Heretic (2024) Movie Review: Hugh Grant Blesses A Passable Thriller Of Circular Theological Debates
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The entire team of the original A Quiet Place, including the intellectual property itself, more or less capitalized on the reputation of the first film, a reputation that quickly proved that this production could not sustain for longer than one airing. Last but not least, screenwriters Scott Beck and Bryan Woods are trying to turn the success of a neat little premise (unless you think about it for more than 15 seconds) into a success story for two struggling careers. As a writer and director. Now, a little over a year after making Adam Driver fight a dinosaur boring (that's what they say. Has anyone ever sat down and watched 65 before?), Beck and Woods are back with a new selling point. Maybe this one. It won't disappoint her as surprisingly as its predecessor did.
We all love a good theological debate - especially because it makes us feel smarter and better than the people around us without actually having to prove anything concrete - and it takes a self-righteous stubbornness to get through most of these arguments, and in Beck and Woods they've found the ideal teammate. Hugh Grant, with his weathered respectability and dry humor, who probably signed onto a project called A Very English Scandal without even reading the script, is the perfect vessel for imagining a low-key game of religious superiority that defines the entire film. In fact, Grant is so good that it almost distracts from the realization that, like any other charismatic cult figure, this debate, like any other theological debate, is just going around in circles without any real revelation.
As wonderfully acerbic and disturbingly charming as Grant's Mr. Reed is, it's no surprise that the men who live in a secluded hillside house and answer the invitation are two Mormon missionaries, sisters Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Paxton (Chloe East). They've gone to his cozy home to preach the good news. Mr. Reed is happy to talk to them about the deeper meaning of religion and their search for meaning. These young women want to respond in their own, uncertain way. But the longer the discussion drags on, and the longer the women who've promised to bake cakes in the kitchen don't show up, the more Barnes and Paxton begin to question their hosts.
"The Heretic" makes the most of these skills, especially in how the screenplay seems almost perfectly tailored to Grant's particular style of speaking. The cadence and rhythm of his authoritative speeches are constantly interrupted by eerie silences and dripping water from a leaky roof, giving the impression that this man has total control over the lives of the people in front of him, even if he doesn't have the keys to the exit. The film can be viewed on Afdah Info.
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