Rated: 14A
Starring: Toni Collette (her facial expressions in this film alone are deserving of an Oscar), Gabriel Byrne (his enabling subtleness allows Collette to shine), Ann Dowd (her flinty Aunt Lydia voice is as frightening as anything else in this film)
Plot: When the mother of main character Annie (Collette) dies, the family begins a slow and disturbing descent into madness.
Tanya’s Verdict: Not a horror movie in a typical sense, this one relies on fine-tuned details that come across as disturbing. Only later – as these details bounce around in your brain do you realize how truly horrifying they are. Details like: the music, the tongue-clucking, the facial expressions, the miniature dioramas, the decapitation fixation.
If you are expecting a by-the-numbers horror movie or even a run-of-the-mill suspenseful family drama – then steer clear of Hereditary. However, if you are interested in watching unsettling thoughts and visions come to life on screen, where the majority of the horror arrives in agonizing heartbreak, with some scenes so oddly unpleasant that the audience is uncertain how to react, where the movie’s conclusion may leave you with more questions than answers – then this one’s for you. Similar to outside-the-box film The VVitch (2015), Hereditary‘s confusion is part of its charm.
In short, I found it about 20 minutes too long – but otherwise thought it was great.