“Heretic” is a film that I struggle with, not because of what it does but more for what it does not attempt. That is perhaps a failing of myself as an audience member more than the film itself. I can’t blame a piece of art for being something that it isn’t, nor can I truly lay much criticism at the feet of something this light and entertaining. For folks looking for a fun, tension-fueled puzzle box thriller where Hugh Grant is having delightful fun tormenting a pair of young Mormon missionaries (Sophie Thatcher & Chloe East), “Heretic” is right up your alley. For those hoping for a genre exercise that dives deep into the fathoms of religiosity, and its contradictions, and comes to some grander conclusion worth broader consideration, you might find yourself wading in the kiddie pool.
Set in Utah, “Heretic” follows a pair of young missionaries, Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton, hoping to convert their neighbors to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Our heroes are curious and kind, with the opening sequence detailing their curiosity about condom sizes and how pornography proves the existence of divine power. They seem naive but pleasant, the platonic ideal of someone knocking on your door unannounced to talk about religion. The two meet their match, however, when they visit the home of one Mr. Reed, played with ghoulish malevolence by Hugh Grant. Mr. Reed welcomes them into his house with disturbingly thin windows on the promise of freshly baked blueberry pie from his “shy” wife who is just in the next room. What follows is a quick descent into a holy war, one the Sisters do not realize will soon threaten not just their faith but their lives as well.
Hugh Grant gives more than enough reason to see “Heretic” in theaters. In recent years, the “Notting Hill” star has shirked his movie star persona for something nastier, something slimier, in movies like “Paddington 2”, “Cloud Atlas”, and last year’s spectacular “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Amongst Thieves.” Spinning his charisma toward a darker purpose, Grant is transfixing throughout the film as he draws Sisters Paxton and Barnes into his carefully constructed labyrinth of wood, stone, and logic. Writer/Directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods (“Haunt”) find canyons of unease stretched across Grant’s face, framing his smile as if that of a predator and his calm as if that of a spider waiting to pounce. For their part, Sophie Thatcher & Chloe East are exceptional counterpoints for Grant’s scenery-chewing. The pair are never helpless, ever resourceful, and always one step ahead of an audience desperate for them to be free of this torment. The sequences of tension, of creeping around darkened corners or of ominous, cloaked figures descending staircases are impeccably constructed and executed. As a piece of top-tier popcorn, “Heretic” hits the spot. As a critique of organized religion or a thesis about the cynical manipulation of belief for personal or capitalistic gain, the movie feels painfully surface-level. And that’s a shame.
“Heretic” makes the well-trodden case that the world’s great religions are all steeped in myths and legends born from ancient civilizations. Grant’s Mr. Reed presents this argument extensively, complete with modern-day pop culture reference points, to the Sisters as the first rung of his multi-faceted, sadistic conversion therapy. While these facts have their validity, the film never ventures beyond them, never dives deeper, or gives us much to chew on that has not already been culturally worn to cud. The concept of virgin birth and walking on water existing long before Christ is the fodder of freshman-year religious studies courses. Throw a rock and you’ll hear someone spouting these pretty basic facts on the internet, sure to blow the minds of nineteen-year-olds everywhere. The frustration I felt throughout the film was not that these ideas were presented and argued, it is that the film could, and should, have gone for more. Organized religion, and the atrocities wrought from its practice, are rife for dissection and evisceration. With a film as personal as this one, steeped in a very specific sub-group of religion, I had hoped for something more impactful; if not something righteous and rageful then at least something with a take beyond “religion may not be real but its nice to think about”. Instead, “Heretic” uses religion as a framing device for a very enjoyable story about two women locked away by a lunatic with a God Complex. A great time at the movies, but not one that will be converting anyone anytime soon.
If I were you though, after the credits are finished rolling, I’d grab myself a healthy slice of blueberry pie.
You’ll be glad you did.
“Heretic” is playing at The Broad Theater and Prytania Theatres at Canal Place.
