Hereditary (2018) Movie Review
Hereditary (2018) Movie Review
Over the years my feelings about the horror genre have evolved substantially. I’ve talked about plenty of horror films on this website and earlier this year I even wrote a small essay about how I simultaneously appreciated horror yet also approached the genre with caution. Recently, however, I haven’t been approaching it with much caution at all. Ever since I saw the film Sinister this summer, I’ve felt less and less intimidated by the idea of scary movies. This October I wanted to do a big horror marathon and watch a ton of movies I’d never seen before, but I only ended up watching The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) and The Purge (which is barely even horror anyways). I didn’t want to just leave it at that so I decided I was gonna watch something I knew I would actually find scary, Hereditary. Upon its release, I remember seeing review headlines for Hereditary like, “Can A Movie Be Too Scary? Hereditary Might Come Close” and “Hereditary Is Too Scary For Its Own Good.” I figured that since I had endured Sinister, which might be the least fun-to-watch movie I’ve ever seen to be completely honest, I could handle just about anything, including Hereditary. So I sat down to watch it all by myself. I did pause the movie at a couple points but I did make it all the way through. It wasn’t always a smooth ride either; Hereditary is decently disturbing and there were several moments that I would consider truly bone-chilling.
It’s hard to say much about this movie without spoiling it, so I’ll try my best even though there are major plot twists within the first half an hour. Hereditary starts off by informing us that the grandmother of the Graham family has died. Annie Graham (Toni Collette), the mother of the family, makes a speech at her estranged mother’s funeral about how she was both a very private and secretive woman and also sort of losing her mind at the time of her death. Annie’s daughter Charlie (Milly Shapiro) is very upset following her grandmother’s death, but her son Peter (Alex Wolff) really couldn’t care less. Tension is running somewhat high in the Graham family; Annie goes behind her husband’s (Gabriel Byrne) back to attend support group meetings. After another disaster strikes for the family, Annie gets in touch with another member of her support group for answers on how to make things right with her family. Demons and malevolent spirits haunt the family, and eventually everything basically erupts into a harrowing hysteria. I know I didn’t really reveal much about the actual plot of this movie, but that was purposeful. If you plan on seeing this film, trust me when I say that it will be a much more startling experience without spoilers. I went into it knowing a little too much and I honestly wish I hadn’t, but what’s done is done, and now I can only do my part in protecting everyone else from spoilers.
From a technical standpoint, Hereditary is an extremely impressive piece of art. It’s obvious how much work the filmmakers put into this movie, and it definitely paid off. Hereditary is one of the best horror movies I’ve seen in a while. The story is complex without being too hard to understand and keeps you guessing at every turn. This is an extremely unpredictable movie. Unlike other horror movies that sometimes lull the audience into a false sense of security, Hereditary is an utter nightmare from the get-go. It wastes absolutely no time getting creepy; one of the moments I would consider the scariest happens within the first fifteen minutes. This is the type of film that will make you say “Oh my God” out loud, even if you’re watching it by yourself like I did. Hereditary is a genuine thrill ride. It’s one of those horror movies that will leave certain images stuck with you long after you’re finished watching it. The cinematography here is top-notch. I even started noticing things like lighting that I typically don’t pay much attention to in movies. The use of lighting in this movie is really smart; it plays around with the viewer and makes you question what’s really happening and what’s not. Anyone who appreciates horror should be able to recognize how creative and original this movie is compared to many of its genre contemporaries. The acting in Hereditary is also fantastic. Toni Collette is brilliant in the role of Annie; her performance really brings the movie together in my opinion. One of the most interesting things about this film is how it gradually transitions from realism to surrealism over the course of its runtime. At first, most of the scares are believable: people dying, people seeing ghosts, etc. – things that could potentially happen in real life. I think everyone has had the experience of seeing things in the dark that aren’t there. By the end, when demons and the occult are involved, and the imagery is a lot more dreamlike and bizarre, suddenly it’s not so familiar anymore. Hereditary starts out as essentially a really dark family drama, and ends as a fantasy nightmare.
I’ve given this film a lot of praise so far but I have to make this clear: as well-made as Hereditary may be, this is not a movie for everyone. Fun is subjective of course, but I doubt almost anyone would call this a “fun” movie-watching experience. In fact, in some ways, it’s kind of a chore to get through. This movie was pretty polarizing upon its release, and it’s easy to see why. I could easily understand why someone would simply stop watching it if they were expecting something lighter or more casual. There is almost nothing easy about watching Hereditary. Even the scenes where nothing actually scary is happening feel sorta “off,” which makes it so that there’s pretty much no time to feel relaxed. I could even imagine a scenario where this movie would actually leave a negative effect on someone who watched it; the way it incorporates family and mental illness into the horror of it all could really affect someone, which in some ways I guess is the point. This is no doubt a feel-bad movie, so much so that you might ask yourself, “What am I even watching?”
Safety chart:
Violence: 8/10 - Decapitation is prevalent. People are burned alive, strangled, and more. There’s a decent amount of blood and there are plenty of corpses to go around.
Language: 7/10 - The characters are always stressed so there’s a decent amount of swearing.
Drinking/smoking: 7/10 - Peter’s only real hobby is being a stoner. There’s also some drinking.
They say there are two types of horror films: the psychological ones that deal with the unseen and unknown, and the in-your-face ones that leave nothing to the imagination and hide nothing from the audience. Hereditary is basically both. The sense of dread that permeates the entire movie is a force to be reckoned with, but toward the end when everything just blows up, you get a full taste of everything the filmmakers have been hiding during the first two acts. If you’re used to watching horror movies, chances are you’ll get something out of Hereditary. If not, and you plan on watching this, brace yourself. However, this is a very well-crafted movie that I think will probably go down in history as one of the best memorable horror movies of the 2010s. I’m gonna give it an A- as a grade. I can’t imagine someone seeing this movie and thinking nothing of it. Hereditary will force you to have an opinion, and most likely a strong one at that.
