User reviews

I can recall only a few times that movies have genuinely shocked me, not with a plot twist in a mystery or thriller, but with pure audacious, in-your-face moments. Those moments make an impact. They don't bruise; they scar. They brand an image or a quote into my memory that rests there forever. Heathers delivers a handful of these moments within its first 20 minutes. You can attempt to describe this movie anyway that you like, be it satirical, provocative, hilarious, wild, etc. One thing is certain about Heathers, you will not forget it.

Heathers is a disturbingly dark comedy dripping with hyperbolic satire about high school life. Every character is exaggerated. The kids are either sadistic or secretly psychotic or both. All the adults are clueless, so of course they handle each conflict with incompetence. Yet somehow the plot makes the characters appear by comparison, which is say that things get pretty crazy.

This drastically sensationalized world of high school (littered with great quotes) makes Heathers a genre-defying classic.

Boldly exploring the world of teen social life in a way for more daring and original than "16 Candles" or "The Breakfast Club" (oh, these kids are more than just their stereotypes? I never knew), Heathers takes us behind the scenes of the most popular clique in school, called the Heathers. The three founding members, all named Heather, insist on referring to each other by first name only which creates some cute confusion in the opening minutes. The film takes an abrupt dark turn shortly afterward.

The leader, Heather Chandler, needs only to utter a few sentences to reveal herself as one of the most shockingly cruel and timelessly quotable teen characters in cinema history. So shocking are her lines that they still drop jaws in 2016. I wouldn't dare spoil the great quotes from Heather or the ones from Heather or any quotes for that matter, but suffice it to say that you will never think about mineral water, brain tumors or chainsaws the same way again.

As we witness the appalling ways of Heather as she mentally mutilates the less popular, we also observe the apathy with which her actions are met. Only Veronica seems phased by how her best friend (who she hates) treats people. Since she's the only sensible character in the movie, Veronica comes up with the only sensible way to solve the Heather problem: kill her. "Accidents" ensue leading to a perceived suicide epidemic throughout the city. In death, the tormentors become martyrs celebrated for the giving lives they did not actually lead. Despite the phony praise passed onto the dead, virtually everyone's reactions to the suicides are laughably deadpan or selfish. Some seek attention by accepting blame. Others worry only about canceling school. The school's lower class students notice the glorification of suicide and view it as their best chance at popularity.

The comical take on murder/suicide is dicey. But viewers should understand it as an attempt to mock the allure some bestow on suicide. Even if this bold effort ruffles some feathers, the film presents a moral statement: all people should be treated with decency.

In Ohio, Veronica Sawyer (Winona Ryder) is a teenager trying to participate in the clique at the Westerburg High School of her schoolmates Heathers: Duke (Shannon Doherty), McNamara (Lisanne Falk) and Chandler (Kim Walker). She supports their nasty and shallow behavior just aiming to be a popular student. One day, the newcomer in town Jason Dean (Christian Slater) starts dating Veronica and he questions her relationship with the Heathers. When they accidentally kill one of the Heathers, they forge a suicide note and even dead, she becomes more popular among the students. Other students become also tempted to commit suicide while Veronica learns that Jason Dean is a psychopath.

Most American high school students are usually presented to the world in comedies as imbecile. "Heathers" makes no exception and goes further and further in the critic, showing them very shallow, trying to be popular at any price and without questioning life. The behavior of their fathers and mothers is also stupid. This original dark comedy has a great potential of a cult movie. Winona Ryder and Christian Slater in the beginning of career shine in the cast performing cynical roles. "Heathers" is one of the best American teen movie and worthwhile watching. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Atração Mortal" ("Mortal Attraction")

Unlike many of the teen movies that have enjoyed enduring appeal, "Heathers" survives not due to nostalgia, but because of its intelligence and searing, midnight-black wit.

Winona Ryder is Veronica, the disillusioned popular girl who falls in with a dangerous loner - Christian Slater as the malefic J.D. The two attempt to right their high school's social wrongs and end up on a killing spree.

Released on the cusp of the 1980s, the film feels strikingly prescient and more disturbing than ever today.

Ahhh... the late 80's. When shoulder pads were still in fashion, Winona Ryder hadn't yet been arrested for shoplifting and teen movies didn't solely feature recycled actors.

When teen genius Veronica Sawyer (Ryder) gets bored with the shallow and cliquey lifestyle of the three Heathers; her new-found high school chums, she wishes them dead. She never expects it to happen, but this all changes when she meets Jason 'JD' Dean (Christian Slater), a cool, darkly-dressed rebel who moves around the US randomly with his distant tycoon father.

From the iconic opening sequence to the explosive ending, every scene is darkly comic and dripping with irony. It almost looks over-rehearsed as nearly every actor's performance is flawless. Ryder in particular shines with her angst-ridden 'Dear Diary' entries, and Slater I don't believe has ever again encapsulated such a perfect role in his career to date.

The queen Heather (Kim Walker) really deserved more screen-time. She perfectly represents the bitchy, sneering, self-obsessed High School teen. She even manages to convey vulnerability after uttering the immortal line 'Well f/ck me gently with a chainsaw.' Shannen Doherty starts off with what seems a minor part which gradually builds and lets her have fun with the role. The only disappointing Heather is Lisanne Falk, with whom we don't really connect or care about.

It's hard to find anything to pick on with this movie, but it could have used some smoother editing. The scenes cut to actors in different lighting and obvious passages of time to deliver major lines, and correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think corpses should breathe.

The humour is dark and the plot unbelievable at times, but this only adds to the surreal atmosphere and unforgettable lines. A sexy cast, a great script and director Michael Lehmann's vision makes this a must-see film and a worthy addition to any DVD collection. If you haven't yet witnessed the brilliance of Heathers, rectify this now.

A Michael Lehmann film about a typical American high school in the 80s where cliques reign supreme and to be popular is all you should ever hope to be. Veronica (Winona Ryder) is part of the queen bee clique of her school, but she yearns for simpler times when she could simply hang out with her less popular friends. Enter J. D. (Christian Slater), a new student and a born rebel that introduces her to a whole new world of attitude and irreverence. And murder.

Heathers is not to be taken all that seriously. It is a comedy beneath all its grotesque violence and body count. A black comedy, to be sure, but a comedy still.

And yet its message is surprisingly solemn. We care too much about social status and what our peers think about us. Way too much. And in J. D. Lehmann tries to rebel against that attitude. The boy goes way too far, but his initial impulse is not wrong. Nor is Veronica's wish to be able to be herself.

Some people will cry with laughter with this film. Some will find it off-putting. Such is the nature of black comedy. Any comedy, for that matter. Personally I found it hilarious and also poignant.

I first saw "Heathers" when it was first released in 1989 and to this day I remember most of the lines and scenes which cause me to laugh at all the wrong times.

I went to see the film because the hot actor of the time was Winona Ryder and I was in love with her after seeing her in "Lucas" and "Beetlejuice" and "1969". In each movie she played a version of a Goth chick - very smart, very pretty, but with a monotone delivery and moody attitude.

I also wanted to catch Christian Slater. I remembered him from his role as Binx in "The Legend of Billie Jean" and in the film "Tucker: The Man and His Dream"

"Heathers" is great satire of teen life back in the 1980's. It picks apart every teen angst and cliche and spins it in a goofy plot of rebellion and revenge gone amuck.

Ryder, playing Veronica, is on the fringe of the popular clic run by 3 girls names Heather. Each Heather is abusive, dumb, and pretty. For any teen who wanted to fit in the popular crowd but couldn't make it completely will identify with Veronica.

She meets a new student, J.D., played by Slater who is the complete opposite of the popular crowd. He wants nothing to do with them or the school. Veronica finds this interesting and soon she falls under the expert manipulation of J.D. Due to what starts as an accidental death, the two start a chain of events that looks like a teen suicide epidemic that was the common fear of adults back then.

Slater steals the movie from Ryder with his sly Jack Nicholson line delivery and James Dean attitude. Ryder is good but she can't stop Slater from chewing up the scenes.

The adults in the movie are classic clueless parental units that teen movies seem to always need. The best one is the guidance counselor that says "Whether or not a teenager decides to kill themselves is the biggest decision of their life. "

Watching this movie I kept saying to myself "They just did not do that?" or "They just did not say that?" I never laughed so hard in my life at that time.

A special treat was the Heather played by Shannen Doherty. Besides Ryder and Slater, she was the only other actor that I knew (except for Patrick Labyorteaux, who played the jock "Ram" who can now be seen on JAG as Ens. Roberts). Before Heathers, Shannen had played good girl roles and had just ended a series called "Our House" where she wanted to become a pilot. Her role became more interesting after finding out she turned out like her "Heather" character in real life.

The only thing that bothers me about this film today is that it could never be made today. The suicide epidemics (that still happen from time to time) has been replaced by killing one's classmates at school. I just don't think the studios would have the guts to film a satire like "Heathers" today.

As a side note: I read some of the previous comments from users who have only seen this movie on TV. All I can say is see the uncut version either on a movie channel or rent the DVD. The language and satire will only work in its uncensored format.

This film is amazing its a perfect satire on the "john hughes" type films of the mid to late 80s. While those films are great in there own fun amd quirky ways this is pne pf those that truly captures the struggles and angst of teens at that time and I still think that it applies today. Its the perfect teen satire. A must watch and a must in your movie collection!

Daniel Waters wrote one of the best satires ever in "Heathers", a dark comedy that ranks right up there with "Dr. Strangelove" and "Network". Certainly it's the best teen comedy ever made. Why? Because in spite of its highly stylized depiction of teenagers, it caught the truest essence of what high school is actually like in America. Not only that, it trashed the entire genre and-- in a feat of sheer genius-- even the *reaction* to the genre by outside observers (namely parents). Terry Southern could have done no better.

"Westerburg high school self-destructed not *because* of society but because Westerburg High School *was* society" was restated, to near-universal praise, by Michael Moore in "Bowling For Columbine", but Waters said it before him, said it better, and frankly he's got a lot more credibility ("Hudson Hawk" notwithstanding). The cast is brilliant, even if, strangely, some of them don't seem to get what the whole movie was about. You half expect that most of the cast and crew, like the kids who sign a petition to bring Big Fun to the school for a gig, made a movie they didn't know they were making. But the key figures nailed it-- Ryder and Slater were never better.

"Heathers" is one of the best films of the Eighties-- put the lid on the Eighties, as it were. It has suffered criminal neglect, probably because it may have required an "indie auteur" to really knock the cinematic elements out of the park. The direction is competent but unspectacular. Still, the star is the writing, and Waters deserved an Oscar for this script. Unsentimental, vicious, and above all hilariously funny, he drove a stake through the heart of those oh-so-precious John Hughes films and, at the same time, set the stage for Kevin Williamson and all the rest. He did it with a perfect ear for dialogue combined with a Swiftian vision of social structures, and did it all as an argument *against* ironic detachment, for which this film and its messages needs to be revisited now more than ever. Simply incredible.

I enjoyed watching Heathers when it came on again the other night on TV. I hadn't seen it in quite a number of years, and my memory of it wasn't too impressionable either way. But seeing it now, years after finishing high school myself, it is definitely one of those funny films that is most effective playing against the conventions of the high school movie of the period. This isn't John Hughes here, but something that is attempting to get at rougher terrain - chiefly the dicey subject of teenage suicide - and at the jaded point of view of the modern adolescent. Winona Ryder has one of her better performances as Veronica, looking on at the 'Heathers', a clique of girls, with total contempt.

What about her love life? There's the dangerous and strange kid JD (Christian Slater, at his youngest and, dare I say it, hippest), who has some crazy ideas in his head- one of which may result in lots of destruction of public property. It's when the skewering goes right against the hypocrisies of teenage vanity, the value of life and living, and what it is to be mentally stable that Heathers is sharpest; one funeral scene, I might add, is a classic satirical piece. But the only flaws end up coming out of an instability in getting a grip between the dark comedy and the real dramatic elements, which start to lean towards melodrama towards the last section where JD goes off the map (the very end, especially, is a major letdown). But for at least 3/4 of the way, Heathers makes its mark as one of the coolest films of 1989.

I like the bit where they thought they were gay because they liked mineral water

We watched this movie last week as part of our 80s classics film festival, celebrating the movies of my coming up (and coming out, ha). This one is a brilliantly written piece of satire and dark dark comedy and even after all these (35!) years later, I was still quoting half the movie as we watched.

This movie has definitely aged better than some from those halcyon days, but I don't think a film like this could be made today and I'm not sure if that's good or bad. Everyone is extra cautious and there are trigger warnings galore and black humor about high school murders and teenage suicide wouldn't play well today.

One of my girlfriends at university in the early nineties had a VHS of this film lying around her flat and I thought at the time that it was a masterpiece. Watching it tonight, for the first time in a decade, it seems a little clunky, desperately contrived, utterly tasteless and, well, incredibly 1980s.

The 1980s had a really unpleasant sterile Nietzchian undercurrent bubbling through them, and this film is a product of that. The Christian Slater character, with his Jack Nicholson voice and Peter Falk posture, spouts inconclusive Reader's Digest/Mein Kampf aphorisms as if they seal the argument and then kills people. The satire rests upon the adults all being idiots and the children all being competitive vampiric brutes, except for the former best friend and the ostracised victim of body fascism, who wait around to prove that Winona Ryder's character has a soul by being implausibly forgiving to her.

The script's clumsiness even leads it into the same homophobia which it wants to satirise. It really is a poor effort.

So why did it look so cool when it was new? Well, Christian Slater certainly had an impact, although I seem to remember my girlfriend commenting that anyone who said "Greetings and salutations" was advertising himself as a dick-head. The colour coding, and stylization, instead of looking random, speed freaky and anally retentive, looked "Very" when MTV still seemed like a good idea, and...oh yes: this is the main reason...

There had been high school shootings before then; of course there had; Boomtown Rats wrote a song about one that was a huge hit in the 80s. However, they'd managed to sweep the idea under the carpet to an extent that became impossible pretty soon after this film was made. So, when Heathers was released, the idea of pulling out a huge gun and pointing it in the face of people who annoyed you still seemed pretty cool: "Radical", but cool.

That's what this film is really: the adolescent dream we all have of employing violence to wipe away our teen angst. Thank God, most of us grow up, accept that problem solving is a complex but rewarding part of life and look back on Heathers as a nasty, self-congratulating piece of nihilistic smugness. Most of us.

from the moment it begins with the three heathers playing croquet, you know that you will be in for an odd, cruel, and un-john hughes alike teen film. It's black as coal, and as sour as lemons. Although Christian Slater is jack nicholson with a facelift, it's still the most memorable performance in the movie. And winona ryder is also appealing as the lost and complex veronica. Some fantastically witty lines, humurously sick set pieces, and some truly great/cack 80's music make this a classic, more of a classic cult movie.

Decent flick but Slater was in full Nicholson copycat mode. And not in a good way. Standard 80's high school clique dark comedy with entertaining gags.

Winona Ryder, back when she only used to steal movie scenes, plays Veronica Sawyer, a girl sick of being a lackey to the "Heathers" which is the cool girls clique. She meets J.D (Christian Slater), a deeply troubled young man who's quick to resort to violence (So Christian was PERFECT for the part). This film is what every dark comedy should seek to be. Biting, vicious, mean, and utterly hilarious. The 80's had so many good movies and this stands among the best. The funny thing is that if they stuck to their guns and kept the original ending as scripted it would've been even better, but that's just a minor nitpick. So the next time a teeny-bopper starts fawning over how "great" and "true to life" "Mean Girls" was, give them a copy of this and show them a REAL movie.

Anchor Bay S.E. DVD Extras: Audio commentary with director Michael Lehmann, producer Denise Di Novi and writer Daniel Waters ; "Swatch Dogs and Diet Coke Heads" documentary (30mins); Screenplay excerpt: original ending; Talent biogs; and Theatrical Trailer

My Grade: A+

High school is vicious, everyone knows that. And although stereotypes have run high school movies ragged, there's still a ring of truth to them even when they're blown out of proportion. "Heathers," however, stands apart. This '80s cult favorite black comedy is the counter-culture version of the high school flick, the very definition of teen angst in the form of a laughable revenge fantasy.

Altogether the film is quite ridiculous: Veronica (Winona Ryder) has an in with the Heathers, the three most popular girls in school, but when she ends up betrayed by their contrived social hierarchies and sleazy attitudes, she and her new boyfriend, the rebellious J.D. (Christian Slater), end up on a spree of setting up the murders of popular kids to look like suicides. The reactions of those in the community are comical though sadly, so are the way the two killers deal with their actions.

But there's something about the sharpness of its satirical wit that makes "Heathers" so incredibly laudable despite the lackluster drama and muddled character motivation. We all kind of wish those popular jerk-offs from high school would just roll over, but "Heathers" takes it one step further, willing to do whatever it takes -- even throw away its plot credibility -- to make its point.

High school is full of these delusions and they extend from the kids all the way up through the administration. Nobody gets that there are actually serious underlying issues and everyone gets caught up in one thing or another, which is usually image. Veronica and J.D. create these false suicides and everyone buys them and turns them into martyrs when they were awful people. It's some wonderful irony.

For the feature film debuts of director Michael Lehmann and writer Daniel Waters, "Heathers" is pretty impressive. How two high school kids suddenly become murderers is kind of slopped together, but they manage to illustrate the film's point with ease. Man, I'm glad I'm not in high school anymore. ~Steven C Visit my site at http://moviemusereviews.blogspot.com

Watched this movie with my now ex girlfriend. She compares me a lot to good ol JD which are also my initials. He even sorta looks like me. I love the mass murder in this film. It's morbid but comically fun. Kinda reminds me of those early 2000's generic teen films in a way. A drama fest from beginning to end but this one is violent! Wow what a change. The script is really well done. Every line oozes with sarcasm and jovialness. The only criticism i have of this is the acting. It's sort of stiff in a weird way but doesn't particularly detract from it. I really like this film. If only more movies could be like this one.

Greetings and Salutations,

If you can imagine Jack Nicholsons 'Joker' at high school, he's cool, he's a loner, has a dark mysterious quality . . . oh and he is insane and likes to kill people. Still with me?

Meet J.D, this is Christian Slaters character in Heathers, Slater gives the kind of performance that makes you wish he got cast in 'dark' roles more often. J.D has spawned numerous fan websites and is arguably the greatest teen movie character ever. His lines are spot on and the one scene right at the start of the film where he pulls a gun on the two main school bully's/jocks still brings a smile to my face.

Heathers takes the teen flick concept and ads a new twist. The school characters are perfect right down to the cool kids inventing a new way of speaking just so they stand out even more. You have the nerds, the jocks, the rich kids, the popular kids, the fat victim etc all your standard teen groups are here and happily bouncing along to the beat that life has given them no matter how shallow or cr*p it is.

This is where most movies just continue, and where Heathers excels. Enter J.D, J.D represents everything that every kid ever wanted to do or say and didn't. Not so much a spanner in the works more a bomb!

This film has pages and pages of great quotes and the acting from it's 2 stars is exceptional, Winona Ryder has not made a better film (neither has Shannen Doherty)and the supporting cast play their small but oh so important roles to perfection.

The only pre 25's who will not get this movie are the rich spoilt teens who are oblivious to real life because daddy has always bailed them out or given them everything that they ever wanted (much like the 'rich kid' social group in the film). And as in the film they are largely irrelevant anyway.

Everyone else you must see this movie at least once, it is a classic. You may not love it but you will definitely have an opinion on it.

One quote for the road . . .

In Prayer "Hi, I'm sorry. Technically I did not kill Heather Chandler, but hey, who am I trying to kid right?. I just want my high school to be a nice place. Amen. Did that sound b1tchy?"

"Heathers" is black satire in which we get to see those people we all loved to hate, the high school popular elite, systematically off'd by a beautiful but reluctant campus queen (Ryder) and her loner boyfriend (Slater). Having passed the test of time, "Heathers" offers a respectable cast and nominal production value, but it's the smart script loaded with cheap shots at campus social strata, teachers, and parents which is responsible for its success. An entertaining, eventful comedy watch for anyone who was ever snob snubbed in high school and is old enough for a soft R rating. (B)

"Heathers" is one of those overly proud 'cult' items that, like "Plan 9 From Outer Space," has amassed some sort of sick, twisted band of followers that apparently reside at the shallow end of the Petri Dish. This would-be satire, would-be dark comedy, would-be misfit teen romance is riddled with Hughes-ian dialog speckled with would-be shocking F-words and epithets that would-be 'outta style' the following year. A young Winona Ryder plays Veronica, a hanger-on to an elite trio of girls (all named 'Heather') who practically run their "Anytown, USA" high school; in enters J.D. (a pre-deep-voiced Christian Slater), who enlists Veronica as a pawn in his quest to annihilate the pond scum walking the halls. The script trots out every cliché imaginable: the sexist, homophobic football jocks; the gawky nerds; the requisite Fat Girl; the bitch-princess elite; chain-smoking teachers; the mysterious loner; and parents who are either apathetic or psychotic. I wouldn't take issue with these stereotypes--heck, Mr. Hughes exploits them to no end in his films--if they had been used in a unique or funny way, which they aren't. The presentation of high school is so absurdly and self-consciously exaggerated that all attempts at humor and satire come off as contrived...and when the film finally abandons 'humor' in the third act for some very divergent, half-assed 'surrealistic symbolism,' you wonder what director Michael Lehmann and writer Daniel Waters had in mind to begin with. Whatever it was, it certainly wasn't anywhere near 'funny' or 'profound.' (My advice: seek out "Massacre at Central High" and "The Breakfast Club" to see this material done properly.)