Heretic (2024)

Hugh Grant's late career renaissance continues in this religious psychological thriller (it's not an out and out horror as the trailers would have you think), as a man who plays host to two Mormon missionaries of an evening in his remote abode.

Mr Reed (Grant) has requested more information about Mormon culture as he continues in his never-ending quest to find which is the 'one true faith', and the two missionaries who are sent to his house, Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton (an excellent Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East) are more than happy to oblige him.

Unsurprisingly all is not as it seems- it turns out Reed has more interest in quizzing the girls about their own religious beliefs; absorbingly interrogating them about why they believe what they believe and questioning them on potential historical hypocrisies within their religion. The Sisters tell Reed they have to have a woman present in the room to allow them to enter, so Reed insists they come on in while he fetches his wife who is apparently making pie in the kitchen.

We all know immediately of course that there is no wife in the house- certainly not in the traditional sense of the word anyway, and there's an obvious atmosphere of sustained menace from the second the girls arrive on Reed's doorstep. Questioning religion in the vague form of horror cinema is far from an original cinematic experience but Heretic uses Grant to his absolute maximum, blending moments of genuine comedy with psychological intrigue to deliver a veritably interesting film that cross-examines religion in thoroughly riveting fashion.

Grant has an absolute blast, and it feels like it's a very, very long time since we've seen him in anything other than an out and out comedy (Extreme Measures [1996] anyone?) and he's nothing short of superb here; funny, unhinged but ultimately engrossing in his probing of the two Sisters' way of thinking- the scene where he makes a point about 'originals' and 'copies' using various board games and music (namely The Hollies and Radiohead) is enthralling as well as entertaining.

There are shades of the Saw franchise in the film's final third and although the ending is a slight mis-step in bowing down to generic horror traits (frustrating when this clearly isn't an out and out horror) Heretic is much better film than any of that franchise (bar maybe the original Saw film), and is undoubtedly one of the best Halloween releases this year.

Grant continues to extend this glorious latter day career extension, and it wouldn't be a total surprise if he pops up in the Bafta nominations come February for this gleefully delightful display of macabre menace. 7.5/10