Hey everyone, Slick Dungeon here. I know I am late to this party but I just watched Hereditary and I’ve got to say it’s one of the best horror films I’ve ever seen. There are going to be some spoilers in this review but I’ll try to keep them mild.

The film is about the Graham family. The family is mourning the loss of the eldest member of the family, Ellen. The film stars Toni Collette as Annie Graham. Gabriel Byrne plays Steve Graham who is married to Annie. Alex Wolfe plays Peter Graham, Annie’s 16 year old son. And rounding out the cast is Milly Shapiro who stars as Charlie Graham. Ann Dowd also has a sizable role as a woman named Joan who befriends Annie.

Any time I see Toni Collette is in a show or movie I know there will be at least one amazing performance. Hereditary has at least five of them. Toni Collette does most of the heavy lifting but the quiet portrayal by Gabriel Byrne, the descent into panic by Alex Wolfe, and the somewhat strange and mysterious performance by Milly Shapiro give the movie weight and build up the tone to perfection.

At the start of the movie, Annie has suffered a complicated loss. It starts at the funeral of her own mother who she clearly had a fraught relationship with. Charlie seems to have been the favored grandchild of Ellen. So Charlie is the only one who is truly missing Ellen.

Annie goes to a support group to understand her complicated feelings and find some community surrounding her mother’s death. At the same time, her relationship with her husband and children are strained. The reason for this becomes more clear later on in the film but the tension is palpable.

And then a sudden event makes things excessively worse for her and every member of her family.

The lead up to the horror here is definitely a slow burn. But once the horror hits, it is relentless. And it’s not just the horror of jump scares or some lunatic running around with a knife. It’s also the horror of tragedy, of mental illness, and of family members not believing or understanding what is happening.

While the film has won its share of awards, it’s nearly criminal this didn’t win any Oscars. It’s the kind of project where this being a horror film makes the nuance of the performance even more necessary.

And the film delivers an absolutely unforgettable ending. There are those who might say the ending is not earned but if you watch it a second time, everything for the ending is set up in the film early on. It’s great not just on a first watch but on a repeat watch.

The movie is not overly gory but there are moments of gore and these characters are dealing with real trauma. For that reason it gets intense. So if that is not for you, stay away from this one. But if you are looking for an absolutely great horror watch, Hereditary is perfect.

Hereditarily yours,

Slick Dungeon

P.S. Want another great film to watch? Check out I Saw the TV Glow.