It starts well, then descends to hell

Rating: 5/10 (24 July 2018)

In a rural area of the U.S., Annie Graham (Toni Collette) has recently lost her mother. During the grief and another tragedy, Annie's curiosity of the supernatural leads to some very haunting discoveries and experiences for her and her family.
As a director, Ari Aster (also the film's writer) is very talented in keeping an audience on needles and pins. The atmosphere is always intense; even when very little may be happening, there is anticipation and a fear of what might possibly happen next - even if nothing actually happens. Collette is also very strong as the central character dealing with tragedy, grief, and chaos. Other cast members also do fine work.
The film is at its most powerful when dealing with the second tragedy and different sides of anguishing guilt. If only it had stayed on this path and not descended to hell in more ways than one.
"The Exorcist" (1973) is probably the prototype for graphic horror films. No matter how shocking and gory it was, within its supernatural, created universe, the story was consistent and even fascinating. Since then, many of its impersonators have upped the gore but gone downhill where intelligent narratives are concerned. "Hereditary" is not terribly gory (compared to other modern films) but it does not advance the horror genre as its narrative is too busy and far-fetched.
The early occult scenes in the film are fascinating. From there, it has the intention of being frightening. It might have succeeded if it made any actual sense. It didn't. It was also too long.