Rhiteek Chatterjee
5. Heavenly Creatures (1994)
With a rotation of having a unique perception of violence, gore and blood, Peter Jackson could comfortably steer towards mainstream Hollywood from low-budget B-movie productions. Co-written by Fran Walsh, ‘Heavenly Creatures’, following the notorious 1954 Parker–Hulme murder case is a tale two teenage girls, Pauline Parker essayed by Melanie Lynskey and Juliet Hulme, essayed by Kate Winslet, whose obsessive forbidden relationship, leads to a brutality and murder. The film is a meticulously crafted drama. Jackson’s elaborate character mapping and the relationship shared by the two girls are absorbing and engaging. With a comprehensive screenplay, which received an “Academy Award” nomination and inspired performances of the lead cast, ‘Heavenly Creatures’ is a mature directorial venture by Peter Jackson.
4. Braindead (1992)
A B-grade movie masterpiece, ‘Braindead’ follows socially inept teen Lionel, essayed by Timothy Balme, whose merry times with lady love Paquita María Sánchez, essayed by Diana Penalver, seems to hit rock-bottom when his mother Vera, essayed by Elizabeth Moody, turns into a flesh-eating zombie by a bite from a Sumatran rat-monkey on exhibit at the local zoo. Gruesome, campy and grotesquely funny, ‘Braindead’ is a poster-piece of the B movie genre. A blood fest, ‘Braindead’ embraces the genre with an almost unsettling compassion. A movie reminiscent of Jackson’s initial ventures, ‘Beaindead’, along with his contemporary films ‘Evil Dead II’ (1987) and ‘Day of the Dead’ (1985), catapulted the B grade horror films. While contemporary reviews did not help the film, given its gore and violence, Jackson’s eventual rise in the 2000s, helped it gain a cult following.
3. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
With a passionate fan-base and humongous success of the previous two films, ‘The Return of the King’ brought an epic trilogy to a perfect conclusion. Premiering in Wellington’s Embassy Theatre, this epic high fantasy adventure follows Gandalf and Aragorn, who lead the World of Men against Sauron’s army to draw his gaze from Hobbits Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring. With his reputation as a credible seasoned with taste and flood of production money, director Peter Jackson is able to balance the character sketches, their emotional engagements and magnificent CGI to create a glorious experience. Considered as one of best sequels as well as one of the best films of all time, ‘The Return of the King’ celebrates the adventurous epic fantasy films with brilliance.
2. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
The first film of the epic trilogy, Peter Jackson took up a seemingly impossible task of adapting a gigantic universe created by J. R. R. Tolkien and delivered with absolute brilliance. With state-of-the-art special effects, perfect casting and a coherent screenplay, the film broke all odds to form a multi-faceted story with wonder, heartbreak and passion. Considered as one of the greatest films of all time, ‘The Fellowship of The Ring’ is a testament to Jackson’s seamless understanding of cinema as an art form. A careful balance spectacle and narrative detailing, ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’ has seasoned like fine wine and never fails to spark a celebratory emotion among cinema lovers.
1. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
With the expatiations of box-office success riding high, given the gargantuan critical and commercial success of ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’, it was quite the task. With the burden of not creating an origin story, Jackson is provided with the artistic ease to hone the favourites, introduce new characters and indulge in imaginative visual effects. The film boasts of quirky humour and visual imagery, which is a Jackson speciality. While many die-hard Tolkien fans might voice their distaste of Jackson’s choice to defy certain aspects of the source material, it can only be said that Jackson added more layers to the plot, characters and imager with luxury. Winning two Academy Awards, ‘The Two Towers’ went on to become one of the most successful films of all time.
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