Movie: "Heaven"

In 2002 on one random afternoon, I met my daughter in San Rafael at Book Passage bookstore for coffee and a chat. I am not sure where she was living at that time, could have been Utah, could have been SF, but we needed a place in the middle to talk. And we did.  And we realized that we also had time to see a movie.  Whipping out the current Pacific Sun (which is now, sadly, gone) we checked movie times and dashed into San Rafael proper to the Rafael theater to see "Heaven."  As I recall, I had read some good things about the movie but we really went in blind.

We came out of the theater almost speechless with awe. (If you know me and Jenn in even the smallest, slightest way, you know that is rather remarkable.) The movie is almost perfect in its encrypted and yet obvious allegorical poetic, realistic, human drama.  All those adjectives in that last sentence do not do it justice.  It is an enigma but at the same time so "in your face" that at the end you just want to watch it all over again, from the beginning.  It sort of ends right where it began (another allegory, or metaphor, not sure which) and yet it encompasses everything, from death to life, to love, through understanding and deceit and on to possible salvation or possible annihilation ....  and so much in between.

It is, in the end, a movie about hope and love, justice and the honest belief in justice, life and faith, and I wish I could figure out all the allegories and the metaphors.  See it, it is on Netfix streaming, obviously on DVD.  It starts out in Italian but goes to English, so don't let that put you off if you hate foreign films.  Cate Blanchett and Giovanni Ribisi (first movie I remember him in and he looks like an angel) are wonderful.  Do yourself a favor and check it out.  When you are ready to watch it,  you need to actually pay attention to it.  It's not a movie to have on while you clean the house.  It is much too subtle and too intense.  "Heaven" is a beautiful movie.

Two thumbs up.

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