An Australian star, a German whizz-kid and a late Polish genius. Cate Blanchett tells all.

By the time Polish filmmaker Krzysztof Kieslowski died in 1996, he had assembled an astonishing body of work that included the ten Dekalog films, The Double Life Of Veronique and the Three Colours trilogy. But one final ambition was left unrealised: another trilogy of films entitled Heaven, Hell & Purgatory.

Heaven was the only one to have a completed script, but Kieslowski's untimely death doomed it to obscurity. Or did it? Enter tyro director Tom Tykwer, who with Run Lola Run and Winter Sleepers had emerged as one of Germany's most visionary new talents. Approached by Miramax, Tykwer jumped at the chance to bring Kieslowski's last work to the screen - even if it meant shooting his first film in English with an Australian lead actress.

Cate Blanchett was no less enthusiastic about playing the central role of Philippa, an English teacher who plants a bomb in a Turin high-rise in an attempt to kill a ruthless drug dealer. The plot backfires, and Philippa is arrested for the murders of four innocent people. Once in custody she develops a strange and intense relationship with the young Italian policeman (Giovanni Ribisi) who acts as her interpreter.

"It was a very instinctive decision," says Blanchett. "Somehow I knew immediately I wanted to be a part of this unbelievable and incredibly meaningful story. The strength and the depth of this screenplay are that it forces us to ask extremely provocative and deep-cutting questions about spirituality and love, forgiveness and punishment."

Philippa (Cate Blanchett) with Italian policeman (Giovanni Ribisi)

It wasn't always easy, though. "I did find it difficult and not particularly pleasant to inhabit Philippa's mind, because she is in such a desperate, faithless state at the start of the film," Blanchett explains. "I felt it was quite a muscular experience as an actor and it did stretch me quite a lot."

She also had to sacrifice her locks for the scene where Philippa shaves her head bald. "It was incredibly liberating, and really important to the script. I think it's interesting when people say it's brave for an actress to shave her head, rather than saying it's brave to take her clothes off, which actresses all over the world do for every film."

If anything, the events of September 11 have made Heaven even more provocative, and Blanchett accepts that audiences will make their own comparisons.

"The fact that a woman sets a bomb off in a building that kills innocent people - the connections are there to be made," she admits. So could Blanchett ever consider doing what her character does in the movie? "I'm not one to say I would never do that or I could never do that. I think that is an unimaginative and ignorant thing to say because I just don't know…" NS 08 August 02

Heaven is on national release 09 August 02.

useful link: www.miramax.com/heaven

Empire Magazine:
...a sensitive rendering of a unique vision by a very promising filmmaker...
more

Film Four:
...Heaven is a lot shallower than its serious tone...
more