This movie really is disturbing beyond belief.

Rating: 9/10 (30 November 2018)

Every now and then, when a new horror film comes, we get a few reviews from a very exclusive group of people who assisted to a private screening, claiming that said film is the most disturbing thing they have seen in years, with outrageous statements about people who allegedly had to leave the screening because they were too sickened. I don't buy the hype when a new film is arbitrarily deemed as this generation's "The Exorcist", "Rosemary's Baby" or whatever. As a matter of fact, the way I see it, this hyperbolic publicity usually works in a way that is harmful to the film, because we get really high expectations and that's never a good thing. Well, "Hereditary" was one of those films that was advertised as "too scary and disturbing for words" or "people who watched the film went blind afterwards" and, for once, I can say that I mostly agree with the hype. I have been watching horror films for over two decades and, at this point, I am mostly desensitized. Though gore usually makes my stomach turn, even when it's not that realistic, horror films just don't have that much of an impact on me anymore. I can appreciate a well done horror film for sure, but they simply don't scare me, they don't usually upset me and they certainly don't "stay" with me afterwards.
In "Hereditary", the story centers around the Graham family, composed by Annie, the mother; Steve, the father; Peter, the son and Charlie, the (very peculiar) young daughter. The Grahams find themselves coping with the death of Ellen, Annie's mother, though only young Charlie appears to be mourning her loss, while the rest of the family seem somewhat indifferent to her recent passing. It is no surprise that only Charlie misses Ellen, as it is stated that she was her favorite and it is well established from the beginning that Ellen was extremely secretive and not exactly a very loving woman, not even to her own daughter. As a matter of fact, aside from Charlie, it seems that the Grahams are actually relieved after Ellen's death, especially because during her final days, her dementia had taken its toll on her and she wasn't quite herself anymore. The fact that Ellen had been living with the Grahams during her final years may have contributed to the feeling of well disguised general relieve, since caring for a person who suffers from chronic mental illness can be a burdensome experience, especially if said person was already difficult to begin with.
Though grannie Ellen's departure doesn't cause that much of an emotional impact on his close relatives, tragedy ensues and terrible (really terrible) events impact the life of the Grahams. On the verge of insanity, Annie begins to investigate about her mother's life and discovers a lot of horrible secrets about her dark nature. In the end, she will find herself fighting against an evil force that is out to destroy her and her already unstable family.
There are many reasons to praise "Hereditary" and the first thing that comes to my mind is Toni Collette's acting, which is out of this world. I already knew she was talented, because prior to this, I had seen many films and TV series where she appeared and she never disappointed. After seeing this, I have to say that Toni is the definition of versatile. This woman is capable of expressing emotions in a way that one can easily feel what she feels. The scene where Collette's character finds her dead daughter gave me chills and nightmares (literally, nightmares) and this is coming from someone who is pretty much immunized when it comes to disturbing imagery and situations in films. All the actors in this film are perfect in their roles, but Toni sure steals all the spotlight, mainly due to the fact that her character gets more screen time and the fact that her character deals with the tragedy that surrenders this family in a deeper level.
Another great aspect of "Hereditary" is the fact that it actually succeeds in making the audience feel something very powerful (and scarring) after one of the character's gruesome and tragic death, which is not very common in horror films, since we are always prepared for the worst. How many deaths really became iconic in horror flicks? Not a lot, the first thing that comes to mind is Gage in "Pet Sematary", but I believe that, in time, Charlie's death will become just as iconic. Personally, I was more disturbed by this, because it was completely unexpected. It is very difficult to create a death in a horror movie that doesn't end up being generic and bland, but Ari Aster sure gets the job done here.
Another thing to point out is the fact that "Hereditary" perfectly manages to fill over two hours without dragging. I admit I can be a little bit reluctant when it comes to watching films that are over 90 minutes sometimes, but Aster manages to give us a slow burn, without giving us a boring final result, filled with pointless sequences that lead to nothing but lack of interest (though many will disagree, since a lot of people complained about how "boring" this film is).
Horror genre tends to be rather formulaic and offer very repetitive "in your face" tropes to set the mood and I'm actually okay with this, because I enjoy a conventional flick as much as the next guy, if it manages to entertain and get the job done. Now, setting the horror mood without the classic elements is a major challange and "Hereditary" succeeds in this aspect as well. While the conventional horror elements are heavily displayed during the second half of the film, the atmosphere is so perfectly developed that, from the very beginning, we just know that horror is in the air and we know that the Grahams are going to suffer a great deal, though we don't exactly know why. The whole time, I felt uneasy and the fact that I didn't know what the heck was going on, made it even more disturbing.
Though I don't have major complaints concerning the film, there are a bunch of things regarding the plot that just don't quite make sense to me entirely, though I've seen it twice and I paid close attention to all the small details during the second viewing. As if this wasn't enough, I read and watched interviews with the director, Ari Aster, who actually failed to provide solid answers to certain aspects of the plot, which leads me to believe that, in fact, "Hereditary" offers a some ambiguity. Since the movie excels in every single aspect, I can overlook a few loose ends, but on the other hand, a movie that lasts more than two hours should be able to provide solid answers to all the interrogatories. One of my major problems, plot-wise, is that Charlie, who was supposedly taken by Paimon during the entire time, doesn't quite act like a demonic entity. As a matter of fact, peculiar as she appears, Charlie pretty much behaves like a little girl throughout most of the film. Are we supposed to assume to Paimon was trying to pass as a little girl to deceive people or Paimon simply didn't take full posession of his hostess, allowing Charlie to be both herself and the evil entity alternatively? While it's not neccesarily a plothole, I find this aspect of the story a little bit ambiguous. Another thing that threw me off is the fact that the siblings look nothing like each other. Well, more precisely, Peter doesn't look like any of the other members of the family. True, Charlie didn't exactly look like his parents either, but at least she didn't look like she belonged to another ethnic group, which is the case of Peter. Alex Wolff, the actor who plays Peter, is of Ashkenazi Jewish, English and German ethnicity, though he appears to be Indian, while the rest of the family looks Caucasian. Now, this wouldn't be a head-scratcher if the character was adopted, but it is clearly stated that Peter is the biological son of Annie and Steve. Again, not necessarily something that ruins the film, but it's certainly distracting to a minimal degree.
As a small little piece of trivia (for the lack of a better word), I might add that, intentionally or not, the story borrows a few things from previous horror films that, at the time of their releases, didn't get the same attention or recognition that "Hereditary" got around the time of its own release. Specifically, I'm referring to films like "Darkness" (2002), "Paranormal Activity 3" and the Mexican obscure gem, "La TÃ­a Alejandra" (1979). Though I have a positive opinion regarding the previously mentioned films, they are not nearly as powerful or disturbing as "Hereditary" and they were mostly conceived to appeal to a wider audience, comercially speaking, at least. In the previously mentioned films, an oblivious family's peace and happiness is shattered by a loved one, more specifically, an ancestor with an evil agenda that involves sacrificing a young child in order to please a dark deity. In the case of "Hereditary", the mischievous ancestor only appears as a ghostly figure once and then we see her lying in her coffin, but her presence is actually very powerful throughout the entire film, to the point where her dark nature actually feels oppressive.
Though there are a few moments of mild unintended hilarity, I fail to understand those reviews claiming that the entire theater was laughing hysterically during the film. Watching horror films is one of my favorite ways to entertain myself, they hardly ever have that much of an impact on me anymore. They used to cause a bigger impact on me when I was younger, but after watching hundreds of them, they just don't frighten me, which is reasonable. A horror film can be very well done, without necessarily being scary. Well, "Hereditary" is a film that managed to stay with me, it disturbed me, I found it dark, unnerving and depressing.