Heretic movie review: What a Mormon missionary thinks about the horror movie

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The movie is about two Mormon missionaries who are drawn into a game of cat-and-mouse in the house of a dangerous heretic. I don’t normally like bloody, gory, horror movies like this but I was really curious to see how the Mormon missionaries would be portrayed.

I have a lot to say about this movie because I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and served a full-time mission in Spain when I was young like the sister missionaries in this film. By the way, while the world calls us “Mormons”, the true name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

For a psychological horror, the movie did a great job. For a correct representation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the movie did quite poorly. The film was directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods who also wrote the screenplay.

Hugh Grant, as it turns out, is a very effective villain with a charming dark side. He’s absolutely fantastic in this. He has taken on quite a few roles as villains in recent movies and always crushes it. His endearing British accent and humor has always drawn audiences in. In this film, he plays a heretic, which means somone who disagrees with beliefs that are generally accepted. You can be a heretic without murdering people. This movie should be called “Lunatic.” In 2016, Hugh Grant made a statement about his own religious stance in real life, declaring, “I wish I could believe, but I can’t. I’ve tried and I’ve failed.” If that’s true, he must have taken a special delight in playing this role.
The sister missionaries are played by Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East. They both did an excellent job. I read that the they both grew up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It’s a shame they didn’t know their own religion better to correct the MANY mistakes about the church and its doctrine that are talked about in the film.
It’s true that missionaries are not allowed to enter homes if the opposite sex is the only one there. The film portrayed that idea well. It’s a wise policy.
Topher Grace has a small role in the film.
The cinematography by Chung-hoon Chung was extremely effective.
The production design by Philip Messina showed us a deceivingly quaint house in the beginning, only to reveal the true horror of the house and the villain in the basement. Who doesn’t love a complicated labrynth?
I really like A24 as a studio because it’s always presenting new ideas and styles of film to us.
The soundtrack includes lyrics about belief and utilizes such songs as “Creep” by Radiohead, an appropriate selection.
There are quite a few illustrations of control versus choices. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ believe that free agency is VITAL. No one is forced to do anything; everyone must decide for themselves how they want to live their life, and to believe or disbelieve.
I liked that the film, in some ways, challenges the typical stereotype of naiive missionaries by showing young women who have chosen to believe and are smart enough to figure out certain things about Mr. Reed’s lies, flawed logic, and plan.
It’s fascinating to see how our polite society can prevent people from using their brains when it comes to personal safety.