Heavenly Away...

Two good movies that I saw recently that I must mention.
First, it's Heavenly Creatures by Peter Jackson. Based on the true account of two girls in New Zealand who murdered on of their parent becaase she tried to separate them, it is a grim tale. But to the credit of the director, the tale is told in a very interesting manner. It's clear from the amount of the research that has gone on into the story (the imdb entry says that Peter Jackson the actual diary of one of the girls was used as a reference). This was also Kate Winselt's first movie role, and she really comes off as a competent actress. here.
This was also PJ's only fifth film, but it does not seem like it. In fact, it comes of as a work of someone very experienced. Notice the dream sequence, where Pauline (Melanie Lynskey) and Juliet (Kate) make up their dream worlds, full of kings, queens and knights. All this hides the dark tale of two socially misfit girls who are ready to kill to be togerher. PJ does not duck the subject. In fact, he faces it with gusto.
The second movie I saw was Spirited Away, the 2002 animated offering from Japan (I am slowly coming to the conclusion that I love all things Japan!). It is a complete family entertainment, about a little girl who is stuck in the land of spirits, and how she rescues her parents, who have been turned into pigs. The animation work was excellent. And the story, after seeing the American animations, which by and large seem to poke fun at the American popular culture (latest in this guilty list is Shrek 2; I haven't seen The Incredibles to form an opinion about it), the simple family tale was quite a welcome. Highly recommended.

And speaking of movies, I have observed that none of the Kill Bill movies have been released, even though they are available on video legit. I wonder why?