Heathers Review: A Cult Classic with Winona Ryder’s Star Power

   October 28, 2024
Heathers (1989)
Heathers (1989), directed by Michael Lehmann

Winona Ryder’s star power is at the center of Heathers, the 1989 teenage dramedy that became a cult hit and spawned many, many future imitators. It has just about everything, from crude high schooler humor to big, starry performances from the likes of Ryder and Christian Slater, to ONE DEAD, GAY SON (whom his dad loved very much)! It’s an eventful movie that packs a lot within 103 minutes, and director Michael Lehmann never takes the material too serious, often opting for a dose of absurdist situational comedy to intensify the plot in motion.

I liked Heathers, but I think it pales in comparison with some of this genre’s best offerings during this time period. It’s just slightly too ridiculous for a teenage comedy that I would usually enjoy. Heathers came out in 1989, late in the decade that produced multiple John Hughes classics like The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, as well Amy Heckerling’s Fast Times at Ridgemont High. These movies are also delightful and quirky in their own ways, but the material better suits the performances and comedy.

Winona Ryder ultimately carries Heathers on her shoulders. She gives a performance that requires vulnerability and volatility. She plays Veronica Sawyer, a self-conscious high schooler determined to be part of the “in crowd,” controlled by the three Heathers considered the most popular at school (played by Kim Walker, Shannen Doherty, and Lisanne Falk). Veronica becomes acquainted with the school’s bad boy J.D. (Christian Slater) and the two devise a deadly plan that elevates Veronica’s standing at school.

The absurdity comes in the plan that Veronica and J.D. concoct, as well as the two’s abilities to stay out of trouble during the aftermath. The school politics aren’t believable from a dramatic standpoint, placing Heathers closer to a film like Massacre at Central High (1976) than any of this movie’s peers that were mentioned above.

Heathers a worthy cult classic, but not a movie that ranks among my favorites from 1989 or my favorites from this subgenre of comedies. The film’s absurdist elements don’t quite gel with its angsty, teen drama elements. Winona Ryder is quite good. Christian Slater is giving a performance he’s fully invested in, but that doesn’t match the same type of movie the rest of the cast is going for. Overall, a mixed bag that I still admire as a time capsule for what movies like this were like in 1989.

Score: 6/10

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