Cancel Your Spin Class, Watching ‘Hereditary’ Is Basically Cardio

Do you feel like you haven’t been under enough stress lately? Has the soft lull of caffeine-fueled metropolitan living become underwhelming? Well luckily for you, Hereditary is here to make getting down to inbox zero feel like Sunday morning yoga (aka 21st century church). The tension is fucking insane. That’s 127 minutes of nearly shitting yourself, folks, if you’ll pardon my French — and I’m honestly not that easy to scare. Essentially if it’s a fright you’re looking for, Hereditary will give you a run for your money.

A24

Toni Collette delivers a spellbinding performance (OMG do I sound like a critic yet???) as Annie, a mother of two whose own mother’s death catalyses a bunch of fuckery. Her flaws and vulnerability lend the film a depth beyond just the tropes of the genre, i.e. spirits, possession, apparitions and gore, flying it high into psychological horror territory. Annie’s shortcomings as a mother are increasingly emphasised until she loses her husband’s and her children’s trust in her, as well as her own. And if you’ve seen any kind of horror movie before, you know that when the main characters are insecure and divided, shit’s about to hit the fan. Like the stuff that happens in this movie is so horrifying you probably wouldn’t even wish it on, like, Donald Trump. Although please do note the emphasis on “probably” because at this point that piece of shit kind of deserves it.

Despite the relative unpredictability that adds to its horror, Hereditary does resort to a host of clichés and the ending perhaps isn’t as satisfying as it could be, but overall it’s a solid use of your time. If you’ve got a masochistic streak, obvs.

8/10