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Brilliantly black and deadly fun, Heathers is re-released in this twentieth anniversary edition

Veronica (Winona Ryder) is just a girl who likes to play strip croquet. She’s a member of the popular clique in school, the Heathers, who get their name from the three founding members. An expert at faking handwriting and rather bored accomplice to the trio of nasty, pretty girls who rule the school, Veronica drifts day to day, never really caring what happens – until the new boy lands in town. He’s hot. He’s sexy. He’s Christian Slater, and he has a few amoral and illegal tricks up his sleeve.

Heathers made its name as a cult classic of the black comedy kind, and deservedly so. Filmed around the time of Beetlejuice, it’s a bright, shiny light on an era that sadly, is no more – Winona was a sixteen year old without a rap sheet, Shannen Doherty had yet to meet Tori Spelling, and Christian Slater’s hair was still cool. The last child of dying production company New World, Heathers is filled with brilliant writing, some truly interesting shots, and so much sarcasm it could choke a person.

This, however, isn’t the first time Heathers has been released on DVD, and with a good amount of extras to boot. So what makes this twentieth anniversary edition so special? Only one thing, I’m afraid – a featurette called “Return to Westerburg High”, which tells the tale of the making of Heathers. That’s right, this two disc release has almost the exact same features as the 2001 DVD release (that only sported one disc). The commentary, the featurette “Swatch Dogs and Diet Coke Heads” (which explores the culture of the movie as it reflected the times) and even the original ending screenplay excerpt – all on the previous release.

So what’s so special about this “Return to Westerburg High” featurette? Nada. All the info can be found either in the commentary or “Swatch Dogs and Diet Coke Heads”. 

The moral of the story? Be nice to your fellow man, or Winona Ryder will blow your ass up. Or, possibly, just because a DVD release has one more disc than the last release doesn’t mean it’s something special, even if the film is utterly brilliant.

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