Heretic | Discussion Thread | A24 (Hugh Grant)

[re'up]

Really fun watch at the theater. I have seen Hugh Grant do a version of this in The Undoing in 2020, but this performance was masterful. Hilarious. Creepy. Pretty perfect movie for what it wants to be. Have some questions about the last 10 minutes, what the fukk was that doll house sequence, that seemed to reverse a major scene?

Reminded me of The Descent in a moment or two.

 

[nieman]

Really fun watch at the theater. I have seen Hugh Grant do a version of this in The Undoing in 2020, but this performance was masterful. Hilarious. Creepy. Pretty perfect movie for what it wants to be. Have some questions about the last 10 minutes, what the fukk was that doll house sequence, that seemed to reverse a major scene?

Reminded me of The Descent in a moment or two.

i think the dollhouse sequence was just presented to show the enormity of the situation that she didn't realize she was in. You saw the labyrinth of rooms and hallways and back passages, but it shows the scope of it all in finding the out. But it could've probably done without it.

 

[Clark Wayne]

shyt was fire. Hugh Grant, killed it and so did Sophie Thatcher & Chloe East who I didn’t know before this.

To add on to it, Sophie’s middle name is Bathsheba

 

[re'up]

i think the dollhouse sequence was just presented to show the enormity of the situation that she didn't realize she was in. You saw the labyrinth of rooms and hallways and back passages, but it shows the scope of it all in finding the out. But it could've probably done without it.

Spoliers:

There's a scene as she stabs Hugh Grant, races up the stairs and out of the basement, and is in the living room area, on the houses first floor, and then, the way I remember it, a single frame later she is stabbed by Hugh Grant, and the two are back in the miracle room. How did she get there? I thought there was like a Descent moment, where she never escaped.

I got the cross editing of her using the dollhouse as a map.

 

[Silver Surfer]

Enjoyed the movie.....good performances

Not for everyone....

 

[re'up]

The editing and directing was masterful. The rain, the cold, the way the sky looked, you could feel that weather, and the sound editing of the interior of the house, the clock chimes, the noises in the background. That was all done really well.

A few movies it reminded me of from the 80's: Sleuth, and Deathtrap

The obsession with games, the disarming elegant host, the constant mind games and turning the tables on the host, the idea of control, and predicting behavior. Movie was kind of a masterpiece of horror/psychological thriller. It's a rare movie that can keep that tension of knowing where the story is somewhat going. We had no doubt that Grant was evil, but it was the tension/awkwardness of watching that unfold, and the pure thrill of Grant's performance

- The candle reveal

- when he says my wife isn't really here, we both know that

- Kind of nod at the politeness of the girls and society, and formalities when he says "the windows and walls are made with metal....is that ok" and they just kind of say sure, but they aren't really aware of what he's saying. Like the way people say how are you at the same time

 

[WTFisWallace?]

The ending kinda fell off, but still an instant classic for me. Went in blind, the tension was kept up all the way til the ending part of the cage room. All 3 played their role to perfection imo, especially Hugh Grant being able to pull off suspense/horror thru being humorous.

I only realized 24 hrs later one interpretation of the ending

Spoiler

Spoiler

Reed got killed by a miracle. Paxton believed in Barnes’ words to challenge him after she died. Barnes resurrected to save her.

interesting flick. would i classify it as a religious film? I don't think I'd go exactly that far. But the discussions within the film were good

Spoiler

ending got me...did not expect Sister Paxton to temporarily resurrect to kill Hugh Grant


I was lowkey hoping for the matrix angle and they'd wake up and it was all a simulation

Spoiler: Ending interpretation

I interpreted it differently.....when the girls broke down the prophet's 'magic trick' and how it was moreso a hallucination after a 'near death' experience.

I took the butterfly scene as her hallucinating (the butterfly is not there when the camera pans). She never escaped....she either bled out in the 'miracle room' or died in the cage room in her attempt to kill him.


If she did not die in the cage room, how the hell did Grant manage to climb up a ladder with his neck gushing .



- And I don't really mind it cause I can suspend belief.....but how tf did those starving, mal bodied, 90lb women manage to drag a whole fukking body without any one hearing?

- Why would they go a long with his trick when their only reprieve was sprinkler water and getting their fingers cut off? They all go thru with his charade and don't tell the others that the plan is to die? ......I suppose that's their belief that help/salvation will eventually come.

- How tf did he turn them into contortionists?

"acknowledge..............Acknowledge."

 

[WTFisWallace?]

Spoliers:

There's a scene as she stabs Hugh Grant, races up the stairs and out of the basement, and is in the living room area, on the houses first floor, and then, the way I remember it, a single frame later she is stabbed by Hugh Grant, and the two are back in the miracle room. How did she get there? I thought there was like a Descent moment, where she never escaped.

I got the cross editing of her using the dollhouse as a map.

Spoiler: staircase

The way I remember it, from the cage room she either goes up a ladder (could have been stairs) and eventually gets to like an office type area. Which is the side room in the middle of the staircase from the "disbelief" door that Paxton was trying to open with rope. Chick goes up to the disbelief door can't open it and goes back into the miracle room and gets stabbed.


I think my earlier thought about her hallucinating makes even more sense cause how tf did she know her way around the dollhouse so well while she's bleeding out lol

 

[Json]

Spoiler: staircase

The way I remember it, from the cage room she either goes up a ladder (could have been stairs) and eventually gets to like an office type area. Which is the side room in the middle of the staircase from the "disbelief" door that Paxton was trying to open with rope. Chick goes up to the disbelief door can't open it and goes back into the miracle room and gets stabbed.


I think my earlier thought about her hallucinating makes even more sense cause how tf did she know her way around the dollhouse so well while she's bleeding out lol

Spoiler

I agree with your interpretation of events of her acations except she was just fumbling around on the model until she found the key. The entire house was exactly like the model so it was an educated guess the key was there.

 

[Json]

The ending kinda fell off, but still an instant classic for me. Went in blind, the tension was kept up all the way til the ending part of the cage room. All 3 played their role to perfection imo, especially Hugh Grant being able to pull off suspense/horror thru being humorous.

Spoiler: Ending interpretation

I interpreted it differently.....when the girls broke down the prophet's 'magic trick' and how it was moreso a hallucination after a 'near death' experience.

I took the butterfly scene as her hallucinating (the butterfly is not there when the camera pans). She never escaped....she either bled out in the 'miracle room' or died in the cage room in her attempt to kill him.


If she did not die in the cage room, how the hell did Grant manage to climb up a ladder with his neck gushing .



- And I don't really mind it cause I can suspend belief.....but how tf did those starving, mal bodied, 90lb women manage to drag a whole fukking body without any one hearing?

- Why would they go a long with his trick when their only reprieve was sprinkler water and getting their fingers cut off? They all go thru with his charade and don't tell the others that the plan is to die? ......I suppose that's their belief that help/salvation will eventually come.

- How tf did he turn them into contortionists?

"acknowledge..............Acknowledge."

Spoiler

yeah my original interpretation was that she was never rescued cause her phone had no signal and the butterfly hallucination.

But then I remembered that the other girl did hear the wish to return as a butterfly. So it was just her recognizing her friend was dead now.

 

[darealvelle]

Solid movie full price rating. One of those film where you will be discussing about it once it is over.

 

[darealvelle]

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