'Heretic' is a psychological snore-fest
Unhinged antagonist keeps faith-based horror film on spiritual track
"Heretic" is an odd movie to say the least. The film follows two Jehovah Witnesses, Sister Barns (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East), as they go from door to door spreading the good word of their faith.
They come upon Mr.Reed, played fantastically by Hugh Grant ("Dungeons and Dragons"), in an old rickety house. He invites them in for blueberry pie and a discussion about religion.
Wanting to retreat from the growing snowstorm, the sisters gladly accept.
They step inside and discover odd things about the house -- including that the door is locked from the outside, leaving them trapped with the strange old man with a terrifying secret lurking in the basement below.
This movie is odd to review, as my religious background is a strong Methodist Christian; but, I'm always open to different interpretations of religion and what we think happens after we die.
This film offers some interesting claims about religion, but if you're not into that type of discussion you'll find it extremely boring and cliché. The bulk of this movie is its perspective on what the one true religion is -- and spoiler alert, it's not an actual religion but an idea that can be worshiped as a religion.
Grant is the star of this movie. His performance as Reed is completely unhinged, bringing in elements from popular serial killers such as Buffalo Bill and Dexter, but with a Grant twist.
A lot of his dialogue reminded me of "Silence of the Lambs" and how Hannibal Lecter spoke to everyone. It was very educated and logical, so at times I found myself agreeing with his points. This is also a bad thing, as I've seen the smart serial killer stereotype done a million times, and Grant's version doesn't offer anything new in terms of how the character is written.
I loved Sophie Thacher's performance as Sister Barnes, especially her confidence and eagerness to take up the challenge offered by Grant's character. She was a great lead until halfway through the film, when the focus shifted to Chloe East's Sister Paxton, who I found less engaging. (Paxton was kind of an idiot until the last third, when she suddenly grew a brain and outsmarted the killer in an underwhelming way.)
I really liked the design of the house and how it was laid out. It had the vibes of a classic haunted house movie, which I appreciated.
The story was sort of lackluster and the ending undid everything it was building toward. The great reveal was sort of bland and left more than to be desired.
It's like getting the air sucked out of your sails, and you feel sort of deflated afterwards.
"Heretic" is a solid movie that I would watch once and then never see again. It didn't make a huge impact on me.
The movie is a solid 7/10 the is worth seeing at least once, if nothing else than for the intriguing performance Hugh Grant gives.
Film critic Carter Salley is a junior studying media arts and co-host of Central Michigan Life's pop culture podcast "Raving Geeks."
