Hugh Grant spooks and proselytises his way through a reasonable psychological horror.
Heretic is a psychological horror that questions the legitimacy of religion. It is a platform for Hugh Grant to let loose in one of his most nefarious roles yet, trapping two Mormon missionaries in the household of his devilish and reclusive Englishman, Mr. Reed. While the film can teeter on the edge of losing its mystery early, it is undeniably an unsettling yarn that questions the character’s and the audience’s tolerance for belief.
Directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, most well-known for co-writing the script for A Quiet Place, Heretic is almost miraculous after last year’s sci-fi flop 65. The film introduces Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East), two young missionaries. Riding around Colorado on their bikes, they knock on as many doors as possible to bring more awareness to Mormonism. In an increasingly secular society and in a college town they aren’t having a great deal of success telling people about Christ’s Plan. On this day, there’s also a storm on the way.
They do have the name of someone interested in learning more about their religion, so they ride to the house of the charming yet slightly odd Mr. Reed. He welcomes them with open arms, offering refuge from the storm. Without hesitation, he charismatically lures them into believing he has an open mind for listening and learning but slowly begins introducing conjecture and contradiction into the conversation. The walls also don’t allow for phone reception, and the front door is bolt-locked shut. As the girls get deeper into his home, Reed will test their beliefs in ways that creep, question, and damage everything they have come to know.
The central tension through the first act of Heretic is when politeness gets the better of us. Sister Barnes and Paxton both start to feel uncomfortable in Reed’s cryptic and elliptical home, struggling to find the right moment to leave as he subtly brings the girls further and further into the labyrinthine property. They tell him they can only be alone in the same room as him if his wife is present, but his wife is nowhere to be found – he claims she’s baking a blueberry pie in another room. Once Sister Paxton deduces the smell of the blueberry pie is coming from a candle, not a kitchen, the film opens many doors – literally and thematically.
Hugh Grant holds the film together, even once it reveals its hand a little early and the intrigue begins to fizzle. His late career shift toward pantomime-type villainy has done him nothing but favours. Whether it be his lauded role in Paddington 2, a slimy politician in A Very English Scandal, or a pompous fool in Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, his performance in Heretic is another captivating entry in a list of roles you would never see him playing in his youth. A particular speech comparing the iterative nature of the board game ‘Monopoly’ to the history of religious scripture is a highlight; he gives Reed a sinister charm and disquieting intellect through a simple analogy. He also gets to have a lot of fun in the role, somehow pulling off mentioning ‘Jar Jar Binks’ from Star Wars and not breaking the film’s tone.
Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East also give the film a beating heart as they uncover what’s happening. Thatcher gives Sister Barnes strong practicality and resourcefulness to her nature, able to quickly deduce what’s going on with an astute eye. East is making Paxton a more sympathetic and unsuspecting character, but it makes for an interesting dynamic as both young women react to Reed’s manipulations with very different approaches. It’s not a film that is as anti-religious as the premise would have you believe either – both performers tap into that well enough to give the movie a bit more intrigue.
The cinematography by Chung Chung-hoon admirably gives the sense of space mystery, unease, and misdirection, all in predominately one location. Once the film gets into the second half, it begins to look much murkier and darker, a slight distraction from the immaculately shot moody design of the hallways and sitting rooms that situate the viewer on edge along with the characters. They also give the house itself a lot of character – doorways are dark, rooms aren’t what they seem, and the furnishings are sparse. A particular transition shot moves from a property model to a real-life house with natural cinematic flair. It unfortunately doesn’t sustain that visual immersion the entire time.
Heretic‘s script could have benefitted if it expanded more on the notion of faith over belief. Mr. Reed is hell-bent on proving to these two young girls that all religions are just adaptations and iterations of world myths. He has one true belief that won’t be spoiled here, but once he unveils it, it is hardly astounding. The film often ventures into tropes and cliches about religious practices, drooling out countless speeches about belief systems that wear a bit thin on repetition, dare one say ‘iteration?’
Questioning where religion comes from, how much you place your faith in religion, and how much you can sell your religion are all profound questions entrenched within many of us. Heretic is a mildly successful psychological exercise in the interrogation of belief. Its horror is not as frightening as it could be, but Hugh Grant nonetheless makes it a decently enthralling time at the movies.
