Heretic
Heretic
A diabolical Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant) ensnares two young missionaries in his terrifying game of cat-and-mouse when they knock on the wrong door and are forced to prove their faith.
rg9400 reviewedDecember 10, 2024
Another excellent horror-thriller in a year rife with them. Heretic is a Hitchcock-esque movie, centered around a limited cast in a limited setting with its narrative thrust centered around dialogue-driven tension. Similar setups in recent years include 10 Cloverfield Lane, Split, and a host of others. Bafflingly, the movie opens up a weirdly comedic scene centered on sex whose purpose still eludes me. However, it quickly shifts to Hugh Grant's strange house. Most of the movie centers around him throwing religious thought experiments at the two young missionaries, trying to play mind games with them. As the movie ventures deeper and deeper into his house, things become more unsettling as both the viewer and the characters try to figure out exactly what he wants. The movie takes a lot of twists and turns, but most of it revolves around this dynamic of Hugh Grant's character trying to make some sort of elusive point to these characters. I was not expecting philosophical and religious discussions to be so integral to the movie. While the movie doesn't have jump scares, it does a great job of building atmosphere through its setting and dialogue. At times, the movie can feel a bit far-fetched and over-the-top, but not in a way that broke my immersion. Finally, while the trio of Hugh Grant, Sophie Thatcher, and Chloe East may not have the eye-catching style of acting that anchored a lot of the other excellent horror movies this year, all three of them are great at subtly enhancing their characters. Hugh Grant does an excellent job at playing polite and kind while maintaining that constant sense of creepiness, and Sophie Thatcher's dread and frustration are palpable throughout. However, it is Chloe East who steals the show, managing to cover and convey a wide spectrum of emotions through the entire runtime of the movie. If you enjoy these limited cast, limited setting, dialogue driven thrillers a la Hitchcock, or if you just want to watch a lot of discussions around religion, I highly recommend Heretic.