Heretic movie review: Hugh Grant kills this religious idiot

Chloe East, Hugh Grant and Sophie Thatcher in a scene from “Heretic” Photo Credit: Kimberly French

What an extraordinary turn by Hugh Grant! In a shocking bit of contra-casting, the rough boy, Daniel Cleaver, from bridget jones diary, The duo behind the post-apocalyptic thriller, Scott Beck and Brian Woods turn into calculating Mr. Reed in this thriller, a quiet place,

The film opens with sisters Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Paxton (Chloe East) discussing the power of suggestion and how much we believe because we are told it is so. Both young women are missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormons. Barnes is the more outspoken of the two while Paxton is skeptical.

After several unproductive encounters, the two visit Reed, a middle-aged Englishman who lives in a lonely house on a hilltop and who has indicated his interest in Mormon beliefs. The weather changes and as the rain subsides with the threat of snowfall, the two young women are convinced to accept Reed’s hospitality when he assures them of his wife’s presence (baking a blueberry pie no less). When they say that they cannot enter a man’s house unless a woman is present there.

Barnes immediately realizes something is wrong and when the two women try to leave, they become involved in a game of cat-and-mouse with Reed, who is hell-bent on showing Barnes and Paxton the one true religion. .

For a film with three characters, one set, and a lot of dialogue dealing with abstract concepts including faith, trust, organized religion, and control, heretic Easily maintains tension to a stress-worthy level.

The gore is deliberately kept low and so when violence does occur, it is genuinely shocking. The cinematography is extraordinary – from the young women riding their bicycles up and down the stairs, to the shot of a character running out of the basement through a miniature, they are beautifully composed and pregnant with meaning.

From left, Hugh Grant, Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East in a scene from “Heretic”. Photo Credit: Kimberly French

While horror movies include dank basements, creepy, isolated houses, and creepy, smiling men, real terror exists heretic Comes from challenging beliefs. Reed is today’s patron saint of screaming rationalizations. Half-truths and vague generalizations are enunciated with the weight of truth. It is no coincidence that the first shot of the film shows Paxton and Barnes sitting on a bench with an advertising sign on it.

heretic Very well written, each argument follows clear logical steps, even if the facts on which they are based are questionable. And acting makes words flesh out. Grant, whether he’s quoting Voltaire or Spider-Man, is drawing a line between the Christ Child and Phantom MenaceImitating Jar Jar Binks or singing Radio Head’s ‘Creep’, he fixes you with his twinkling eyes. Thatcher and East keep pace with their convictions and intelligence.

The final song as the credits roll – Thatcher’s mesmerizing rendition of Bob Dylan’s ‘Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door’ – is a reiteration of one of the film’s themes: that nothing is original, from monopoly to ideas, songs or religion. A sly clap for this highly original film.

The Heretic is currently playing in theaters