Heretic

I enjoyed this a lot.

It's creepy and sinister and had me guessing right up to the climax.

Hugh grant is really excellent. He is darkly mischievous, charming and unsettling. Both Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East give fantastic turns too and are ably directed by the duo of Scott Beck and Bryan Woods who craft a really sinister feeling movie.

It's an atheists wet dream and some of the exposition will trouble people of all kinds of faiths but it isn't really a critique of religion so much as an in depth look at manipulation, psychology and the impressionable nature of the human condition.

It's unlike anything I've seen and I enjoyed it quite a lot.

Heretic is as unpredictable as it is messy. While the film keeps you on edge for most of its runtime, the plot begins to fizzle out in the final act.

Hugh Grant delivers a standout performance, with Sophie Thatcher and Cloe East also shining in their roles. The director, cinematographer, and set designer deserve credit too, as they gradually immerse you into the growing madness of Grant's character and his eerie home.

Unfortunately, the plot is the film's weakest point. The tension and mystery build beautifully at first, but around the two-thirds mark, it starts to unravel. The climax left me slightly underwhelmed, as I was expecting something more profound. Still, 'Heretic' is an excellent horror film in its own right - enjoyable, but not quite as memorable as I had hoped.

I am going to echo what some others have said. The first half of this movie is brilliant. It lost me about halfway through, though. I wish so much that the writers would have chosen a different path. Heretic could have been one of the most genius movies ever written if their villain would have been a different sort and had different motivations. While hard to choose a number for this movie, I think I'm feeling 6 1/2. Great acting. Great cinematography. And, like I said, brilliant script in the first half. A thought-provoking film until it isn't. Also, the ending is more ambiguous than I would like it to be. If the whole movie were like the first half, this would be a solid 9. But alas.

In Heretic, Hugh Grant (Mr. Reed) gives one of the best performances of the year. He is very unnerving in this role and that alone is worth the price of admission to see. I hope this isn't a one and done for him because we need him in more horror movies, he is a natural. Sophie Thatcher (Sister Barnes) and Chloe East (Sister Paxton) give top notch performances as well. This is a very religious horror movie. It is a dialogue heavy film, which I personally enjoyed but some people might not. It doesn't rely on cheap jump scares because just Hugh talking in this film can send chills down your spine. Could've been better towards the end but this is still a solid entry into the genre.

What else can really be said? The initial premise is interesting and it certainly leaves you wondering what could possibly happen next- especially with a man who just meanders and talks and doesn't directly "threaten". A Very solid first half.

But after the over halfway-ish point of the movie, it felt like it was trying to be smarter than it was with the most generic of truths, and sudden Sherlock Holmes levels of noticing (she noticed, but didn't tell her friend????).

The ending ultimately sours the entire film. Honestly, anything would have been better than the ending we got.

6/10, More than Decent.