The long awaited thriller, “Heretic,” released in theaters throughout the U.S. on Nov. 8, 2024, to primarily positive reviews. The film, directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, first premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept. 8, 2024.
“Heretic” stars Hugh Grant as the main antagonist — Mr. Reed — who lures two Mormon missionaries — Chloe East as the shy and naive Sister Paxton and Sophie Thatcher as Sister Barnes — Paxton’s opposite.
Barnes is more of a pessimistic character compared to Paxton, as she understands the danger they’re in within a few minutes of being with Mr. Reed. Paxton, however, believes Mr. Reed to be an honest, curious man who knows more about their religion than they do.
These contrasting opinions make for an intriguing plot as the two have to work together to escape the house. The two completely different mindsets have to now settle on solving a puzzle that is nearly impossible to be solved.
The film’s plot is drawn out at the beginning, which builds suspense but also gives the audience enough time to understand the characters.
Once the pair of missionaries realize that perhaps Mr. Reed isn’t the inquisitive and quirky man that they thought he was, they begin to formulate an escape route — only to realize that there is no escape.
Thatcher and East complement each other’s acting, and their dialogue bounces off of each other in a completely natural way that seems like the two have known each other for a while, but it works well enough that audiences can gather the sense that the pair are more acquaintances than anything else.
I came into the film without knowing much of East’s filmography, but her performance as Paxton felt compelling and convincing. Her characters transformation from being the quieter of the two to being enough of a challenge that catches Mr. Reed off guard is really well done, and she ends up being a reflection of who Barnes was at the beginning.
Thatcher is a natural at tragic roles that truly stick with audiences, and while I had previously known her from the series “Yellowjackets,” her performance here feels truly genuine. While she doesn’t say much, you can tell exactly what she’s feeling from her micro-expressions and body language.
Grant, of course, is a familiar face, and his performance in “Heretic” is truly sinister. Despite knowing the fact that he was the antagonist, his reveal was still frightening and caught me off guard.
The plot itself was really interesting and easy to follow, but the dialogue seemed like a conversation that many young adults have had about religion. The comparison of religions to the board game Monopoly felt profound albeit a little basic.
Despite this, I found myself enjoying the conversation and was delighted that they included evidence both for and against religion. The film ends with neither side being the one true winner and instead argues that if both are used wrongly, both sides can yield disastrous results.
I enjoyed the film and while the debate is a basic conversation that has been had endlessly and tirelessly debated, it still took a route I hadn’t seen before and left me questioning my own beliefs and how I think of the world.
