Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

A stunningly beautiful movie. With scenery that makes me ache for a European vacation. And with performances that renew my faith in the art of film-making.

I'm referring to Heaven, a film brought to us by Tykwer and the two Krzysztofs (Kieslowski and Piesiewicz). When the three of them get together you are handed an incredible film with a quiet, subtle beauty.

In this case, the movie gives us Cate Blanchett and Giovanni Ribisi, similar-named lovers brought together by a bizarre set of circumstances.

Blanchett plays Phillipa, an English woman teaching school in Italy. Her husband was killed by a drug overdose, and she blames Mr. Vendice, a well-connected businessman who's also, apparently, a big time drug-runner. According to Phillipa, the man is also responsible for getting the local kids hooked on drugs. Continuous calls to the Carabinieri (the Italian Police) did nothing. So Phillipa comes up with her own plan. She's going to kill Vendice. She constructs a bomb, gains entry to his office, and places the bomb in his trash can, with a timer set for five minutes.

She walks out, not realizing the cleaning lady is on her way. The cleaning lady empties the trash and enters the elevator. When the bomb goes off, the cleaning lady is killed, along with a man and his two young daughters. The intended victim is unharmed.

Phillipa had no intention of "getting away" with her crime. In fact she confesses. She's willing to pay for her crime. It's worth it, she figures it, to rid the world of a man like Vendice. When she finds out who really died as a result of her actions, she is devastated, and breaks down in one of the more powerful scenes of the movie.

To this point in the movie, not an English word has been spoken. The locals speak Italian, and even Phillipa is fluent in Italian. I didn't realize it when I started the movie, but most of it will require reading subtitles.

However, Phillipa insists on answering the policeman's questions in her native English. This requires the police to have a translator present, and that's how Filippo (Ribisi) gets involved. He agrees to act as translator.

Within minutes, Filippo falls in love with Phillipa and decides to help her escape. Phillipa goes along with the plan for one reason - she wants another shot at killing Vendice before she goes to jail. Thus Fil and Phill (they don't actually call themselves those names, but I think they should) go on the run.

How Filippo sneaks Phillipa out of the jail is very clever, and provided some exciting moments in an otherwise, mostly slow movie. While on the run, she falls for him and very soon the two are inseparable. They also become indistinguishable. They both shave their heads, and they wear the same basic clothes. When you see them side-by-side it's hard to tell them apart. They look more like weird twins than lovers on the run. Still, symbolically, it makes sense. Destined to be "one", they become "one". That's how I interpret it, anyway.

I won't tell you any more of the plot, except to mention the ending. No, I won't spoil the actual ending for you, I just want to mention that it was absolutely perfect. It left me spellbound, staring at the screen, and I won't soon forget it.

As I mentioned earlier, this movie is unbelievably gorgeous. The scenery shots are incredible. It's also beautiful in its subtlety. Fil and Phill barely need to speak a word to each other, for their emotions to be understood. Their one love scene is shot from far away (nothing revealed) and is like a piece of artwork.

Speaking of sex, there is one sex scene in the movie. It doesn't involve any of the main characters and it is completely unnecessary. To me, it seems as if the scene is in there for no reason other than to give this movie its R rating. Why would the writers/director do that? I have no idea! I'm curious, if anyone reading this has any ideas on this matter, because I'm at a loss.

My complaints about this movie revolve around the things that make no sense, that we just have to accept. Like the fact that an intelligent woman would plan a murder in such a haphazard way. She couldn't possibly have known that her intended victim wouldn't have walked out of his office before the bomb went off. She certainly couldn't control who else might happen to walk into the office during that time. And, of course, people DO empty their trash! It just seems to me there were other ways to kill someone that would leave less to chance.

We also have to accept Fil and Phill's love for each other, despite a bunch of reasons why it's unrealistic. It only took Fil a few minutes before he decides to throw away his career, and quite possibly his life, for Phill. And while it took her a little longer before she would declare her love for him, it's not like she really took a whole lot of time to get to know him first.

But these flaws are minor. This beautiful movie still receives high praise from me, and an eager recommendation.


Recommended: Yes

Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older