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Nov 8, 2024
9:37:35pm
byujacob INSUFFERABLE KNOW IT ALL
I watched Heretic tonight. (spoilers hidden)
First of all, it was very enjoyable. I would say that this is the most accurate portrayal of LDS people I've seen, and it still wasn't great. It was okay. Both actresses portraying LDS missionaries were decent (they were both raised in the church), but the script was sometimes off. The biggest inaccuracy was the portrayal of the elder missionary by Topher Grace who had no companion, looked about 40 years old, and was cleaning an LDS chapel that looked NOTHING like an LDS chapel. Hugh Grant stole the show. His acting was stellar and he chewed up every scene he was in. Especially the monologue about music and Monopoly.

The premise of the story is that two sisters are trapped in a house with a man obsessed with religion. Overall the ending wound up being a bit disappointing for me. The beginning and middle were quite interesting and the suspense ramped up more and more, but the ultimate reveal was quite a let down. If you want it spoiled for you, here you go:

Spoiler Hugh Grant has studied religion quite a bit. He spends some time bashing the LDS church because of polygamy mostly, but also bashes on all religions and how they all steal things from each other like concepts of a resurrected Savior, 12 disciples, holy texts, etc. But he claims to have found the one true religion. The girls are forced to go deeper into his house until one of them enters this subterranean series of rooms where he reveals the one true religion is control (and that all religions seek to control people for money, power, etc) and he proves this by revealing that he has several women in his control that he has subdued through torture. It's quite disappointing. The entire thing with the girls undermines all of the creepiness of him because ultimately he's just a serial killer, basically. But the film does maintain a nice suspense and pace to make the ride enjoyable even if the final reveal is a bit pedantic or derivative.

I won't say that the film dismisses religion entirely. It ends on a somewhat ambivalent or uncertain note regarding the power of prayer and miracles.
This message has been modified
Originally posted on Nov 8, 2024 at 9:37:35pm
Message modified by byujacob on Nov 8, 2024 at 9:39:24pm
Message modified by byujacob on Nov 8, 2024 at 9:39:59pm
Message modified by byujacob on Nov 8, 2024 at 9:42:10pm
byujacob
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byujacob
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