‘Heretic’ Proves That Evil Hugh Grant Is the Best Hugh Grant
A wise prophet once said that “you gotta have faith, faith, faith.” Still, what is a spiritual belief system if it isn’t occasionally tested (see: Job) — and that’s where Hugh Grant comes in. The 64-year-old movie star/stammering British icon has spent the last decade or so of his career trying to erase memories of the first few decades of his career, purposefully leaning into what he calls his “freak-show era.” He’s embraced his inner rat bastard and rewarded us with a handful of performances ranging for insufferably narcissistic to downright despicable. The charming leading man who wittily won his way into the hearts of Julia Roberts, Andie McDowell and Drew Barrymore? That Hugh has left the building.
Yet you can see traces of the rom-com–honed persona Grant calls “Mr. Stuttery Blinky” in Heretic, a horror movie that makes extremely good use of those twinkly eyes, that sunny smile, the wry spin he puts on a punch line. His character Mr. Reed emits a sonar echo of the harmless Hugh we once knew — all the better to deceive you, my dear. When two young Mormon missionaries, Sister Paxton (Chloe East) and Sister Barnes (Yellowjackets‘ Sophie Thatcher), show up at his door, he couldn’t be more receptive to hear more about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Given that a storm is raging, however, maybe they should come inside first? Don’t worry, his wife is in the other room. In fact, his visitors have just arrived in time for some of her fresh baked pie.
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Once the missionaries have settled in, Mr. Reed begins peppering them with questions. Have they always been involved with the church? Yes, Sister Paxton grew up as an LDS member; Sister Barnes came to it after her father passed away, and she and her mother were searching for a faith that spoke to their grief. Do they really think that Mormonism is the answer to their prayers, in terms of spiritual guidance and salvation? Is their personal belief system based on a first-hand connection to God, or second-hand wisdom that they’ve just swallowed sans inquiry? How do they feel about — this one’s a bit awkward, but don’t worry, the wife will be out any second now — the practice of polygamy?
It turns out that Mr. Reed does not need any more information on what the Heavenly Father might have in store for him. Their charming host knows plenty about their religion, and about most religions in general. You could say that he’s a longtime amateur theologian, and has done his fair share of due diligence on all manner of faiths. Which is why he’s invited Sister Paxton and Sister Barnes, who by now have realized they’ve stumbled into something that’s less a house visit and more like a spider’s web, to play a game with him. Because it seems that Mr. Reed has figured out the ultimate truth behind why people worship their respective higher powers. And if these two young women can guess what that is, they might be able to leave his place alive.
What follows is an A24 horror film that starts off strong, begins tripping over its own philosophical musings in an extremely wonky middle section, and devolves into pure, uncut balderdash by the last act. You can feel Heretic losing the courage of its own confused convictions way before the credits, and while writer-directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods have had their share of hits (the duo penned A Quiet Place and its sequel) and misses (the Adam Driver sci-fi faceplant 65), they have split the difference in favor of a highly intelligent mediocrity this time around. They also love girding their scares with shout-outs — a partial list of references would include the history of the board game Monopoly, Radiohead’s “Creep,” Voltaire, Swamp Thing, simulation theory, the Butterfly Dream vs. the Butterfly Effect, Taco Bell, magic Mormon underwear, and Jar-Jar Binks. (If you’re wondering whether Grant does the Jar-Jar voice when the Phantom Menace character is namedropped: Yes. Yes, he does.) Other than the occasional cameo from Topher Grace as a Mormon elder, this is essentially a three-hander, and both Thatcher and East dutifully handle their scary-movie survivalist responsibilities like pros.
But no one doubts who’s providing the “secret” sauce that fuels what fun there is to be had here. If Heretic proves nothing else, it’s that creepy, evil Hugh Grant is the best Hugh Grant. It’s not just that Grant is digging into this spiritual-seeker-slash-sadist with an unbridled sense of glee, playing up the corny dad-humor, the faux-politeness that hides true intentions, and the rhetorical sportsmanship in the name of goading his victims to their own revelations. Rather, it’s how he shows you Mr. Reed’s sheer conviction behind what he’s doing that sells the whole shebang. The righteousness is off the charts, and in a movie all about belief, Grant makes you believe his true believer is on his own mission of enlightenment. Even when the wheels come off the movie, the star keeps driving everything forward. To say that this horror movie hits all of the marks it needs to hit would be just south of blasphemous. The manner in which Grant both grounds the material and lobs it into over-the-top territory, however, is simply divine.
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