Shocking and Beautiful

Rating: 8/10 (11 June 2018)

Hereditary was a terrifying blend of reality and the supernatural, with the horror stemming from the realism. The film was most terrifying when wallowing in the stress of tragic events and their effects on a strained family dynamic. Toni Collette and Alex Wolff delivered gut-wrenching performances as mother and son faced with impossible situations. The film also continuously hinted at an ambitious mythology that provided suspense, but in the last five minutes it felt the need to tie up the mystery with an over-explained sequence that read more like a conclusion to a Law and Order episode than the end to an otherwise excellent film. In all, the film was shocking and beautiful, but suffered from its last minute tonal shift.