Hereditary

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

A24 seems to be on a roll these days.

"Hereditary—which stars Toni Collette as a woman dealing with her young family's demons, both literally and figuratively—was praised as "a new generation's The Exorcist" by Time Out and "the most exciting movie" at Sundance by Variety. AV Club already dubbed it a top contender for scariest movie of the year. "

More here (lots of hype).

[JoeS Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close JoeS]

HEREDITARY (2018)

Ari Aster's Directorial debut is an intense, disquieting horror thriller. It commences mainly as straightforward drama with its tale of a dysfunctional family with creepy elements folded in slowly. The death of family matriarch Ellen sets off the chain of events. At the funeral, we are introduced to her daughter Annie (Toni Collette) and her husband Steve (Gabriel Byrne) and children, daughter Charlie (Milly Shapiro) and son Peter (Alex Wolff).

The movie builds slowly and steadily, becoming an uncomfortably grueling exercise in family dysfunction. Two specific incidents spark a turn in the story towards horror, one internal, the other external. Even then, Director Aster ratchets up the horror elements at a deliberate pace. Once the machinations get truly revealed is where the story problems coalesce. The build up winds the viewer into knots, but the payoff gets progressively less and less interesting.

I hate to be equivocal, but HERIDITARY is that kind of movie. General audiences who infamously gave the movie a D+ Cinemascore opening night will likely have already emotionally bailed on the movie by the last act, but, even those who hung in there will likely be split by how the movie resolves.

Not equivocal is Collette's performance. A performance so good that it lingers even when the movie is, unfortunately, taken largely out of her character's control. Too many coincidences and outside forces have to intervene to drive the plot (not to mention an incredulous lack of interest by the cops and social services). Still, Collette is so strong, she binds the movie even as it spins towards some dubious places. The rest of the cast is fine, including Ann Dowd as a woman Annie meets during a grief counseling session. The audio mix and music provide an atmospheric backdrop. The photography, while well lit and framed, isn't as impressive in its digital rendering (and the less said about the CGI flames, the better). Aster uses a lot of Doll House imagery (Annie is an artist who specializes in that form), but it never truly pays off (again here, some of the Digital photography makes even some of the 'real' settings look like CGI fakery - intentionally or not).

In the end, HERIDITARY is a mixed bag. Undoubtedly disturbing on one hand, but, losing control of its narrative on the other. Without delving into spoilers, I will just say that the plot machinations should have remained steadfastly 'All In The Family'. In other words, it should have adhered closely to its very title.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Some news on the Blu-ray - it'll have a bunch of deleted scenes but not the entire original 3 hour cut.

http://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3...ll-3-hour-cut/

[Randy G Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Randy G]

I really want to see this. Hope it will play a local theatre, the big screen is still the best way to watch a horror film.

[JoeS Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close JoeS]

I really want to see this. Hope it will play a local theatre, the big screen is still the best way to watch a horror film.

It's in 3,000 theaters. That's about as wide a release as one could expect for a horror film.

[Randy G Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Randy G]

Good to hear. Not playing yet here but hopefully soon.

[cinemacide Member Find all posts View Profile Close cinemacide]

I recommend a big screen with in a new theater that doesn't skimp on the bulb. Lot's of darkness and photographic subtleties. It sticks with you for sure, and it is effective, but it's not a jump-scare atrocity that most people expect nowadays like IT.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Press release!



The Terrifying Psychological Thriller Arrives on

4K Ultra HDâ„¢ Combo Pack, Blu-rayâ„¢ Combo Pack, and DVD on September 4 from Lionsgate

SANTA MONICA, CA (July 16, 2018) - A family's darkest secrets surface when Hereditary arrives on 4K Ultra HD™ Combo Pack (plus Blu-ray and Digital), Blu-ray™ Combo Pack (plus DVD and Digital), and DVD September 4 from Lionsgate. Academy Award® nominee Toni Collette “is raw, almost feral, making us feel in our marrow what it's like to be a mother losing control of her family and maybe her mind” (Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly) in this riveting film from writer-director Ari Aster (Munchausen, The Strange Thing About the Johnsons) about a grieving family haunted by tragic and disturbing events. From the producers of The Witch and Split, Hereditary is being lauded as “a new horror classic” by the Los Angeles Times and as “this generation's The Exorcist” by Time Out New York. The Rotten Tomatoes Certified Fresh™ horror film also stars Alex Wolff (Patriot's Day, My Friend Dahmer), newcomer Milly Shapiro, Ann Dowd (TV's “The Handmaid's Tale”), and Gabriel Byrne (The Man in the Iron Mask, TV's “Vikings”).

When Ellen, the matriarch of the Graham family, passes away, her daughter's family begins to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about their ancestry. The more they discover, the more they find themselves trying to outrun the sinister fate they seem to have inherited. Making his feature debut, writer-director Ari Aster unleashes a nightmare vision of a domestic breakdown that exhibits the craft and precision of a nascent auteur, transforming a familial tragedy into something ominous and deeply disquieting, and pushing the horror movie into chilling new terrain with its shattering portrait of heritage gone to hell.

Take home Hereditary and go behind the scenes with the cast and crew in a featurette exclusive to the home entertainment release, offering a revealing account of what it took to create this harrowing tale. Also included in the home entertainment release are nine never-before-seen deleted scenes and an “Evil in Miniature” photo gallery. Experience four times the resolution of full HD with 4K along with Dolby Vision™ HDR, which brings entertainment to life through ultravivid picture quality. When compared to a standard picture, Dolby Vision can deliver spectacular colors never before seen on a screen, highlights that are up to 40 times brighter, and blacks that are 10 times darker. The Hereditary 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack, Blu-ray Combo Pack, and DVD will be available for the suggested retail price of $42.99, $39.99, and $29.95, respectively.

4K UHD / BLU-RAY / DVD SPECIAL FEATURES
·Deleted Scenes
·“Cursed: The True Nature of Hereditary” Featurette
·“Evil in Miniature” Photo Gallery

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HereditaryMovie/
Instagram: @hereditarymovie
Twitter: @HereditaryMovie
#Hereditary

PROGRAM INFORMATION
Year of Production: 2018

Title Copyright: Hereditary © 2018 Hereditary Film Productions, LLC and A24 Distribution, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Artwork & Supplementary Materials © 2018 Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Type: Theatrical Release
Rating: R for horror violence, disturbing images, language, drug use and brief graphic nudity
Genre: Horror
Closed-Captioned: N/A
Subtitles: Spanish, English SDH
Feature Run Time: 127 Minutes
4K Ultra HDâ„¢ Format: 2160p Ultra High Definition 16x9 Widescreen 2.00:1 Presentation with Dolby Vision
BD Format: 1080p High Definition 16x9 Widescreen 2.00:1 Presentation
DVD Format: 16x9 Widescreen 2.00:1 Presentation
4K Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master AudioTM
BD Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master AudioTM
DVD Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Audioâ„¢

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Watched this the other day, and it builds wonderfully only to deliver a pay off I can describe as 'meh.' Such a GREAT first half, it really ties you in knots as we see what the family goes through, and some wonderfully subtle clues laid out but that ending, it just didn't do it for me. I liked everything up to that point and the performances were very strong. Collette understandably gets most of the buzz here but Byrne is really good too. I agree with Joe that the digital photography is very obviously that - digital. But it's a handsome film and for a first time effort, impressive in a lot of ways, even if it isn't perfect.