Hereditary (2018) is one of the only films to ever leave me feeling truly horrible, but in a good way. No film has had such a profound psychological effect on my nightmares as Hereditary. It is a truly tense, gripping, and aggressive horror masterpiece. It is punctuated by especially excellent acting and screenwriting. And it is not limited to these qualities, as the production and post-production should also be praised. The film, of course, has issues, but these do not stop it from delivering a gripping experience.
Hereditary follows the deterioration of Annie Graham and her family after the death of her mother Ellen Leigh. Annie’s family members are her son Peter (Alex Wolff), daughter Charlie (Millie Shapiro), and husband Steve (Gabriel Byrne). Annie tries to cope with the loss of her mother through a grief counseling group, where she meets Joan (Ann Dowd). However supernatural occurrences start happening to the Graham family. Annie and Millie both start seeing apparitions of Ellen. One night Peter wants to go out to a high school party and Annie insists that he bring Charlie. However at the party, Charlie suffers an allergic reaction to peanuts so Peter haphazardly starts driving to the hospital. Unfortunately, in the chaos Peter gets into an accident and Charlie is killed in a rather gruesome manner. Her lifeless body sits in the car while Peter drives home, where Annie discovers it the next morning. After this traumatic event, Annie starts to unravel, seeing more apparitions and noticing more oddities in her life. She becomes closer to Joan, who shows her how to speak to the dead through a séance. Peter also starts to see apparitions and figures in windows, mirrors, and at school. As the film progresses, Annie and Peter’s mental states continue to decline, as they both start experiencing more supernatural events. As the film continues, these events only get more horrifying, which leads into exciting narrative twists, gut-wrenching terror, and a bleak ending. Our protagonists are thrown into situations that we can only dream, or have nightmares, about.
Before I jump into the acting and writing of this film, I want to commend the film’s cinematography and editing. The opening shot alone is a great framing device for the rest of the film. The camera pans across a room of miniature model houses; focuses on one particular model, slowly approaching a replica room, which transforms into a child’s bedroom. Most of the film’s shots are achingly slow and filled with empty space, saturating the viewer with a sense of dread. Then, when the film’s plot moves quickly and increases in intensity (especially near the end), the camera work changes. This change jolts the audience into the fear that the protagonist is feeling. The editing follows a similar approach. At first it is slow, methodical, thoughtful and frightening. Some of the best editing in the movie is when the film abruptly cuts from day to night, throwing the viewer headfirst into the film’s madness.
Regarding the acting, this is probably the film’s strongest asset. Toni Collette’s performance is so powerful, it matches the grotesque horror of the film. I will never forget the way Collette sounds when she discovers her child’s dead body in her car. Her aching and painful monologue in the support group is one of the most riveting scenes in the movie. This scene informs us of the warped and twisted details of this family. Collette’s rage-filled outburst at Alex Wolff during dinner left me squirming. Alex Wolff should also be praised for balancing his character – he is, at once, so sympathetic and yet such a brat. He goes from blasé, to vulnerable and traumatized. Additionally the supporting actors deserve acknowledgement. Ann Dowd is suspicious but inconspicuous, Gabriel Byrne delivers a consistently sympathetic performance, and Millie Shapiro is haunting.
If there was one scene that culminated the positives of Hereditary, it would be the séance scene. Annie learns how to perform a séance from Joan. Annie grabs Steve and Peter in the middle of the night and begins the ritual. The scene starts slowly. Their attempts to speak to the dead don’t seem to work and Steve becomes impatient. But the audience feels anxious, as the editing cuts to oblique and disorientating camera angles. Peter and Steve also start to feel the unease as a glass pushes itself across a table, a cabinet breaks on its own, and a candle flames violently. Peter even comments that the “air is flexing.” As the characters feel more panic and terror, Annie is possessed by Charlie. Annie suddenly starts acting like a horrified child. Toni Collette excels at this moment, bringing us into the horror of the scene.
However, no film is perfect, and Hereditary is far from an exception. Truly understanding the depth of the film relies on multiple viewings. Hereditary revels in its foreshadowing. Viewers pick up more details after watching the film a second and third time. Annie’s miniatures do more than establish the exposition, Paymon’s symbol is displayed throughout the film, and Annie’s crouched crying position is mimicked by the cult. But there are times we ask ourselves questions that remain unanswered. We do not fully understand the meaning of the demonic writing on Charlie’s wall, unless we take it upon ourselves to research this detail. With every replay, a puzzle is unraveled and a new puzzle materializes. Our answers produce more questions: was Charlie evil or was it always Paymon? Does Peter die from the fall at the end or is he just possessed? Is Annie’s death meaningless?
Overall, I would say that Hereditary is a chilling film about the dangers of family stress and trauma. It clearly takes influence from classics, such as Rosemary’s Baby (1968) and The Exorcist (1973). Comparatively, most modern horror has become very tame. It is still filled with blood, flailing appendages, and screaming teens. Yet the sense of dread is missing. Most other films end with little repercussions and a fully reconstructed family. Hereditary ends with decapitation. Directors like Ari Aster still revel in the movie violence, but also add extra analytical layers and depth to films like Hereditary. It leaves me excited to see what Ari Aster has in store for us in Midsommar (2019). In this new golden age of horror, it’s nice to feel some real, personal, and unsettling terror.
Author Biography
Benjamin Bergstrom is a freelance editor, writer, and director working in the Greater New York City area. He attended Ithaca College and graduated in 2018. Ben has worked on multiple types of projects, including documentaries, narratives, and news media. He is currently working on the reality television show North Woods Law as a freelance assistant editor at Engel Entertainment.
Film Details
Hereditary (2018)
USA
Director Ari Aster
Runtime 127 minutes
