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There’s a new film on A24 called Heretic, and it features Hugh Grant in a role as I have never seen him play before. He has changed, accessing a very deep and dark something that makes me uneasy, and I am eager to explore it. While Heretic is a modern twist horror film, it also serves as a metaphor for today’s world though maybe not in the way you are expecting.
Alright, So, Heretic focuses on two young missionaries for the Mormon church, Sister Paxton and Sister Barnes, as they try to reach out to people showing interest in the religion. They get to Mr. Reed’s house right when it starts to pour. He goes on to say that his wife is making lunch in the kitchen and that they can come in, which they do cautiously.
As soon as they walk in, the mood drastically changes and Mr. Reed’s inquisitive questions quickly turn bizarre and disturbing. These questions catch the girls off guard and shift the power balance in the room. It becomes evident quite quickly that Mr Reed is not who he claims to be, and the option to leave is not as easy as just stepping through a doorway.
In an intellectual chase game tracking Mr. Reed’s claim of having discovered the “one true religion,” Sisters Barnes and Paxton understand that in order to survive, they need to escape his religious, psychologically controlling physical structure which happens to the true story. This is where it all begins.
On first viewing, ‘Heretic’ seems like an uncomplicated film centred on religion and the invented beliefs that come with it. However, there is another dimension in the film that delves into the anatomy of our beliefs and examines the systems of control they can be used to exert over people, controlling their actions in a way that makes them think they are free and that their decisions are their own. ‘Heretic’ makes several claims regarding religion, shattering the idea of control and choice along the way.
While the girls know quite well they are puppets in a grand play, what they do not understand is that every possible choice is, in essence, the same choice. This reality is what undermines the whole foundation of their reality. This is what makes any good horror story stand out, and this is where Heretic stands out, exposing the concept that belief is not necessarily following a faith or a doctrine, but how your belief can be used against you, allowing others to have complete power over you.
This metaphor adds to the already great feel of the movie, enabling Heretic to be relevant on many social levels and not just the creepy solitary house. The questions explored in this film are certainly from this politics-infested era, dissecting the power relations regarding the information we are fed, and which ultimately feeds the reality we live in.
The very best performance of Hugh Grant’s career comes in as a shift from his charming rom-com persona which he had mastered to exploring far more complex, dark, and nuanced roles. He is wonderfully convincing, and in portraying Mr. Reed he brings a deep sense of troubling comfort due to the ease with which he hides his character’s sinister side. It forces one to ask whether he is sincerely trying to help these girls by seeding in some religious knowledge with them. This is one of those instances Hugh Grant in this role takes this bold step of enabling metamorphosis in a range of wonderful ways. In this role, he has captured the flag of variety, and no longer needs to only roam around A-list movies as he is already there.
Sister Paxton (Chloe East) and Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) are young missionaries, and they both fit perfectly in their roles. Sophie Thatcher gives Sister Barnes’s character a more analytical tone and scepticism, which makes sense due to her experience. Chloe East, on the other hand, plays the idealized trusting faithful girl with such naivety that she has East’s personality shine through.
The fact that Mr. Reed had control over them is proof that he can manipulate anyone after knowing their interests. These two incredible actresses bring out the best in each other, which could make this their breakout role. We remain hopeful that these missionaries will find a path out of the mess with the help of the powerful, believable performances they give.
We tend to come across a lot of stories, not only horror, in today’s movies that are quite bleak and leave little to no hope. I did a discussion video on this topic recently, so I went into this film ready to analyze what side of the spectrum it may fall on. Heretic keeps the kernel of hope intact when tapping into its dark side, which is surprising and keeps you in suspense until the end. This little balance in the script was a pleasant surprise.
Religion is the metaphorical fabric of Heretic’s story. The film itself is an attempt at religion where a classroom is set to teach a mishmash of religions and utilize Mrs. Reed’s “one true religion” for every other religion’s purpose. Through his mangled theological lessons, one wonders how many religious history, mythology, and “facts” can get distorted to conjure up a belief system that can be woven together, just well enough, to pass as convincing truth.
As Paxton and Barnes Sisters are presented with these deeply unsettling (yet bogus) assumptions, the audience, too, might find themselves understanding the reasoning behind Mr. Reed’s arguments. But, as the movie portrays, it does not pick one religion over the other; that is not the essence of the story. The essence of the story is Mr. Reed’s fixation on the one true religion.
Heretic, for instance, builds its tension differently. It does so with layers of well known religious symbols, traditional decoratives, and the manipulation of light and shadow which conjure up unreasonable expectations. From Hinduism to Catholicism and Christianity, even to Egyptian mythology, the symbols and the images blend into one, forming a peculiar wholeness that represents the film’s theme of constructed belief and religious myth.
To a certain extent, Mr. Reed’s residence is designed after illustration of Dante’s Paradiso. Just like the different levels of heaven and hell, Mr. Reed empowers the girls by making them walk through his front door and each consecutive door in a bid to escape, allowing them to create their own journey. But is a choice a real choice when it is nothing more than a maze engineered to ensnare with the same conclusion? It is questions like this that make Heretic such splendid storytelling.
In the film, one of the omnipresent questions is: “Does Mr. Reed know the ‘one true religion’ or has he stumbled upon something extraordinary?” Or is it just a profund psychological snare designed to destroy one’s free will? Heretic maintains intrigue, oscillating between mysticism and manipulation as we consider whether there is substance to his words or if they are nothing but smoke and mirrors. This uncertainty is what makes the story so captivating. It may scatter hints here and there, but never fully reveals its true intent until the very end.
Heretic embraces the “puzzle” notion to the fullest by establishing a narrative in which every choice is presented to the girls like an impossible test. What I enjoyed from the movie is how Sister Barnes was, almost from the very beginning, aware of Mr. Reed’s psychological tricks, and she did her fair share of actively trying to escape their clutches, which elevated the storytelling and character arcs for all three people involved. The audience, having directly seen the mental game, got to play alongside her with Sister Paxton, figuring out how to get out… and whether getting out was ever feasible. With every new revelation we were given the illusion of being brought deeper into the house without any means of escape, letting them perfectly time each clue and question.
Heretic is great if you’re into horror, psychological thrillers, or complex reality films. It’s dark, unsettling and thought-provoking. However, if you’re overly religious, you may find it offensive, or your brain might just tune out. Confinement and the psychological manipulation of women may be disturbing for some people, especially since the story revolves around two young women. So, don’t mistake it for a family-friendly film.
Children may be deeply disturbed by Heretic’s themes. The movie’s take on faith and control will stay with you long after leaving the theatre. It’s truly thought-provoking. In hindsight, it’s a metaphor for how society at large works, as groups of people, can easily fall prey to carefully constructed narratives that lead them to a conclusion while making it seem logical and like a choice was made through personal agency.
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