Scott Lyus takes the reins in directing Heretic (2023), an independent horror-thriller depicted in the British horror culture. The movie has received notice for its disturbing elements, dreadful atmosphere, and psychological storytelling, exploring the psyche of a woman by external and internal conflicts. Differentiating from the regular horror, Heretic: no narrative, for the sake of character development, and the bare minimum of the picture’s style’s focused towards fanning the fear and feeling of solitude in the audience.
Synopsis
The narrative revolves around the character Robyn, a young woman (Marcia Do Vales), of the village having multitudes of inhabitants in a rather distant culture. History embroidered with trauma and ambiguity deserves some distance, which is why she is cut off from people and tries to deal with the emotions herself. This unprocessed trauma can also be the reason behind the scenes in which Robyn is seeing strange images and waking up to night terrors two times a week. Yet these images have the right to existence, as they hint at something foreboding that may be actually in the woman’s reality.
When a stranger appears in the village, he starts behaving strangely and teaches the community possibly more extremist ideas. A perceptive Robyn tries to bury her head in the sand when it comes to the feelings that mingle with him, a slender state of mind and real danger. With the rise of tension throughout the village and fear creeping in, meanwhile Robyn is left with the double edged sword of having to fight her fears and accept the fact that visions could be more so than manifestations of her mental health issues. Now it becomes a struggle where internal and external horror focus on the same object which is the stranger or the menace that she was completely unprepared for on a physical and mental level.
Key Themes
Psychological Horror and Isolation – Robyn’s fear is shaped by her visions and impacts her quite a lot since the two go hand in hand in a sense. The film is able to create an interesting environment that is quite suspenseful as horror is portrayed within the mind than outside of it.
Faith, Fear and Manipulation – It also peeks into how manipulation can be exercised through fear, seeing that the weak communities are targeted by such methods. His stay in the village leaves somewhat of an impression on hope and control.
Mental health and Trauma – It is the violence as well as the defeat of Robyn that becomes a core of the tale, emphasizing stigma associated with mental health issues and the impact they have over a person’s life.
Style and Tone
For all the style, Heretic sticks to a minimalistic style that captures the growing helplessness felt throughout the film as the viewer watches Robyn’s emotional and psychological downfall. The film does not rely on excessive jump scares, but rather, suspense is instilled in layers that build up. Heretic’s cinematography is unsurprisingly beautiful yet dreadful due to the desaturated colors, empty landscapes of the countryside and well-crafted sound design.
Reception
Reviews of the Heretic have been favorable in the indie horror community, finding the film’s storytelling and pacing as deliberate in addition to dealing with nuances that can only be done in horror. Critics have argued that the film is slow particularly for a horror film but delving into a mental health narrative allows the movie to stand apart from slasher films.
Similar Recommendations
If you liked Heretic let alone the mix of psychological and supernatural elements in horror, you will love:
El film del 2019 ’Midsommar’ trata de un inquietante horror psicológico que gira en torno a una comunidad aislada y sus tematicas de tristeza, solitude y manipulación.
Por su parte el Heretic se distingue por el desarrollo de su historia y sus ambientes, a su vez, es única en su estilo de crear el horror interno y externo en el espectador, lo que hace que la película calce idealmente para los aficionados a rato de cine de horror o gore lento pero con contenido.
