Hereditary Review
By: Nik S
Director: Ari Aster
Producers: Kevin Frakes, Lars Knudsen, Buddy Patrick
Starring: Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, Ann Dowd, Gabriel Byrne
Production Companies: PalmStar Media, Finch Entertainment, Windy Hill Pictures
Distributor: A24
There's something to be said about familial love, as it's often the strongest bond between people. Sure, you can often dislike or downright hate some family members but more-often-than-not they're the first you can turn to. What happens when you can't turn to your family, and the dark sinister secrets buried deep within start to bubble out? That's what Hereditary's haunting story wants you to find out.
This is Ari Aster's first theatrical movie, only being known for his short film The Strange Thing About the Johnsons which is another family horror/drama/thriller. Aster has a thing for pulling his character's family apart in horrendous ways, and Hereditary is no exception. While taking inspiration from countless films before it, the origin of the horror stems from a place where you feel the safest: home.
A haunted house film is nothing new or out of the ordinary, but what if it's a loved one that's causing all your pain and suffering? The movie loves to make subtle things that you would normally overlook as a quirk or idiom rather upsetting. A terrified yell of a teenager yelling "mommy" can end up being the most unnerving things, and even just the sound of your tongue clicking against the roof of your mouth might make you jump.
The Graham family may not be your typical family, and that's very apparent from how they react to the death of Grandma. Annie Graham (Collette), a miniature model artist, is giving a eulogy about her estranged mother. Annie doesn't seem phased by the fact that her mother has passed, nor does the rest of her family. Steve (Byrne), Annie's husband, seems to be the middle man of the family who tries to keep a level head about everything. Their children Charlie (Shapiro), a young girl who creates her own toys and as an odd tic of making clicking sounds, and Peter (Wolff), an older teen who just wants to chill, seem to be in the middle of the slowly unfolding family drama.
Without giving too much away, as this movie needs to be seen with as little information as possible, certain events unfold that cause the family to slowly unravel. Every character gets on edge, arguments break out, and family ties start to become cut.
Every emotion the characters exert is full of screams, gasps, and overall exaggerations of their mood, but that works both for and against it. At times, the acting can get a little hammy that can make the theater have a shared chuckle. When it's done well, however, it just makes you emotionally drained. The film wants you to lose your sense of hope, without it being a gore fest like recent horror titles. Hereditary doesn't have a ton of gore, but when some is shown it's absolutely grotesque to make you squirm in your seat.
Every actor is great at starting as a sane character and slowly spiral into the void of insanity. Collette does it the absolute best; her screams feel like a mother who just can't take what life is handing her anymore, and her tears feel genuine. Wolff also does a surprising job, as he is known for pre-teen comedies, as a young man fighting his emotions against the person who is meant to protect him.
The biggest hindrances of the film are the fact it doesn't leave you too much with the unknown, and the slow-burning pace. The ghost or monster is usually less horrifying if it's unmasked right away, which you find out early on what's haunting the family. The film is really a minute-by-minute thriller that slowly builds up to an over-the-top ending.
The cinematography was one of the best I've seen all year, as there were so many beautiful shots I never expected to see in a horror movie. The opening shot shows Annie's work room as it slowly pans right. Once we see a model of a house, it slowly zooms into one room and seamlessly starts the opening scene of the movie. There's another shot that's upside down and flips to follow a character down a hallway that's done almost effortlessly to create a panicked feeling. The music also helped to create the mood of each scene; though, it's something similar to what more modern horror movies are currently doing.
There is a ton of foreshadowing if you really look for it, and it's extremely subtle. It's one of those after-the-fact kind of situations where if you're talking with your fellow movie-goer you'll connect the dots with what was seen in the foreground earlier and how it connected to a titular part of the story.
Now, if you're not into slow build-ups or movies that mess with your emotions I would avoid this film as you are not going to enjoy it. If, however, you're into slow-cooking movies that have a strong buildup with an over-the-top conclusion than Hereditary is right for you. The actors may not play enjoyable characters, but they're great at slowly losing their minds. The movie relies heavily on emotions and drama, using it to help build an unease in its viewers. Just don't be that person who thinks it's funny to click their mouth at random times in the middle of the film.
Director: Ari Aster
Producers: Kevin Frakes, Lars Knudsen, Buddy Patrick
Starring: Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, Ann Dowd, Gabriel Byrne
Production Companies: PalmStar Media, Finch Entertainment, Windy Hill Pictures
Distributor: A24
There's something to be said about familial love, as it's often the strongest bond between people. Sure, you can often dislike or downright hate some family members but more-often-than-not they're the first you can turn to. What happens when you can't turn to your family, and the dark sinister secrets buried deep within start to bubble out? That's what Hereditary's haunting story wants you to find out.
This is Ari Aster's first theatrical movie, only being known for his short film The Strange Thing About the Johnsons which is another family horror/drama/thriller. Aster has a thing for pulling his character's family apart in horrendous ways, and Hereditary is no exception. While taking inspiration from countless films before it, the origin of the horror stems from a place where you feel the safest: home.
A haunted house film is nothing new or out of the ordinary, but what if it's a loved one that's causing all your pain and suffering? The movie loves to make subtle things that you would normally overlook as a quirk or idiom rather upsetting. A terrified yell of a teenager yelling "mommy" can end up being the most unnerving things, and even just the sound of your tongue clicking against the roof of your mouth might make you jump.
The Graham family may not be your typical family, and that's very apparent from how they react to the death of Grandma. Annie Graham (Collette), a miniature model artist, is giving a eulogy about her estranged mother. Annie doesn't seem phased by the fact that her mother has passed, nor does the rest of her family. Steve (Byrne), Annie's husband, seems to be the middle man of the family who tries to keep a level head about everything. Their children Charlie (Shapiro), a young girl who creates her own toys and as an odd tic of making clicking sounds, and Peter (Wolff), an older teen who just wants to chill, seem to be in the middle of the slowly unfolding family drama.
Without giving too much away, as this movie needs to be seen with as little information as possible, certain events unfold that cause the family to slowly unravel. Every character gets on edge, arguments break out, and family ties start to become cut.
Every emotion the characters exert is full of screams, gasps, and overall exaggerations of their mood, but that works both for and against it. At times, the acting can get a little hammy that can make the theater have a shared chuckle. When it's done well, however, it just makes you emotionally drained. The film wants you to lose your sense of hope, without it being a gore fest like recent horror titles. Hereditary doesn't have a ton of gore, but when some is shown it's absolutely grotesque to make you squirm in your seat.
Every actor is great at starting as a sane character and slowly spiral into the void of insanity. Collette does it the absolute best; her screams feel like a mother who just can't take what life is handing her anymore, and her tears feel genuine. Wolff also does a surprising job, as he is known for pre-teen comedies, as a young man fighting his emotions against the person who is meant to protect him.
The biggest hindrances of the film are the fact it doesn't leave you too much with the unknown, and the slow-burning pace. The ghost or monster is usually less horrifying if it's unmasked right away, which you find out early on what's haunting the family. The film is really a minute-by-minute thriller that slowly builds up to an over-the-top ending.
The cinematography was one of the best I've seen all year, as there were so many beautiful shots I never expected to see in a horror movie. The opening shot shows Annie's work room as it slowly pans right. Once we see a model of a house, it slowly zooms into one room and seamlessly starts the opening scene of the movie. There's another shot that's upside down and flips to follow a character down a hallway that's done almost effortlessly to create a panicked feeling. The music also helped to create the mood of each scene; though, it's something similar to what more modern horror movies are currently doing.
There is a ton of foreshadowing if you really look for it, and it's extremely subtle. It's one of those after-the-fact kind of situations where if you're talking with your fellow movie-goer you'll connect the dots with what was seen in the foreground earlier and how it connected to a titular part of the story.
Now, if you're not into slow build-ups or movies that mess with your emotions I would avoid this film as you are not going to enjoy it. If, however, you're into slow-cooking movies that have a strong buildup with an over-the-top conclusion than Hereditary is right for you. The actors may not play enjoyable characters, but they're great at slowly losing their minds. The movie relies heavily on emotions and drama, using it to help build an unease in its viewers. Just don't be that person who thinks it's funny to click their mouth at random times in the middle of the film.
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