Hereditary - Movie Review

Spoiler Warning & Tone

The reviewer opens by warning that the rest of the video will include spoilers, then frames Hereditary as a slow-burn, arthouse-style horror/possession story where dread builds gradually rather than through jump scares.

Main Plot (Spoiler Recap)

• The family’s grandmother dies, and grief spreads through the household, creating an already-tense environment.
• As the family tries to cope, creepy, escalating supernatural events begin to take over.
• The horror culminates in the final stretch where the reviewer compares the ending’s structure to The Witch: the family is essentially wiped out, and the remaining figure is left with the “evil” outcome—the surviving youth is possessed, and evil wins.

Highlights & Standout Moments

• Toni Collette’s performance is the biggest praise point—described as intense, unsettling, and “a little crazy.” The reviewer hopes she remains in the Oscar conversation.
• The reviewer appreciates how the film plays with darkness and perception early on (not relying on classic jump scares), building unease through what you almost see.
• A major jaw-drop moment: during a nut allergy, the little girl sticks her head out a window and hits her head on a pole—treated as a shocking twist on what audiences expect from “creepy kid” horror setups.
• Another emphasized reaction: the son’s face being visibly frozen/numb—praised as effective acting.
• One beat the reviewer didn’t like: the son’s seance-scene crying felt like “fake cries,” creating an unwanted tonal disconnect.

Jokes & Personality Reactions

• The reviewer says they were never truly scared, despite the movie being disturbing—suggesting they might be “callous,” while others seem more affected.
• They argue that disturbing imagery doesn’t automatically equal fear, loosely comparing the experience to other disturbing films (like Hostel), mainly as a point about what counts as “scary.”
• There’s also self-aware humor about possibly giving the film too much credit without “blowing a load,” plus a joke that if you don’t watch it now you’ll see it in film class and get a quiz.

Overall Critique

• The reviewer says the movie is not predictable early, but becomes more predictable in the second half.
• They liked the film’s bold direction and willingness to go darker, but felt the ending was too absolute—not nuanced enough to leave ambiguity between:
  • a demon/occult interpretation, and
  • something like mental illness passed down genetically (the reviewer mentions schizophrenia as a common theory).
• They ultimately conclude Hereditary is a good time, recommend watching it (especially before it shows up in school), and frame it as a film worth seeing even if they didn’t love it as much as popular consensus.

Notable Personalities Mentioned

• Toni Collette
• James McAvoy (referenced for comparison—Split)