Heretic (2024) has just hit the VOD streets. If you are wondering if it’s worth the hefty $19.99 rental price tag (or $24.99 if you commit to buying it), then keep reading. The film follows two missionaries who knock on the wrong door. Don’t look up anything else about the movie! I recommend viewing it without even seeing the trailer. Heretic dives into questions about religion and the place/burden of women under the thumb of power. The performances pull you into the story, the dialogue has some bite, and the tension is palpable. It is a cat-and-mouse thriller that takes some surprising turns. It’s a must-see for psychological thriller fans, although I would wait for the rental price to drop.
Holy Hell
The performances sell the characters. Heretic is dialogue-heavy; line delivery could make or break the movie. Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East) have distinct personalities, backgrounds, goals, and experiences. You can distinguish their varying levels of bravery and how it influences their actions. Meanwhile, Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant) has a method to his madness. He isn’t simply a violent male antagonist the young missionaries happen to cross the path of. His quest for the truth through academia and the scientific method has driven him to think of people as pawns who can be used to prove his theories. Mr. Reed is calculated, smart, and confident. However, he’s vulnerable and he can be caught in a lie. He can be exposed verbally, which seems to wound him and influence his next steps.
The sisters use their wits and words as weapons to show the weak spots in his theories. Much of the cat-and-mouse aspects involve the discourse between Mr. Reed and the missionaries. I love how Sister Barnes ate him up in multiple scenes.
Heretic engages us with great writing and performances, but it keeps us hooked by opening the door to bigger questions. Unfortunately, those questions felt like a basic run of a World Religions 101 class: very surface-level. I opened that can of worms during my freshman year of college, which was [REDACTED] years ago. Stepping outside my experience, I recognize that many people have not asked those questions. However, World Religions isn’t a required class, and we live in a country that’s trying to weasel the bible into the curriculum. Maybe the surface is where we have to start. Heretic makes room for the audience to question the things that have been taught (indoctrinated) while acknowledging the positive aspects of having faith.
A Blueberry Nightmare
The film also silently presents familiar questions to the audience, like why are his victims women? Mr. Reed uses big words and worldly references to justify his actions. However, it does not conceal the fact that he seeks out women to put through the religious wringer. There’s a scene where a male missionary approaches and is treated differently. Mr. Reed doesn’t even take the time to pick his brain about theories. This could have been due to Sister Barnes and Paxton, but based on what we see later, I think all of Mr. Reed’s male visitors have similar fates: freedom. That provides another layer of commentary, considering that most listed prophets were men. Yet, he chooses to test women’s (prophets) faith. That’s a conversation worth having!
Heretic is a movie that should be on your watch list. Go in blind and be prepared for dialogue to carry the plot. The current price tag is a bit steep unless you are going to buy it. In about a month or two, the rental price should go down to something that is more accessible. Check out Heretic!
Check out Jazzmin’s top 10 horror movies of 2024 here!
