Ooooh boy here we go
One of those rare gems where I'd want to stop and pause the movie even if I couldn't do that in the cinema, because I wanted to recuperate, to rest and to decide if I'd still want to continue watching. Such is the terror brought about by this wonderful movie, and I've listed some of what I think are its best qualities as a film and why all horror films after this should emulate while still retaining their own sense of identity.
Afraid of old people? oh boy
#1 It doesn’t rely on jump scares
Jump scares on horror movies are similar to slapstick in comedies. They’re cheap easy ways to get laughs and screams. They’re also very effective once executed right and sometimes even makes or breaks a movie. Like in the original Jaws, one scene that stood out there was the near perfect execution of “that” particular jump scare that frightened generations upon generations of people up to this date. Execute it poorly however, and you have all but exhausted your audience by being predictable and shallow, there’s a reason they’re called cheap.
With Hereditary however, it’s one of those rare horror gems that don’t rely on such cheap tactics. While most movies only have those types of scares in their arsenal, jump scares are seldom and rarely used in the movie, and when they did use it, it was executed unpredictably (As they should be) and with taste.
The family during the opening scene
#2 It plays with your irrational childhood fears
(warning: minor spoilers for Jaws, Conjuring 2, IT and the grudge)
Horror movies have this aspect I’d like to call the audience connection/rapport. How the audience can relate to it with everyday objects or situations and how it could possibly scare them long after the credits have rolled out. In the movie IT for example, one of the most relatable aspects in the movie is the fact that, gutters and sewers are quite common and things you see every day, after seeing the movie however, this might make you think twice about getting near them. Conjuring 2 scared you of paintings, Jaws scared you of beaches (for obvious reasons), The Grudge made you scared of peering inside your sheets, It Follows scared you of random people approaching you, Shutter terrified you of casually taking photos on your own house and the list goes on.
With hereditary, it will scare you of the subtlest of things, and most of them, you were probably scared when you were younger. The dark corners of your room, sleeping alone, waking up alone, senior aged people, nudity, night time, pitch black darkness heck even driving alone. While you won’t go to the beach every day, free from worrying about man eating sharks, you will be going to sleep every day in your own bed stressing about that shadow you saw in the corner of your eye.
The film is littered with beautiful frames and innovative shots
#3 The twists and surprises are wonderful
Most movies show you the twist at the end, such is the beautifully made The Others starring Nicole Kidman. M Night Shyamalan’s The Village invested so much on the twist, it made the movie a cult hit.
The thing that make Hereditary stand apart is that the twist isn't predictable and is littered bit by bit within the movie on different occasions , surprising you in every turn, keeps you second guessing on the direction of the movie, all thanks to the smokes and mirrors provided by the foreshadowing elements that you thought you had it figured out.
Hats off to the team or editors that created the trailer as well as this was probably one of the most effective trailers to not just only not spoil the audience, but effectively hide all the twists, while deceiving most.
Be prepared to scream... on second thought.. don't!
#4 It’s beautifully shot, cinematography for the ages
Movie enthusiasts are going to love the shots and the techniques used, to casual fans such as myself, you’d probably see sequences for the first time leaving you in awe. In the Conjuring, one particular scene that sticks out is when there was a continuous scene without cuts that showed the family on a typical busy night, that was in itself amazing.
So why are some disappointed still?
For starters, without spoiling the movie(which is very hard for this type of film) the conflict within the plot is not your typical run in the mill horror with the grotesque demons and terrifying zombies. It deals with fears, atmosphere, mood, creepiness that slowly burns your brain from the inside, however it is not in any way, stomach churning or gory.
The movie also spent a long time establishing a base or foundation for the rest of the movie laying out the story but the pace is not dragging. It's also a bit longer than your typical horror flick at 127 minutes or roughly two hours which will be a huge turn off for thrill seekers or adrenaline junkies.
Lastly, one of the main reasons that I noticed on why people are disappoointed is because they've been hyped up so much. It doesn't help that sites allover has been hyping the movie as this generation's "exorcist" and is a industry changer. With all the hype, comes audiences who have their guards up, barriers prepared to not be one of those crying movie goers as they go out.
I highly advise you watch this movie objectively, FRESH and free from bias, and most importantly, FREE from spoilers. So watch it while Facebook is still catching up with the memes and all. This truly for me is one for the ages, and is a very scary film, deserving of its praise wherever whenever. It may not be the best, or the scariest to some, it's horror done right.
Photo references:
https://www.vox.com/summer-movies/2018/6/1/17408988/hereditary-review-toni-collette-milly-shapiro