Heretic 4K 2024

Two young Mormon missionaries come to visit the smiling Mr. Reed to talk about the true faith. However, Mr. Reed's stance proves to be too... radical. As do his methods of persuasion...

To make the star of comedies or romcoms maniac - not obvious, but not so rare decision. In the roles of murderers have been such comedians and favorites of the public, such as Robin Williams ('Insomnia', 'Photo in an hour'), Vince Vaughn ('Psycho'), Kevin James ('Becky'), Elijah Wood ('Maniac'), soon we will see a laggard Nick Frost as a maniac-taxi driver ('Soul Carrier'), even Nagiyev and Svetlakov decided to such experiments. Not often it becomes an event and dramatically changes the role of the star, but almost always it is curious.

Here, for example, Hugh Grant. What are his roles you remember first of all? The romantic Prime Minister from 'Real Love'? Charming in Bridget Jones's Diary? The singing producer from 'Out of Sight, Out of Mind'? The hero-lover from 'Notting Hill'? Either way, the first thing you want to do when you see his smartly bewildered face is smile. Something funny, or touching, or both, is about to happen. Of course it's safe to enter the home of such a person!

Big mistake if you find yourself in the movie 'Heretic'.

Hugh Grant is superb as the talkatively erudite maniac Mr. Reed (don't tell me that's a spoiler - as in 'Soul Gatherer' with Cage, this casting decision is the heart of the ad campaign). Looking at him, you experience a complex mix of feelings - the same is true for the heroines. They just can't believe this man could be dangerous. That's why the best part of the movie for me is the middle, when the heroines already realize that the door to the outside is locked and no Mrs. Reed is going to bring them blueberry pie, but they're not yet scared enough to scream or fight. They stall for time, pretending everything is normal. But with each passing minute, the situation gets more and more out of control. And the word 'control' becomes as important to the plot as the word 'religion'.

Dialogues in the movie can be singled out separately. Because the characters don't just talk a lot. They talk all the time. For a good two thirds of the unkind movie they use words as weapons - fencing with historical references, chopping metaphors, defending themselves with parallels and allusions, trapping each other in logical fallacies. Holy books, board games, music albums, and even comic book culture come into play (it's funny that the role of the rector of the sisters is played by Topher Grace - the first Venom from the third 'Spider-Man'). It's a real intellectual verbal carnage.

I was really afraid that in the third act, when events must inevitably come to a climax, the tone of the movie would get thrown together. It's impossible in this genre without fuss, running and blood. In some ways, these fears were justified. But if the movie remained a conversational duel until the end - I hardly liked it myself.

The trailer sells 'Heretic' as an analog of the intelligent 'Saw' - with mazes, traps and deadly challenges. It's all true - the mazes are there, there's a clever antagonist with complex motivations. The main difference is in the protagonists. There are only two heroines - bold brunette Barnes and timid blonde Paxton. This is not mindless youth in slashers or repulsive sinners in 'Saw'. They're not shabby either - they're smart, well-read, cautious, and they confront not only the smiling maniac, but also their past, their inner demons, fears, prejudices. They are armed with faith... but is it enough to defeat the unbelieving heretic?