A24 has released highly rated and awaited movies like “We Live in Time”, “I Saw the TV Glow”, “MaXXXine” and more, making 2024 a stellar year for the popular film studio. Amongst those stands “Heretic”, a horror/thriller released in theaters on Nov. 8, 2024.
“Heretic” follows Sister Paxton (Chloe East) and Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher), two Mormon missionaries on a mission to teach the gospel and convert nonbelievers to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. When they knock on the door of a warm and welcoming Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant), he’s eager to welcome in the young ladies — a little too eager.
Although the audience can immediately notice his red flags, Sisters Barnes and Sister Paxton are blinded by Mr. Reed’s exuberant interest in discussing their religion and the promise of freshly baked blueberry pie made by the alleged “Mrs. Reed”.
While a storm brews outside, the Sisters soon realize something sinister is brewing inside as well. When Mr. Reed makes repeated excuses for the lack of his wife’s presence, Sister Barnes soon discovers that the aroma of blueberry pie isn’t coming from the kitchen, but a scented candle sitting on the table before them.
Once the girls realize they’ve been misled, they try to leave Mr. Reed’s home only to discover they’ve been locked inside and the only way out is to make a difficult decision.
Mr. Reed gives the girls two choices in the form of two separate doors: One labeled “Belief”, and the other labeled “Disbelief”. Along with this choice, he offers them something to consider — do they truly believe in the religion and the God they’ve dedicated their lives to? Or are they simply continuing to “believe” because it is familiar?
The doors promise an exit out of his house, but of course, it’s more complicated than that. Once the Sisters make their choice, things get even more interesting and they’re forced to question everything they know.
“Heretic”’s camera work separates it from other recent releases, and Cinematographer Chung-hoon Chung and Editor Justin Li clearly knew the demands of this film and how to bring the story to life.
“Heretic” features one of the coolest transition shots out of any blockbuster film released this year. Without giving it away, it will undoubtedly have you thinking: “This is cinema”.
Dialogue and music can only take a film so far, and while both those elements are certainly remarkable, Chung’s camera direction and Li’s post-production editing takes “Heretic” to a terrifying level.
Whether you know him from “Notting Hill”, “Bridget Jones Diary”, “Love, Actually” or even his comical appearance as an Oompa-Loompa in “Wonka”, most are familiar with Hugh Grant from one of his many works. Of his 70+ roles, “Heretic” is being revered as one of his best performances yet by many film critics — and this high praise is well deserved.
Both sinister and deceiving from his very first appearance on the screen, Grant keeps you on your toes throughout the arc of the story. Despite every question and action seeming to raise an alarm, you can’t help but lean into his giddy personality — just like Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton.
Grant spends a good portion of “Heretic” monologuing — which usually runs the risk of losing audiences — but Grant manages to deliver his lines with such passion and vigor that it creates a gravitational pull between him and the audience, pulling us closer to hear his message.
Not only are his lines powerful, but his mannerisms are as well. Grant manages to take light-hearted jokes and normal movements and make them feel layered in something altogether evil.
The performances from East (Sister Paxton) and Thatcher (Sister Barnes) were nothing short of exceptional. Each delivered a unique performance that felt true to their characters, helped the audience bond with these girls and drove the plot forward.
Unfortunately, even a film like “Heretic” with outstanding elements can have its downsides.
While there are few, the biggest hindrance to “Heretic” is its pacing. The bulk of the story takes place in the set-up when we explore Mr. Reed’s views on religion and see the Sisters try to grapple with their situation.
Because of this, we spend less time in the “thick of it”. Meaning we have all this scenario building, and not enough time in the actual scenario — resulting in a film that isn’t as scary or psychologically tolling as it could have been.
In fact, there is only one scene that could even remotely be described as scary or thrilling, like the genre promises.
The film goes by in a blur and by the end, you’re left wanting more with an unsatisfying ending.
That’s not to say that “Heretic” doesn’t have some gruesome and disturbing moments — its R rating for bloody violence is well deserved.
Despite that, “Heretic” is still a fantastic film and worth a watch on the big screen.
Between the stellar performances from Grant, East and Thatcher, the phenomenal camera work and the alluring plot — “Heretic” is sure to captivate its viewers.
