Themes: Hide the Dead Body, Domestic Abuse, Cons and Scams
Main Cast: Rachel Weisz, Susan Lynch, Alex Norton, Iain Glen, Maurice Roeves
Release Year: 2000
Country: UK
Run Time: 86 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
In this contemporary thriller set in Scotland, two women, Dorothy (Susan Lynch) and Petula (Rachel Weisz), bond over a dangerous encounter. Petula is being routinely beaten by her boyfriend Brian (Tom Mannion); Dorothy, after having left her unstable relationship with Tony (Iain Glen), accidentally kills Brian in a fit of rage. In desperation, the two women forge a bizarre scheme to convince Brian's older, more powerful brother Ronnie (Maurice Roeves) that Brian has been kidnapped. Their plan hits a snag, however, when Detective Inspector Hepburn (Alex Norton) begins to suspect the women and offers to be on the take for their intended get-rich plan. Soon after, Tony also re-emerges and also wants in on the deal, leaving the two women to compose a different plan. A blackly comic film noir, Beautiful Creatures is the feature debut of director Bill Eagles. ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide
Beautiful Creatures were led by that veteran denizen of the Sunset Strip Joe Leste, who had spent most of the 1980s with glitter rockers Bang Tango. For Beautiful Creatures, he traded hair spray and the two-dimensional '80s sound for hair dye and a mix of glammy hooks with gritty, hard-hitting post-grunge rock. The unit solidified in 1999 with Leste, guitarists DJ Ashba and Anthony Focx, bassist Kenny Kweens, and drummer Glen Sobel, and quickly secured an opening slot on that year's Kiss tour. A deal with Warner Brothers followed, and by summer 2001 the Creatures were supporting their eponymous debut with a slot on Ozzfest. But while the band was able to build a bit of a cult following, shakeups at Warner led to their being dropped soon after the Ozzfest dates. Beautiful Creatures was ultimately issued, but with the band grounded and no promotional support, it went largely unnoticed. With Beautiful Creatures in limbo, Ashba left the fold for solo pastures. He was soon replaced by ex-Engines of Aggression axeman Michael Thomas, but soon he too had departed, to be followed by Sobel. Undeterred, BC soldiered on. By July 2003, the band was back to full strength with the addition of drummer Matt Starr and rookie guitarist Alex Grossi. A new deal with JVC was signed and work began on their belated follow-up LP, which had a working title of Deuce. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide
