players of the past quarter century, The Breakfast Club is the model by which all other
films
of its kind are judged. Still, Heathers is perhaps the most sinister and darkly comedic
film
ever to depict that hodgepodge of culture, curiosity, confusion, and confrontation that is life as a
high school student. A film dealing with issues ranging from revenge, acceptance, exclusion,
emotion, and even murder and suicide, Heathers is a film that is not necessarily a tough
watch, but
is one that simmers on the brain long after the disc stops spinning. The film is part fantasy,
certainly exploring territory that is clearly taboo, but handling the material with a sense of
purpose. While viewers will likely leave the film with a different take on what it is trying to say,
there is little doubt that the primary theme of the film is the importance of individuality, in that
regard the film's message similar to that
of the recent animated hit Kung Fu Panda, but
obviously told with darker undertones and mature themes.
Today's lesson: Hull Clean and teen girls don't mix.
Heathers enters the hallowed halls of Blu-ray with a generally pleasing 1080p, 1.85:1-framed transfer. Certain segments of the image look hazy and washed out, although the movie has never looked particularly sharp and clear. Nevertheless, the disc manages to offer a level of detail and color reproduction not seen on the previous DVD release, particularly the "THX" 2001 DVD release. There are some major differences between these releases, the most obvious being the drastic reduction in grain and print speckles. The upconverted DVD image appeared plenty worn, with rather heavy amounts of grain visible in most every shot. Colors also appeared worn down, and the image lacked much in the way of fine detail. The Blu-ray offers a much smoother, far less grainy image, but detail doesn't necessarily suffer. An outdoor croquet game as seen in chapter three, for example, reveals far more in the way of depth and fine detail in the lawn and shrubs. Color reproduction of both the greenery and the bright clothing is stronger in the sequence, too. Flesh tones also appear warmer on the Blu-ray; the DVD exhibited pale, almost ghastly-in-appearance characters. Black levels are fairly stable throughout this release. The Blu-ray release is a marked improvement in practically every area, and fans will likely be pleased with the results.
Heathers enrolls on Blu-ray with a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Please note that the although a DTS logo appears on the disc's artwork, there is no DTS track, or any track other than the TrueHD track, available on this disc. This multi-channel lossless mix is rather front heavy. Chapter 12 offers the first moderately impressive audio experience of the film; the song Teenage Suicide Don't Do It is blasted through a sound system that plays with some vigor and presence, and a gunshot heard shortly thereafter packs a noticeable punch that slightly reverberates through the chest. A few student-body cheers at a pep rally in the school gymnasium in chapter 19 offer up decent quality that makes for a nice, semi-realistic moment, one of the best the track has to offer. Dialogue reproduction is the disc's strong suit, never missing a beat and always coming across loudly and clearly enough. While Heathers is not the sort of material that sells multi-thousand dollar home theater systems, fans will appreciate the slightly more clear and robust lossless offering and the subtle improvements offered over the previous DVD soundtracks.
Despite the front cover's proclalamtion of a "20th High School Reunion Edition," there is not much new here in terms of supplemental features compared to the 2001 DVD release. All of the major supplements have been ported over, a new featurette being the primary addition. An audio commentary with director Michael Lehmann, producer Denise Di Novi, and writer Daniel Waters is first. This easygoing track is neither too dry and technical, nor too goofy and meaningless. These participants find the perfect pace, recounting everything from the influence of Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket to casting the film's most important roles. Fast Film Facts is a standard pop-up trivia track that provides some nice background information on the film, though it simply repeats various facts as described in the commentary track. Two featurettes are next. First up is the new one, Return to Westerburg High (1080i, 21:21). Here, writer Daniel Waters, producer Denise Di Novi, Michael Lehmann recount their experiences making the film. Swatch Dogs and Diet Coke Heads (1080i, 30:01) once again features Waters, Lehmann, and Di Novi recounting their experiences together, much of the information beginning to overlap. Various members of the cast, including Winona Ryder and Christian Slater, also chime in throughout the feature. Finally, the film's trailer (480p, 1:50) concludes this supplemental package.
Combining dark humor, wit, drama, and a message on the importance of individuality, Heathers is one of the finest films to ever depict the darker side of high school life. It's also a rather well-crafted film, featuring standout performances from Christian Slater and Winona Ryder. Still timely some 20 years after its initial release and lending itself well to repeat viewings, Heathers arrives on Blu-ray and seems as fresh as ever. While the disc does not offer top quality visuals or a robust soundtrack, they both offer a marked improvement over the previous DVD versions. This edition also ports over most of the DVD special features and adds a new one to the mix. For the collectors, Heathers is also available in a limited edition boxed set. Either edition comes with a solid recommendation.
2018
20th Anniversary Edition
1999
20th Anniversary Limited Edition Packaging
2004
2015
1981
2011
2011
2015
2013
30th Anniversary Edition
1985
1974
45th Anniversary Edition
1979
2013
2000
2004
Unrated Extended Edition
2007
Choice Collection
2001
2012
1982
2011