THE STORY – Two young missionaries become ensnared in a deadly game of cat and mouse when they knock on the door of the diabolical Mr. Reed. Trapped in his home, they must turn to their faith if they want to make it out alive.
THE CAST – Hugh Grant, Sophie Thatcher & Chloe East
THE TEAM – Scott Beck & Bryan Woods (Directors/Writers)
THE RUNNING TIME – 110 Minutes
“How has God shown you that the Church is true?” Scott Beck and Bryan Woods have some fun posing this question in their cheeky chamber horror feature, “Heretic.” Their devilish script features a menacing Hugh Grant, who takes pleasure in toying with two visiting Mormon missionaries by testing their faith in a ridiculous game of cat and mouse. While it often falls into its own genre traps, the film is at its best when relying on Grant to deliver the entertainment goods and maximum tension.
The story follows the curious Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and innocent Sister Paxon (Chloe East) after a long day of failing to convert people to join the Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder-day Saints. With one final attempt, they arrive at Mr. Reed’s (Grant) house—and just in time, as a heavy storm leaves them cold and wet from the pouring rain. Mr. Reed invites Sisters Barnes and Paxon inside, but The Church is strict. As a safety precaution, they cannot enter the house without another woman inside. With one small statement to reassure them that his wife’s currently baking blueberry pie, the girls enter, no other questions asked, and don’t even bat an eye at “the metal in the walls.” Their trust in strangers is high, and right away, Beck and Woods let us know exactly where this is going.
If this was the sisters’ first test of faith, let’s just say they put their faith in the wrong person. Barnes and Paxon soon realize that there’s no blueberry pie or wife and that they’re locked in with Mr. Reed. What game is he trying to play? Why did he pretend to be interested in their message? Soon enough, they get their answers. This is Reed’s game of uncovering the one true religion. At this point, the script takes off on its devilish adventure of challenging the idea that there’s even a God at all. Through clever dialogue, led by an amusing Hugh Grant (who appears to be having the time of his life), Reed unravels a ploy to break their spirits.
After a plethora of theories and long-winded explanations, Mr. Reed finally reveals his true intent. By no means is the great, big reveal in “Heretic” shocking or new, but it certainly takes us down a path of thinking about religion as both a concept and a tactic. To a degree, and at a point, it becomes exhausting listening to Reed’s incessant rants about the commonalities in all religions or the knock-off variants of the original Torah, as explained by his lengthy analogy to The Landlord’s Game. But once we’re finally over this word hurdle, directors Beck and Woods dig deep within their horror roots to unleash a final act that is bonkers and sinister.
As far as performances go, this feels like Hugh Grant unleashed. His many monologues and even a sing-along to Radiohead’s “Creep” are enough to convince anyone that he is letting loose in ways he hasn’t done before. In “Heretic,” he also masters an uncanny combination of charm and creepy in a spellbinding way. Thatcher’s Sister Barnes holds secrets of her own, which are revealed in due time. Her performance to reflect this is effective, as it’s easy to lean on her character as the voice of reason. Her counterpart, Sister Paxton, is more open with her love of God and confidence in her faith. East brings a level of innocence that is remarkably efficient through bubbly choices. Thatcher and East are not always given the chance to stretch their performances, but they are fantastic anyway.
Perhaps the choice to limit our knowledge of these characters’ personalities and backstories was intentional. Their decision-making in real-time with the reminder that “Heretic” is a horror film (meaning characters will inevitably do and say stupid things) is not surprising, after all. But Beck and Woods don’t actually make any big decisions to force their characters to reflect on their faith at all—even after Reed’s line of questioning and games. Seemingly, the script takes the easy way out by relying on the notion that people are evil. If a stance had actually been taken in this film, the third act would not have felt as endless, as if they ran out of ideas and just kept piling on ideas of horrible human behavior. There’s some fun to be had, sure, but a confident choice, either way, would have been more effective.
An entertaining chamber horror feature, “Heretic” boasts a superbly frightening Hugh Grant performance. Though it relies on common disputes when it comes to religion, the loquacious dialogue is clever yet easy to follow. Thatcher and East’s interpretations of their respective characters work well for the story at hand. However, with the script relying on standard talking points to examine religion, there’s not much of a decision or stance on it as a whole, which feels like an easy way out of a difficult creative choice. Still, there’s no denying the fun one will have heading into this movie and the fun the cast seemingly had while on set. If not for the minor jump scares or interesting dialogue, definitely see the film for Hugh Grant’s hefty performance full of charm and creepiness.
