I really liked this movie but based on the marketing I thought this movie was going to be a lot more puzzle/game oriented with them having to do certain faith based “tests” to continue through his maze. But it ended up being a lot simpler than they portrayed it in the marketing material
SPOILERS! My biggest takeaway right out of the theatre was that I had preconceived notions about how things would play out for each girl, and the movie completely flipped them on their head. I assumed Paxton would be the weaker character because she has these more traditionally "feminine" characters such as being more timid, naive, and docile, and those are characteristics that I have unfortunately been conditioned to associate with weakness. Playing the movie back I realized she's actually extremely detail oriented and picks up on a lot of things that her counterpart glazes over, such as the caged window, sounds from upstairs, and of course the position of the prophet's head. Where you think she might be naive and judgmental you realize she's actually very compassionate.
I thought right after the talk about butterflies that she was definitely going to be the one who dies first. &she's going to land on the other girls finger at the end as she escapes. But they did flip that part for me, which I wasn't expecting
That's one of the things I love about how they played Paxton. She WAS what we've been conditioned to believe is weak, especially in horror movies, at the start, and Barnes was the 'stronger' one, but then we're shown that she really is a strong person in her own right.
In the movie Mr. Reed talked about how your brain creates images when it’s hypoxic/dying, so I feel like Sister Paxton was in the process of dying when she saw the butterfly. She was the one who wanted to come back as a butterfly, so it would make sense why she would see that as she’s dying
Yes that also what I believe. I think she was able to scape BUT the blood loss was making her hallucinate and that's why the butterfly goes away (and I think Paxton realizes that she is hallucinating)
I like Sister Barnes' temporary resurrection as it came just after Sister Paxton talking about how she knows prayer doesn't work but she prays anyway because it's a nice thing to do. I thought the "miracle" of Sister Barnes temporarily waking up to save her was supposed to make us question whether Sister Paxton was wrong and prayer does work.
One thing everyone seems to have overlooked was Barnes was clearly a DEAD body when it happens. But I'm not sure what we're supposed to interpret from that.
For me that whole Monopoly discussion was so interesting that honestly made the movie for me. BUT that whole sequence where one of the girls is running through the house and you see it in the little miniature version of the house. I loved that.
i loved that scene too ! i felt like i could "keep up" with everything he was saying . usually in religious movies i dont understand what a character is trying to say and its so frustrating but everytime he said something i was literally like "ahh" 😂😂
I think the “everything can be explained up until the end” is the point it was trying to make about religion: the “end” being the afterlife because nobody truly knows
I actually really enjoyed Sister Paxton’s character development. They portrayed her as being very naive and almost ditzy at the beginning, and in a typical horror movie a character like that would die first. I liked her monologue when she figured everything out and explained it because there was a shift in power from Mr. Reed to her.
We got plenty of horror filled with gore, blood, and chases. It's so refreshing to see more psychologically mentally challenging horror that A24 usually nails. Need more! Sister Paxton was my favorite & stole the show for me. She was genuinely bubbly & fun!🙏🥰🌟 Mr. Reed: "With great power, comes great responsibility." Sister Paxton: "Spider-Man"😂
So I absolutely loved this movie. I totally get what you mean when you said you wanted more, but as ex-Mormon, this movie was deeply personal to me. I served a mission and the portrayal of missionaries is 10/10. I saw myself in both sisters, and I loved that. Sister Paxton’s character was amazing and I loved the social commentary in this movie. It honestly gave some of my experiences in the church a voice and made me feel seen and heard
I liked how realistic the movie was. I appreciated that there wasn't a ritual or a demon or anything like that. I think Mr. Reed just being a "creep" and not a supernatural entity made the horror more real and scary to me in my opinion. I agree with what you said, they introduced a somewhat new concept but they did not push the envelope with these ideas. It kinda seemed like Mr. Reed wanted to play God with the fate of the two sisters (and the other unfortunate women). I was disappointed that the basement and even the model of the layout wasn't as intricate as I thought it was going to be. My take away is God is a woman and its Sophie Thatcher hahaha
When you realize that his huge revelation basically boils down to “control” it’s both horribly petty but also huge & terrifying. Because he’s already done this before.
Sister Paxton for sure died in the basement. If you look at her phone when she gets out of the basement it still says "NO SIGNAL." This is, in my opinion, a clear signal that everything is a hallucination and she never got out of Mr Reed's house.
I thought maybe she escaped but died out in the snow. She mentions earlier that when she dies she's gonna come back as a butterfly and land on one of her loved one's hands, like the butterfly does in the end. But it cuts back to her hand and there's no butterfly there. I took that as she made it out but hallucinated the butterfly while bleeding out/getting hypothermia/dying in the snow.
@@samanthasanchez9290this is EXACTLY what I also thought, sure it could’ve been a sign from the other sister I guess (??) but SHE was the one who said it
@@samanthasanchez9290 I keep telling people this! Not sure why its so hard for others to understand. They keep making these deep explanations when I felt it was pretty understandable on what happened.
it's so interesting hearing different reviews because i haven't heard a single one that has the same opinion. i personally love that the movie, besides the very ending, was grounded in reality. i think if it went supernatural or demonic, like longlegs, i'd be disappointed and bored tbh.
I genuinely think this movie has a unique perspective for those of us who were at one point deeply involved with a religion and are now agnostic/ atheist. Religious deconstruction is extremely scary and in itself is a horror element.
It’s very rare a movie comes out that you want to be a specific thing and that movie just…is exactly what you hoped for. I loved this movie! Basically exactly what I wanted from it.
Yeah the resurrection of Sister Barnes thing threw me, too. And I was also expecting satanism or something. It was decent but, like you, I also wanted more.
I really dislike the theory that Sis Paxton died in the basement because it makes no sense to show a hallucination within a hallucination through the audience's eyes. Sis Paxton hallucinated the butterfly because she was still alive and dying. She couldn't hallucinate if she was dead.
They talked about near-death experiences having this air of uncertainty, which I think the butterfly momentarily appearing/disappearing could play into maybe?
@ I agree, very true. I just feel like the majority leave out a 3rd option of what could have happened. Which is that she is simply dying outside instead of being dead or dying in the basement. Also, I don't think its fair to say Sis Paxton died so quickly while Mr Reed was literally stabbed in the neck.
I love the cast and the way this was filmed, it definitely made up for what it lacked in plot devices because every time we were finally getting somewhere, they tied it up in a neat bow and moved on to the next. I really wanted to engage more and this felt dumbed down, a little spoon fed with some of the points it made. I still enjoyed it!
You’ve voiced the majority of my thoughts about this one perfectly. I’ve also thought about it as some days have passed since I’ve seen it, but similar to what happened with Longlegs, my curiosity about the film had more to do with potential than it did execution
I'm actually glad they didnt go with supernatural powers from any of the characters because it would've distracted from the plot in my opinion. I believe it's better to have us questioning the people and their circumstance rather than getting handed an unquestioned plot about the supernatural. Longlegs couldve benefited from this grounding in reality too (in the 3rd act), in my opinion.
I LOVE love loved the first part of the movie, I was so into it and then once we got to the prophet I started to question where the movie was going. I was expecting more of a game/puzzle (mostly because of the trailer I guess) where the sisters question their faith at each step, but I didn't really get the sense that anyone was persuaded to believe anything other than what they believed at the start of the movie. I still really enjoyed watching it and I thought Hugh Grant was perfect, but I do agree with you, I wish there was more questioning and less spoonfeeding.
I really liked it. The concept, tension, atmosphere and performances were great. That first half of the movie was amazing. As an ex Christian i really enjoy movies like these, but everything they talked about is very surface level from my perspective. They were conversations I got into in week 1 of questioning my faith. So I would've loved that angle to be a lot more deeper than it was
Love the review and at first, I agreed with the point of them not leaving enough room to imagine. They give us the answer “the one true religion is control” and then I realize them giving us the answer is the control. They came to the conclusion for us- leaving us with no room to think about any other one true religion. They have essentially controlled the audience. 🤔 thoughts anyone?
i was convinced the movie was going to do an as above so below type ending with them having gone into the depths of the 9 circles of hell as sister paxton was running through the house… disappointed it didn’t but i also would like to agree that sister paxton did in fact die and her escaping and the butterfly was her idea of heaven!
I liked Heretic a lot, but I also had different expectations going into it. I fully thought when they were in the basement and the "resurrection" happened that he actually worshiped some ancient pagan spider god because I read way too much into the spider coming out of the metal pipe when they first got down there, and then I thought a spider descended from the ceiling onto the woman's hand (it was dust) lmao. All of the performances were so good though--I love Sophie Thatcher, and I know I'll rewatch it just to catch more of the subtleties that happen throughout their conversations in the first half.
I think the end question was important to the entire theme of the movie. Because either her faith helped get her out or her faith was baseless and she died in the basement
Hey Bud, first off you are looking great, loving the black nails. For some reason while watching the movie I too was feeling a kind of disconnect. I wasn't as engaged as I thought I would be while watching it. The trailer was giving a much more tension then I think we got in the final movie. The killing of Sister Barnes upped the stakes and the Sister Paxton's actor did a good job of portraying the gravity of the situation. Overall I say that it was a good movie and it is nice to see Hugh Grant doing new and interesting things.
To be fair, he was. He basically had his own cult, with his own "followers", and doctrine. The movie we basically bare witness to the consecration of his religious communion of "control"
i remember thinking halfway through this last week " i cant wait for possessed by horror to review this and add it to the cozy list " . loved this movie, the aesthetic and subject matter was so great.
I completely understand what you’re saying because I think I felt the same way. I was very hyped for this movie, and although I liked it, I was expecting something a bit different and a bit more. It was a good movie, but I’ve seen much better horror movies this year, so it still feels like a bit of a letdown for me. But Hugh Grant was really phenomenal!
It's a well made, enjoyable movie with occasionally creepy moments, but it really could have been great if it'd pushed things to a much more extreme and weird place in the final third. Solid film but a bit meh after the credits roll.
Yesssss ! That’s exactly how I felt. I just wanted more. I wanted more creepy moments. I was actually hoping he really did find something new. Not just he was crazy lol
@briatrixkiddo1775 I was hoping some weird ass new/ancient supernatural force was behind it all, rather than the slightly prosaic ending they offered up. I'm an atheist but I want weird, creepy supernatural madness in my life sometimes!
I love when it leaves it up to the viewers to form an opinion on what’s going on, but sometimes my brain needs a break and I just like to know the truth so for this specific movie I am personally okay with them showing she was right😭but the unknown is definitely a lot more thought provoking!
I enjoyed this film, but it felt like an earlier Blumhouse film rather than an A24 film (which isn't a bad thing at all imo), but like you said, they could've gone SOOO much further with things. everything felt very surface level to me, and i wish more was up to the audience's interpretation. it started so strong for me, but once they went into the basement, the story just lost me more and more. solid 3/5 for me, but i had much higher hopes for it
i honestly never get scared by movies BUT this one had a few really good jump scares and was really tense!!!! i liked it a lot. especially growing up religious a lot of it hit close to home. i felt like the end wasn’t as strong as i wanted but the rest of it was fantastic
My thoughts exactly! They could’ve gone so high concept with this film. There were so many little things that I thought were hints or clues but then none of them went anywhere :/ I still really liked it but was craving so much more. I’d also give it 3.5/5
I really really wanted the supernatural element. I was hoping they Hugh's character had actually discovered the 'true religion." Something supernatural he could present to the girls that would absolutely blow their minds and turn their worlds upside done. But no, it was just about the idea of control in religion. If Mr. Reed had truly stumbled upon something incredible it would have elevated this movie so so much. This movie needed the supernatural
The “control” message doesn’t feel fresh or unique enough to stand on its own-it’s one of the more basic commentaries people share about religion. It would’ve been better if there was some other element in the story to supplement that message.
I didn't find anything predictable in this movie. I usually guess where a movie was going and II didn't guess anything about the twists of what's going on at the end. I'm surprised to hear predictable
I might be wrong, but I feel like it’s more thought provoking and deep for people that actually believe (even a little bit) in religion/god or spirituality. Whether you are religious, have religious trauma, grew up in the church, etc. I’m not sure how much you would get out of it being an atheist or a nonbeliever in spirituality as far as the topical conversation goes. Especially since it’s a very dialogue heavy film. Because thoughts like this for people who do believe or can relate to the characters’ beliefs can actually really scare you and make you think
This movie is very layered and definitely leaves a curious audience asking questions even after it’s ended. (Which is what I was hoping for). One minute you think there’s too much exposition, and the next you’re spiraling down a rabbit hole of interpretations & theories.
I thought the same thing about the dollhouse....I thought there would be more labyrinth or puzzle type scary stuff. Still enjoyed the movie!! I was looking forward to your review, did not disappoint. Thanks!
I really agree with this review, i was also left feeling like I wanted more and expected more from the trailers. When Sarah pointed out the horror tropes i was like yes exactly! Like when Sister Paxton stabbed him but then immediately ran away but never made sure he was dead, and of course he catches up with her and stabs her too. 🙄🙄🙄
I agree! I was super hoping that the man would really turn out to be a really intelligent philosopher and leaving it all open ended as to whether he was a terrible or that he just turned out to be a dude just really passionate about philosophical questions. Though it did have a point about how separate this movie was from anything else that it concludes on giving it a more meta way of considering the things it showed.
I sort of think that maybe the butterfly was Sister Paxton's spirit representing that she did die. Because it was Paxton, not Barnes, that had the butterfly reincarnation wish. And I watched an ex-Mormon review the movie and the whole butterfly reincarnation wish goes against what Mormons believe happen after death to begin with. And when Barnes wasn't willing to go through the disbelief door but Paxton didn't even question it because it was implied that that was the "right " answer. So even though it sort of hints at Barnes being the more skeptical, I think she was actually the more true believer. So I don't think she would come back as a butterfly, even if given the chance. I don't know that I think Sister Paxton's spirit literally manifested as a butterfly as she was dying, I think the intention was more as a metaphor that she was dying/dead. I think the most sinister part of the whole movie was the way that the caged people were constantly kept wet and humid. I can't even think about it too much because it makes me sick. And it was such an escalation from everything else. Like from subtle control and manipulation to showing that the end result is constant, horrible, torture. The sprinklers and the way he watered them with a watering can. Like the sickness, rotting and infections that causes. Its so so much worse than just being kept in cages. I completely could have done without it. It also makes the whole "they choose to be here" make less sense.
A movie that so heavily leans on philosophy, and how integral it is to religion, going on to answer every question is so backwards. Religion is intended to fill the gaps we can’t explain…
I can’t help to feel that was a point trying to be made? Religion is intended to do that but sometimes religious organizations feel these gaps for you to control you… but that’s just how I felt about it. I appreciate how everyone has come out of the movie was very different opinions
I thought it was legit. Grant's character was a highlight for me. I agree with you saying they needed to push it more though. Somehow, they needed to. I was leaning more towards a serial killer thing in my head with the villain. I guess he was, kind of. It would have been interesting to see Mr. Reed eventually start to crack and see him less collected and intellectual and more visceral and scattered as he lost control of the situation. Control being his religious choice, he'd be losing his faith in himself.
@@PossessedbyHorror The character thoroughly irritated me, which means that Hugh Grant did a great job. Even more galling than Vicar Anthony Campion from "Sirens."
If a film makes you think to much, then it looses it's entertainment value. you need a good combination of both, with one half giving you something of worth to ponder, and the other giving you the enjoyment of any questions presented to you.
I loved this movie personally. Though I agree the end needed more ambiguity. I wish they’d left it a mystery of how the bicycle lock got on the door and why she happened to have the key. Did he plan that? Coincidence? Who put it there?
I just watched this movie……and YES!! Yes yes yes I absolutely agree wow 2 for 2 (I agreed with your mini review of Don’t Move) I was sooooooo excited for this movie. I dealt with 8 HOURS of buffering 😩☹️😠 to watch this movie, only to feel instead of a pair, I got one cookie. Like you said, it felt like two movies. I was so invested in the first half. I was saying to myself this guy is nuts; he’s gonna fix them good! He’s gonna make them work for their belief. Mr. Reed told them “you’re gonna be sick, you’re gonna wish you were dead…” I’m like yeah let’s go. With him having a model house & little wood ppl, I’m thinking he’s gonna put them through a number of tests & depending on how strong their faith is, will be the key in moving forward, like pawns. That the girls will start questioning their faith, revealing secrets, etc. Yet it was more a religious Black Phone/ 10 Cloverfield Lane kidnap movie. Loved Hugh Grant!! He needs to do more psychological movies!! 6/10
I loved the movie. The fact I'm writing about it shows it's rolling around in my head after seeing it. I can see where you'd want it to go deeper but think of the source. He's a demented killer. Clearly something happened in his life that completely traumatized him. They give hints. He did have a wife. Remember she built the house. He also questioned Sister Barnes if she'd heard from her dead father. So he may blame religion for her death or wants the "true religion" to show him a path to his wife. Who knows but he has a dark passenger, to quote Dexter, running around his head.
i thought she died in the basement like whenever he had the knife to her neck and then he obviously will eventually die from his wounds and she imagined Barnes coming back to life and killing him and everything after that
His whole monologue about religion and her answer just sounded like a Reddit post. I never for a minute thought he had a real prophet or that she resurrected. I thought that was his wife that he tortured and gave drugs that can slow down the heart and mimic death. The whole body switch nonsense was silly. Also I felt like his creepiness and menace didn’t escalate when it was supposed to. It was a good level in the beginning when the girls still aren’t sure and he hasn’t revealed himself. By the time he’s in the basement and cutting chicks, he should’ve given us a scarier performance.
If you think about the "resurrection scene", I like to think about it , well, religiously. It kinda juxtaposes earlier in the movie with the Prophet that was "resurrected" but in reality it was just Mr. Reed switched the corpse for another woman. In the sense of the Sisters, I like to interpret it that Sister Barnes having a TRUE resurrection, because of her faith and because of what she believed and wanting to come back to save her Sister from him. As opposed to Mr. Reed's fake resurrection
I like the ending cause it is open. I like that we don't if a) Paxton survived b) Died and went to heaven c) died and was just seing shit before death. It suits the rest of the movie. Characters don't know if god is real and we still don't. No matter which door we choose we still end up in the same place. That feels like a message of the film
I actually really loved that it didn't have any supernatural elements to it, I feel like that would have ruined it for me. I liked that the story was reserved and kept as this creepy guy who just loves terrorizing people and hearing himself talk.
Heretic is like Longlegs. You get a sense of the kind of movie they were going for in broad strokes, but they kind of failed to land it or close the deal with the nuts and bolts details in the script. In both cases, it was a cool idea, but the execution left something to be desired.
It’s hard.. I feel like them showing the board with the nails in it when they put it to the side shows it’s real. The nails in the board representing the crucification of Jesus and her coming back to save her is the miracle.. then the butterfly appearing and disappearing shows that her faith is proven correct or confirming her beliefs. Everyone talks about the snow but it’s snowing when the guy comes looking for them.
Watching this in Utah with my friends (most of us are queer and exmormon) was such an amazing healing experience- they did such a fantastic job at pointing out flaws in organized religion as a whole while still allowing the sister missionaries to be portrayed in a respectful way (as terrible as the church is, for the most part missionaries really are just brainwashed kids). The thing that struck me the most was the repetition of “you can leave whenever you want to, you have that choice”- very indicative of what high demand religions tell their members. This movie was not perfect but I have never been more accurately the target audience, and I was not disappointed in the slightest.
Same here! I think the trope of the only monster here is man/manmade institutions worked for the movie. It gave the movie a sense of realism. I know a lot of people wanted Mr. Reed to be a cilt leader, or for there to be supernatural elements, but I personally felt like that would have taken away from the movie rather than added to it. I loved a lot of the symbolism throughout the entire film, and I feel like it actually had a message about informed consent and how unfair it is for someone to make a choice without really knowing what they are getting into (i.e. the walls of the house being metal. The sisters were asked if they were ok with that fact without the full understanding of why that could be something they werent ok with) Many exmos I know wish that informed consent was a bigger thing in the church. I went in with as little information as i posibly could on the film. I watched only one trailer, and while i did wish that there were some story elements that were done differently, I still walked away from the movie without disappointment beyond the fact that the sister missionaries did not make it out alive.
I think it was supposed to spark “maybe this is supernatural” but then it’s just a dude with a basement. I think that was part of the religion metaphor. that was how I read it at least
Couldn't agree more. Thought of the Heaven ending as well. I also wanted more from the film but kinda settled on maybe the point is just being made through there not being a supernatural deity in the basement when I kind of hoped there would be something to that nature.
I don’t mind that it was grounded in reality. But I do believe Paxton did die and that Barnes saving was part of her transition. That’s the only thing that makes sense and you’re right other than that it’s such a bad trope.
I found Hugh Grants character to be really compelling because even though the trailer made it easier to predict what was going to happen ,his character was still really unpredictable because it was hard to tell how he was going to react depending on how the two sisters answered his questions about religion which created alot of tension. I felt a bit disappointed how the movie progressed in the second half though as it seemed to loose its tension as I thought the house was going to be a labyrinth that would put the sisters through a series of tests to see what they really believed but it seemed to change into a movie about being held hostage rather than a movie that makes you question what you actually believe. I agree that if Hugh Grants character had some sort of magic powers that were not clearly explainable that it would have made the film alot more mysterious and interesting because it would make you question what is real versus what you believe is real.
i really liked this film but your review has made me wonder what it would’ve been like if it had ended at the point with the trap door. he was pushing so hard for her to ‘find out the truth’ and i guess i wanted a bit of push back from her because faith is so often about ‘not knowing’. it could’ve ended the same way - with her going down the trap door and him closing it and his thesis about ‘control’ would have still worked. but then i guess the whole thing would be more bleak than horrific haha
I appreciate your review. I gather that it's whether you like supernatural elements in your horror movies. For me, it depends. In the movie "The Devil's Advocate," I think I would have preferred if there were no supernatural elements and if it was merely implied that Al Pacino was the Devil, rather than what's shown in the movie. For this one, considering the subject, I appreciate that it didn't have anything supernatural, because I wanted it to be a contemplation of the subject, even though I agree that it was a bit predictable.
I totally agree we needed more mysterious/supernatural elements. By explaining everything and reducing Reed to a crazy arrogant atheist, the movie almost gives similar vibes as a Pureflix movie. Like it’s biased against people who don’t believe in God.
My preferred interpretation is that SPOILER WARNING Paxton died in the basement and the spoiler is that she is having a near-death experience, dying or entering the afterlife depending on your belief/interpretation. That seems appropriate to the themes laid out in the film.
I definitely think they overexplained the last 1/3 of the movie. I was really enjoying the first 2/3rds though, and I'd rewatch it just for that. I am starting to wonder if the original intent was to be vague and open-ended, but there was pressure to make it more appealing to general audiences by cranking up the intensity and then explaining too much
I hate this movie so much, simply because I loved it until the end, which made me totally switch. The entire movies lesson throughout is that essentially there is no god, and everything logically points to that, but at the end, all of a sudden the one girl is alive again out of nowhere!? It’s such a complete switch that seemed out of nowhere and totally unjustified. Just a frustrating ending all around for me.
Maybe the answering of their own questions is the point. Religion already leaves everything open and up for interpretation while trying to relay itself as having everything figured out. Maybe the point was to figure the movie out by the end of it instead of just leaving points open so that there was no need to question and run in circles lol. That's basically what Mr. Reid's character was doing. Asking questions to turn around and answer them because he didn't want to leave anything open to interpretation. He also asked a lot of questions and expected a specific answer to be right, and when they didn't answer it correctly it often just led to more questions. I mean who knows why they concluded every point, maybe it's not that deep, but that's my guess.
I was expecting way more from Topher Grace’s character! It felt like he was just there to (1) provide some humor, with the “did you get this pamphlet?” bit and (2) as a way to call back to Mr. Reed’s comments about how missionaries are just “tools” for spreading faith (almost implying that they’re forgettable/disposable). Maybe that’s all he needed to be, but it would’ve been cool to see Elder Kennedy’s experience in Mr. Reed’s house since he’s obviously higher up in the church.
I’m personally so tired of the demonic/satanic explanations for horror movies, like the ending of Longlegs felt like an easy cop-out for me 😭 I liked how this was (somewhat) more grounded in reality
I'm glad I didn't watch a single thing going into this one, because I can see how marketing might've played into it seemer slightly more simple. I actually think the idea that (spoiler) died at the end of the film has a lot more credibility than you'd think (and intentionally so), especially when they talk about death being like a bright white light, cloudy, things seeming uncertain (which all happen to Sister Paxton). You've also got the phone which still has no bars even though they're outside the basement (also the idea in Dante's Inferno that the way to heaven is first down through hell) ---- all of this supports that. I personally don't believe it, but there's enough evidence for both.
I really liked this movie but based on the marketing I thought this movie was going to be a lot more puzzle/game oriented with them having to do certain faith based “tests” to continue through his maze. But it ended up being a lot simpler than they portrayed it in the marketing material
Exactly what I had assumed as well!
Yeah true
Like what was the point of his “maze” construction?
This.
@GriffinLisuk That was my *only* issue, because that too is what I was expecting.
SPOILERS! My biggest takeaway right out of the theatre was that I had preconceived notions about how things would play out for each girl, and the movie completely flipped them on their head. I assumed Paxton would be the weaker character because she has these more traditionally "feminine" characters such as being more timid, naive, and docile, and those are characteristics that I have unfortunately been conditioned to associate with weakness. Playing the movie back I realized she's actually extremely detail oriented and picks up on a lot of things that her counterpart glazes over, such as the caged window, sounds from upstairs, and of course the position of the prophet's head. Where you think she might be naive and judgmental you realize she's actually very compassionate.
When she gave her coat to the woman caged it was truly like she’s a good caring person who knew she wasn’t going to make it out of this situation
You totally described my thought process as well!! I'm so glad they turn our expectations around, it made the movie so much better
yes loved that !!
I thought right after the talk about butterflies that she was definitely going to be the one who dies first. &she's going to land on the other girls finger at the end as she escapes. But they did flip that part for me, which I wasn't expecting
That's one of the things I love about how they played Paxton. She WAS what we've been conditioned to believe is weak, especially in horror movies, at the start, and Barnes was the 'stronger' one, but then we're shown that she really is a strong person in her own right.
In the movie Mr. Reed talked about how your brain creates images when it’s hypoxic/dying, so I feel like Sister Paxton was in the process of dying when she saw the butterfly. She was the one who wanted to come back as a butterfly, so it would make sense why she would see that as she’s dying
that's also how i interpreted it
Yes that also what I believe. I think she was able to scape BUT the blood loss was making her hallucinate and that's why the butterfly goes away (and I think Paxton realizes that she is hallucinating)
I like Sister Barnes' temporary resurrection as it came just after Sister Paxton talking about how she knows prayer doesn't work but she prays anyway because it's a nice thing to do. I thought the "miracle" of Sister Barnes temporarily waking up to save her was supposed to make us question whether Sister Paxton was wrong and prayer does work.
I don't think Barnes ever woke up. Everything after a prayer seems fake
One thing everyone seems to have overlooked was Barnes was clearly a DEAD body when it happens. But I'm not sure what we're supposed to interpret from that.
For me that whole Monopoly discussion was so interesting that honestly made the movie for me. BUT that whole sequence where one of the girls is running through the house and you see it in the little miniature version of the house. I loved that.
i loved that scene too ! i felt like i could "keep up" with everything he was saying . usually in religious movies i dont understand what a character is trying to say and its so frustrating but everytime he said something i was literally like "ahh" 😂😂
It wasn't very horror, but this was one of the most interesting movies I've seen this year.
Yeah that miniature dungeon scene was just gorgeous
I think the “everything can be explained up until the end” is the point it was trying to make about religion: the “end” being the afterlife because nobody truly knows
Best take in the whole comment section, imo.
I agree with this opinion as well mate well said
The way I interpret the ending is the butterfly represents her keeping her faith, even after all the doubt being fed to her
I actually really enjoyed Sister Paxton’s character development. They portrayed her as being very naive and almost ditzy at the beginning, and in a typical horror movie a character like that would die first. I liked her monologue when she figured everything out and explained it because there was a shift in power from Mr. Reed to her.
100% agree, her arc from trying to do exactly what she thought would get her out and placate him, to saying fuck it was very unexpected
@@ditchthewitch1821 good point
We got plenty of horror filled with gore, blood, and chases. It's so refreshing to see more psychologically mentally challenging horror that A24 usually nails. Need more!
Sister Paxton was my favorite & stole the show for me. She was genuinely bubbly & fun!🙏🥰🌟
Mr. Reed:
"With great power, comes great responsibility."
Sister Paxton: "Spider-Man"😂
So I absolutely loved this movie. I totally get what you mean when you said you wanted more, but as ex-Mormon, this movie was deeply personal to me. I served a mission and the portrayal of missionaries is 10/10. I saw myself in both sisters, and I loved that. Sister Paxton’s character was amazing and I loved the social commentary in this movie. It honestly gave some of my experiences in the church a voice and made me feel seen and heard
I liked how realistic the movie was. I appreciated that there wasn't a ritual or a demon or anything like that. I think Mr. Reed just being a "creep" and not a supernatural entity made the horror more real and scary to me in my opinion. I agree with what you said, they introduced a somewhat new concept but they did not push the envelope with these ideas. It kinda seemed like Mr. Reed wanted to play God with the fate of the two sisters (and the other unfortunate women). I was disappointed that the basement and even the model of the layout wasn't as intricate as I thought it was going to be. My take away is God is a woman and its Sophie Thatcher hahaha
When you realize that his huge revelation basically boils down to “control” it’s both horribly petty but also huge & terrifying. Because he’s already done this before.
Realistic? 😂!!
Sister Paxton for sure died in the basement. If you look at her phone when she gets out of the basement it still says "NO SIGNAL." This is, in my opinion, a clear signal that everything is a hallucination and she never got out of Mr Reed's house.
I noticed that too.
My opinion that's stupid because its a hallucination within a hallucination. Makes no sense.
I thought maybe she escaped but died out in the snow. She mentions earlier that when she dies she's gonna come back as a butterfly and land on one of her loved one's hands, like the butterfly does in the end. But it cuts back to her hand and there's no butterfly there. I took that as she made it out but hallucinated the butterfly while bleeding out/getting hypothermia/dying in the snow.
@@samanthasanchez9290this is EXACTLY what I also thought, sure it could’ve been a sign from the other sister I guess (??) but SHE was the one who said it
@@samanthasanchez9290 I keep telling people this! Not sure why its so hard for others to understand. They keep making these deep explanations when I felt it was pretty understandable on what happened.
it's so interesting hearing different reviews because i haven't heard a single one that has the same opinion. i personally love that the movie, besides the very ending, was grounded in reality. i think if it went supernatural or demonic, like longlegs, i'd be disappointed and bored tbh.
I genuinely think this movie has a unique perspective for those of us who were at one point deeply involved with a religion and are now agnostic/ atheist. Religious deconstruction is extremely scary and in itself is a horror element.
Thank you
Yeah it was really wild to watch it as an exmo.
But I definitely felt like the movie played it a bit safe even in that aspect.
@joshhaight8526 All of this. Raised Evangelical, lost faith at 16, running further & further with age/increased Christian Nationalism.
Honestly couldn’t stop listening to Sophie Thatcher’s cover of “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” and the Hollies song since the movie.
I loved the use of music in the movie and had no idea that was Sophie Thatcher doing the cover!
It’s very rare a movie comes out that you want to be a specific thing and that movie just…is exactly what you hoped for. I loved this movie! Basically exactly what I wanted from it.
Yeah the resurrection of Sister Barnes thing threw me, too. And I was also expecting satanism or something. It was decent but, like you, I also wanted more.
I really dislike the theory that Sis Paxton died in the basement because it makes no sense to show a hallucination within a hallucination through the audience's eyes.
Sis Paxton hallucinated the butterfly because she was still alive and dying. She couldn't hallucinate if she was dead.
They talked about near-death experiences having this air of uncertainty, which I think the butterfly momentarily appearing/disappearing could play into maybe?
@ I agree, very true. I just feel like the majority leave out a 3rd option of what could have happened. Which is that she is simply dying outside instead of being dead or dying in the basement.
Also, I don't think its fair to say Sis Paxton died so quickly while Mr Reed was literally stabbed in the neck.
I love the cast and the way this was filmed, it definitely made up for what it lacked in plot devices because every time we were finally getting somewhere, they tied it up in a neat bow and moved on to the next. I really wanted to engage more and this felt dumbed down, a little spoon fed with some of the points it made. I still enjoyed it!
You’ve voiced the majority of my thoughts about this one perfectly. I’ve also thought about it as some days have passed since I’ve seen it, but similar to what happened with Longlegs, my curiosity about the film had more to do with potential than it did execution
I was just thinking WHERE is Sarahs review!! ❤
I liked it, but it didn't go nearly far enough for a movie with dark and grimy underground dungeons.
I *did* absolutely want more of a maze, especially when they show the model.
I'm actually glad they didnt go with supernatural powers from any of the characters because it would've distracted from the plot in my opinion. I believe it's better to have us questioning the people and their circumstance rather than getting handed an unquestioned plot about the supernatural. Longlegs couldve benefited from this grounding in reality too (in the 3rd act), in my opinion.
I LOVE love loved the first part of the movie, I was so into it and then once we got to the prophet I started to question where the movie was going. I was expecting more of a game/puzzle (mostly because of the trailer I guess) where the sisters question their faith at each step, but I didn't really get the sense that anyone was persuaded to believe anything other than what they believed at the start of the movie. I still really enjoyed watching it and I thought Hugh Grant was perfect, but I do agree with you, I wish there was more questioning and less spoonfeeding.
I really liked it.
The concept, tension, atmosphere and performances were great. That first half of the movie was amazing.
As an ex Christian i really enjoy movies like these, but everything they talked about is very surface level from my perspective. They were conversations I got into in week 1 of questioning my faith. So I would've loved that angle to be a lot more deeper than it was
Love the review and at first, I agreed with the point of them not leaving enough room to imagine. They give us the answer “the one true religion is control” and then I realize them giving us the answer is the control. They came to the conclusion for us- leaving us with no room to think about any other one true religion.
They have essentially controlled the audience. 🤔 thoughts anyone?
i was convinced the movie was going to do an as above so below type ending with them having gone into the depths of the 9 circles of hell as sister paxton was running through the house… disappointed it didn’t but i also would like to agree that sister paxton did in fact die and her escaping and the butterfly was her idea of heaven!
I liked Heretic a lot, but I also had different expectations going into it. I fully thought when they were in the basement and the "resurrection" happened that he actually worshiped some ancient pagan spider god because I read way too much into the spider coming out of the metal pipe when they first got down there, and then I thought a spider descended from the ceiling onto the woman's hand (it was dust) lmao. All of the performances were so good though--I love Sophie Thatcher, and I know I'll rewatch it just to catch more of the subtleties that happen throughout their conversations in the first half.
I think the end question was important to the entire theme of the movie. Because either her faith helped get her out or her faith was baseless and she died in the basement
A blueberry pie candle is something I didn’t expect to buy but I did 🤣
@OneWingedDemonSlayer I guessed that before it was revealed, and I was pretty proud of myself, because I don't often pick up on those things.
Growing up a Jehovah Witnesses I saw myself in the sisters and it was very scary to think I would’ve easily fallen in Mr. Reeds lies 😂
Hey Bud, first off you are looking great, loving the black nails. For some reason while watching the movie I too was feeling a kind of disconnect. I wasn't as engaged as I thought I would be while watching it. The trailer was giving a much more tension then I think we got in the final movie. The killing of Sister Barnes upped the stakes and the Sister Paxton's actor did a good job of portraying the gravity of the situation. Overall I say that it was a good movie and it is nice to see Hugh Grant doing new and interesting things.
"I wanted mr. Reed to be a powerful cult leader!" 😂😂😂 this is why you are my favorite you tuber! You literally read my mind. Love your reviews ❤
To be fair, he was. He basically had his own cult, with his own "followers", and doctrine. The movie we basically bare witness to the consecration of his religious communion of "control"
yeah same
i remember thinking halfway through this last week " i cant wait for possessed by horror to review this and add it to the cozy list " . loved this movie, the aesthetic and subject matter was so great.
Definitely is cozy! I could see myself rewatching. Sometimes a simple cozy movie is exactly what I want.
I completely understand what you’re saying because I think I felt the same way. I was very hyped for this movie, and although I liked it, I was expecting something a bit different and a bit more. It was a good movie, but I’ve seen much better horror movies this year, so it still feels like a bit of a letdown for me.
But Hugh Grant was really phenomenal!
Hugh Grant had fun in this one lol. Obviously Reed is messed up af but tbh he also made some good points
Right?? In the first half, I was like ‘well… he’s not wrong. 🤷🏻♀️’ also your username is sending me 💀
It's a well made, enjoyable movie with occasionally creepy moments, but it really could have been great if it'd pushed things to a much more extreme and weird place in the final third. Solid film but a bit meh after the credits roll.
Yesssss ! That’s exactly how I felt. I just wanted more. I wanted more creepy moments. I was actually hoping he really did find something new. Not just he was crazy lol
@briatrixkiddo1775 I was hoping some weird ass new/ancient supernatural force was behind it all, rather than the slightly prosaic ending they offered up. I'm an atheist but I want weird, creepy supernatural madness in my life sometimes!
I love when it leaves it up to the viewers to form an opinion on what’s going on, but sometimes my brain needs a break and I just like to know the truth so for this specific movie I am personally okay with them showing she was right😭but the unknown is definitely a lot more thought provoking!
I enjoyed this film, but it felt like an earlier Blumhouse film rather than an A24 film (which isn't a bad thing at all imo), but like you said, they could've gone SOOO much further with things. everything felt very surface level to me, and i wish more was up to the audience's interpretation.
it started so strong for me, but once they went into the basement, the story just lost me more and more. solid 3/5 for me, but i had much higher hopes for it
I'm watching Heretic tonight, so I'm excited to get home and watch your review after!
i honestly never get scared by movies BUT this one had a few really good jump scares and was really tense!!!! i liked it a lot. especially growing up religious a lot of it hit close to home. i felt like the end wasn’t as strong as i wanted but the rest of it was fantastic
My thoughts exactly! They could’ve gone so high concept with this film. There were so many little things that I thought were hints or clues but then none of them went anywhere :/ I still really liked it but was craving so much more. I’d also give it 3.5/5
I really really wanted the supernatural element. I was hoping they Hugh's character had actually discovered the 'true religion." Something supernatural he could present to the girls that would absolutely blow their minds and turn their worlds upside done. But no, it was just about the idea of control in religion. If Mr. Reed had truly stumbled upon something incredible it would have elevated this movie so so much. This movie needed the supernatural
The “control” message doesn’t feel fresh or unique enough to stand on its own-it’s one of the more basic commentaries people share about religion. It would’ve been better if there was some other element in the story to supplement that message.
No that's every other scary movt
The supernatural cliche is getting old
I didn't find anything predictable in this movie. I usually guess where a movie was going and II didn't guess anything about the twists of what's going on at the end. I'm surprised to hear predictable
Sounds like they played it safe. Lol. Not my genre (religious horror) but I still enjoy hearing your thoughts. Have a great weekend ❤
Me & my boyfriend were blown away…. He loved it. And I haven’t gotten nauseous in a theater in years…. I just found this exciting
She did not die. When he walked away she was clearly alive. I remember thinking: she's still moving!
I might be wrong, but I feel like it’s more thought provoking and deep for people that actually believe (even a little bit) in religion/god or spirituality. Whether you are religious, have religious trauma, grew up in the church, etc. I’m not sure how much you would get out of it being an atheist or a nonbeliever in spirituality as far as the topical conversation goes. Especially since it’s a very dialogue heavy film. Because thoughts like this for people who do believe or can relate to the characters’ beliefs can actually really scare you and make you think
This movie is very layered and definitely leaves a curious audience asking questions even after it’s ended. (Which is what I was hoping for). One minute you think there’s too much exposition, and the next you’re spiraling down a rabbit hole of interpretations & theories.
i saw this on halloween night and was really not stoked about it but the group vote favoured this and i was extremely pleasantly surprised
I thought the same thing about the dollhouse....I thought there would be more labyrinth or puzzle type scary stuff. Still enjoyed the movie!! I was looking forward to your review, did not disappoint. Thanks!
I really agree with this review, i was also left feeling like I wanted more and expected more from the trailers. When Sarah pointed out the horror tropes i was like yes exactly! Like when Sister Paxton stabbed him but then immediately ran away but never made sure he was dead, and of course he catches up with her and stabs her too. 🙄🙄🙄
I love how you are never afraid to critique instead of worship and fawn over every new “great” horror movie.
I agree! I was super hoping that the man would really turn out to be a really intelligent philosopher and leaving it all open ended as to whether he was a terrible or that he just turned out to be a dude just really passionate about philosophical questions.
Though it did have a point about how separate this movie was from anything else that it concludes on giving it a more meta way of considering the things it showed.
I wanted more game action because of the model he created. It was good.
I sort of think that maybe the butterfly was Sister Paxton's spirit representing that she did die. Because it was Paxton, not Barnes, that had the butterfly reincarnation wish. And I watched an ex-Mormon review the movie and the whole butterfly reincarnation wish goes against what Mormons believe happen after death to begin with. And when Barnes wasn't willing to go through the disbelief door but Paxton didn't even question it because it was implied that that was the "right " answer. So even though it sort of hints at Barnes being the more skeptical, I think she was actually the more true believer. So I don't think she would come back as a butterfly, even if given the chance. I don't know that I think Sister Paxton's spirit literally manifested as a butterfly as she was dying, I think the intention was more as a metaphor that she was dying/dead.
I think the most sinister part of the whole movie was the way that the caged people were constantly kept wet and humid. I can't even think about it too much because it makes me sick. And it was such an escalation from everything else. Like from subtle control and manipulation to showing that the end result is constant, horrible, torture. The sprinklers and the way he watered them with a watering can. Like the sickness, rotting and infections that causes. Its so so much worse than just being kept in cages. I completely could have done without it. It also makes the whole "they choose to be here" make less sense.
A movie that so heavily leans on philosophy, and how integral it is to religion, going on to answer every question is so backwards. Religion is intended to fill the gaps we can’t explain…
I can’t help to feel that was a point trying to be made? Religion is intended to do that but sometimes religious organizations feel these gaps for you to control you… but that’s just how I felt about it. I appreciate how everyone has come out of the movie was very different opinions
I thought it was legit. Grant's character was a highlight for me. I agree with you saying they needed to push it more though. Somehow, they needed to. I was leaning more towards a serial killer thing in my head with the villain. I guess he was, kind of. It would have been interesting to see Mr. Reed eventually start to crack and see him less collected and intellectual and more visceral and scattered as he lost control of the situation. Control being his religious choice, he'd be losing his faith in himself.
The horror for me was all the mansplaining.
Hahaha right
Lol
Lol 😅
LOL
@@PossessedbyHorror The character thoroughly irritated me, which means that Hugh Grant did a great job. Even more galling than Vicar Anthony Campion from "Sirens."
If a film makes you think to much, then it looses it's entertainment value. you need a good combination of both, with one half giving you something of worth to ponder, and the other giving you the enjoyment of any questions presented to you.
I loved this movie personally. Though I agree the end needed more ambiguity. I wish they’d left it a mystery of how the bicycle lock got on the door and why she happened to have the key. Did he plan that? Coincidence? Who put it there?
I just watched this movie……and YES!! Yes yes yes I absolutely agree wow 2 for 2 (I agreed with your mini review of Don’t Move) I was sooooooo excited for this movie. I dealt with 8 HOURS of buffering 😩☹️😠 to watch this movie, only to feel instead of a pair, I got one cookie. Like you said, it felt like two movies. I was so invested in the first half. I was saying to myself this guy is nuts; he’s gonna fix them good! He’s gonna make them work for their belief. Mr. Reed told them “you’re gonna be sick, you’re gonna wish you were dead…” I’m like yeah let’s go. With him having a model house & little wood ppl, I’m thinking he’s gonna put them through a number of tests & depending on how strong their faith is, will be the key in moving forward, like pawns. That the girls will start questioning their faith, revealing secrets, etc. Yet it was more a religious Black Phone/ 10 Cloverfield Lane kidnap movie. Loved Hugh Grant!! He needs to do more psychological movies!! 6/10
I loved the movie. The fact I'm writing about it shows it's rolling around in my head after seeing it. I can see where you'd want it to go deeper but think of the source. He's a demented killer. Clearly something happened in his life that completely traumatized him. They give hints. He did have a wife. Remember she built the house. He also questioned Sister Barnes if she'd heard from her dead father. So he may blame religion for her death or wants the "true religion" to show him a path to his wife. Who knows but he has a dark passenger, to quote Dexter, running around his head.
i thought she died in the basement like whenever he had the knife to her neck and then he obviously will eventually die from his wounds and she imagined Barnes coming back to life and killing him and everything after that
His whole monologue about religion and her answer just sounded like a Reddit post. I never for a minute thought he had a real prophet or that she resurrected. I thought that was his wife that he tortured and gave drugs that can slow down the heart and mimic death. The whole body switch nonsense was silly. Also I felt like his creepiness and menace didn’t escalate when it was supposed to. It was a good level in the beginning when the girls still aren’t sure and he hasn’t revealed himself. By the time he’s in the basement and cutting chicks, he should’ve given us a scarier performance.
Just got home from watching this. I completely agree with your review. I do think I need a rewatch when it comes out on streaming.
If you think about the "resurrection scene", I like to think about it , well, religiously. It kinda juxtaposes earlier in the movie with the Prophet that was "resurrected" but in reality it was just Mr. Reed switched the corpse for another woman. In the sense of the Sisters, I like to interpret it that Sister Barnes having a TRUE resurrection, because of her faith and because of what she believed and wanting to come back to save her Sister from him. As opposed to Mr. Reed's fake resurrection
that's the best thumbnail for the video lol
I forgot to pose for one so I had to screen shot from the review 🤣 glad it sums up the review
@PossessedbyHorror I love your channel, thank you for all the wonderful content:)
We don't actually know if paxton made it out! It could of all been in her head seeing Barnes suddenly come back.
I like the ending cause it is open. I like that we don't if a) Paxton survived b) Died and went to heaven c) died and was just seing shit before death. It suits the rest of the movie. Characters don't know if god is real and we still don't. No matter which door we choose we still end up in the same place.
That feels like a message of the film
I actually really loved that it didn't have any supernatural elements to it, I feel like that would have ruined it for me. I liked that the story was reserved and kept as this creepy guy who just loves terrorizing people and hearing himself talk.
I watched a review of the movie by a former mormon and found it very interesting. I think her name was Alyssa Greenfell.
Heretic is like Longlegs. You get a sense of the kind of movie they were going for in broad strokes, but they kind of failed to land it or close the deal with the nuts and bolts details in the script. In both cases, it was a cool idea, but the execution left something to be desired.
It’s hard.. I feel like them showing the board with the nails in it when they put it to the side shows it’s real. The nails in the board representing the crucification of Jesus and her coming back to save her is the miracle.. then the butterfly appearing and disappearing shows that her faith is proven correct or confirming her beliefs. Everyone talks about the snow but it’s snowing when the guy comes looking for them.
i didn’t like the ending really either, but i loved the rest of it very interesting and tense movie
Watching this in Utah with my friends (most of us are queer and exmormon) was such an amazing healing experience- they did such a fantastic job at pointing out flaws in organized religion as a whole while still allowing the sister missionaries to be portrayed in a respectful way (as terrible as the church is, for the most part missionaries really are just brainwashed kids). The thing that struck me the most was the repetition of “you can leave whenever you want to, you have that choice”- very indicative of what high demand religions tell their members. This movie was not perfect but I have never been more accurately the target audience, and I was not disappointed in the slightest.
Same here! I think the trope of the only monster here is man/manmade institutions worked for the movie. It gave the movie a sense of realism. I know a lot of people wanted Mr. Reed to be a cilt leader, or for there to be supernatural elements, but I personally felt like that would have taken away from the movie rather than added to it. I loved a lot of the symbolism throughout the entire film, and I feel like it actually had a message about informed consent and how unfair it is for someone to make a choice without really knowing what they are getting into (i.e. the walls of the house being metal. The sisters were asked if they were ok with that fact without the full understanding of why that could be something they werent ok with) Many exmos I know wish that informed consent was a bigger thing in the church.
I went in with as little information as i posibly could on the film. I watched only one trailer, and while i did wish that there were some story elements that were done differently, I still walked away from the movie without disappointment beyond the fact that the sister missionaries did not make it out alive.
I think it was supposed to spark “maybe this is supernatural” but then it’s just a dude with a basement. I think that was part of the religion metaphor. that was how I read it at least
100% agree with your ending theory! I think she died when she was praying in the basement.
Couldn't agree more. Thought of the Heaven ending as well. I also wanted more from the film but kinda settled on maybe the point is just being made through there not being a supernatural deity in the basement when I kind of hoped there would be something to that nature.
spot on review! I was really excited for this one.
I don’t mind that it was grounded in reality. But I do believe Paxton did die and that Barnes saving was part of her transition. That’s the only thing that makes sense and you’re right other than that it’s such a bad trope.
I found Hugh Grants character to be really compelling because even though the trailer made it easier to predict what was going to happen ,his character was still really unpredictable because it was hard to tell how he was going to react depending on how the two sisters answered his questions about religion which created alot of tension. I felt a bit disappointed how the movie progressed in the second half though as it seemed to loose its tension as I thought the house was going to be a labyrinth that would put the sisters through a series of tests to see what they really believed but it seemed to change into a movie about being held hostage rather than a movie that makes you question what you actually believe. I agree that if Hugh Grants character had some sort of magic powers that were not clearly explainable that it would have made the film alot more mysterious and interesting because it would make you question what is real versus what you believe is real.
I feel the same way, I so wanted to see more puzzles and labyrinths and crazy things
i really liked this film but your review has made me wonder what it would’ve been like if it had ended at the point with the trap door. he was pushing so hard for her to ‘find out the truth’ and i guess i wanted a bit of push back from her because faith is so often about ‘not knowing’. it could’ve ended the same way - with her going down the trap door and him closing it and his thesis about ‘control’ would have still worked. but then i guess the whole thing would be more bleak than horrific haha
As an exmormon who was a sister missionary, this movie was very scary for me 😂 but i totally understand it not having that effect on everyone
I liked it mate
I can't believe that was Topher Grace!
I appreciate your review. I gather that it's whether you like supernatural elements in your horror movies. For me, it depends. In the movie "The Devil's Advocate," I think I would have preferred if there were no supernatural elements and if it was merely implied that Al Pacino was the Devil, rather than what's shown in the movie. For this one, considering the subject, I appreciate that it didn't have anything supernatural, because I wanted it to be a contemplation of the subject, even though I agree that it was a bit predictable.
lol hugh grant was the last person i expected to play this role
That candle smells good af though
I totally agree we needed more mysterious/supernatural elements. By explaining everything and reducing Reed to a crazy arrogant atheist, the movie almost gives similar vibes as a Pureflix movie. Like it’s biased against people who don’t believe in God.
My preferred interpretation is that SPOILER WARNING Paxton died in the basement and the spoiler is that she is having a near-death experience, dying or entering the afterlife depending on your belief/interpretation. That seems appropriate to the themes laid out in the film.
I definitely think they overexplained the last 1/3 of the movie. I was really enjoying the first 2/3rds though, and I'd rewatch it just for that. I am starting to wonder if the original intent was to be vague and open-ended, but there was pressure to make it more appealing to general audiences by cranking up the intensity and then explaining too much
Ur my fav Sarah!
I hate this movie so much, simply because I loved it until the end, which made me totally switch. The entire movies lesson throughout is that essentially there is no god, and everything logically points to that, but at the end, all of a sudden the one girl is alive again out of nowhere!? It’s such a complete switch that seemed out of nowhere and totally unjustified. Just a frustrating ending all around for me.
I call it "barbarian for mormons" 😂😅😂😅
There were several moments that made me think of Barbarian!! 😆
Maybe the answering of their own questions is the point. Religion already leaves everything open and up for interpretation while trying to relay itself as having everything figured out. Maybe the point was to figure the movie out by the end of it instead of just leaving points open so that there was no need to question and run in circles lol. That's basically what Mr. Reid's character was doing. Asking questions to turn around and answer them because he didn't want to leave anything open to interpretation. He also asked a lot of questions and expected a specific answer to be right, and when they didn't answer it correctly it often just led to more questions. I mean who knows why they concluded every point, maybe it's not that deep, but that's my guess.
I was expecting way more from Topher Grace’s character! It felt like he was just there to (1) provide some humor, with the “did you get this pamphlet?” bit and (2) as a way to call back to Mr. Reed’s comments about how missionaries are just “tools” for spreading faith (almost implying that they’re forgettable/disposable). Maybe that’s all he needed to be, but it would’ve been cool to see Elder Kennedy’s experience in Mr. Reed’s house since he’s obviously higher up in the church.
the pamphlet scene showed that his character cares more about proselytising than finding the girls, kind of chilling imo
I’m personally so tired of the demonic/satanic explanations for horror movies, like the ending of Longlegs felt like an easy cop-out for me 😭 I liked how this was (somewhat) more grounded in reality
I'm glad I didn't watch a single thing going into this one, because I can see how marketing might've played into it seemer slightly more simple. I actually think the idea that (spoiler) died at the end of the film has a lot more credibility than you'd think (and intentionally so), especially when they talk about death being like a bright white light, cloudy, things seeming uncertain (which all happen to Sister Paxton). You've also got the phone which still has no bars even though they're outside the basement (also the idea in Dante's Inferno that the way to heaven is first down through hell) ---- all of this supports that. I personally don't believe it, but there's enough evidence for both.