New A24 movie infidel It begins with a scare familiar to modern audiences: a knock on the door from two missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. However, before reaching the door of the mysterious Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant), the audience gets to know a little about young Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East), young women who care about their faith but not obsessively; As they ride their bikes around town, they gossip and joke about how handsome their future husbands might be.

So while the average citizen might be afraid to come knocking, Barnes and Paxton seem like good eggs who have evolved enough to set themselves apart from each other. It’s clear that Mr. Reed is the villain of this insightful thriller, which aims to explore the concept of religion from a whole new angle, while also engaging in some classic locked house horror tropes, keeping the tension at the razor’s edge. by writer/directors Scott Beck And Bryan Woods (A Quiet Place, 65).

It’s no surprise that Grant is the bad guy, because Grant is deeply involved. what he called the “freak show era” plays screwball comedy characters and terrorizes poor Ben Whishaw against multiple projects. Because in this scenario, Grant does not portray a post-apocalyptic cannibal as in the movie. Cloud AtlasThere is a temptation to suggest that Mr. Reed represents a slightly more docile role.

But that would be wrong. Mr. Reed always conducts himself with a certain civility; This well-honed British stance serves Grant well in the context. And although his house is creepy, he is a charismatic man at first sight. He proves to be quite believable in the context that they will believe him when he says his wife is home – she doesn’t enjoy company (and whether Mr. Reed is actually lying about this becomes a pretty important part of the plot). But both Barnes and Paxton, naive as they are, eventually know that something is wrong. wrong; Even if they had a little more awareness of the world, they probably wouldn’t have been able to break into Mr. Reed’s house on their own.

At this particular moment in history, it’s probably worth issuing a trigger warning for the fact that this is a movie in which two young women are tortured by an old man who literally locks them in his house and makes them listen to his long-winded rants. about religion. And that’s not even part of it infidel This is supposed to be truly terrifying – it’s just appetizers. The main course then occurs when the girls are offered the chance to escape… although it’s unclear how realistic this offer is.

The secrets that Mr. Reed and his house keep contribute to an unnerving tone that helps heighten the film’s horror; Mr. Reed even monologues about how the evolution of certain board games mirrors the evolution of world religions. We also added a Jar Jar Binks impression to the mix. Beck and Woods manage to keep this trio very lively despite the intense script and have a real knack for capturing the necessary atmosphere.

It would be one thing if suffering from Mr. Reed’s torture led to greater catharsis, but instead infidel He takes great pleasure in tearing apart the sacred cows of religion, including directly attacking the faith of his heroes. Mr. Reed’s intention is to tear these women down and rebuild them, and the journey is so fundamentally bad that, especially toward the end, any resulting enlightenment feels tainted.

Grant’s inspired performance makes this film remarkable. But wait to leave infidel perhaps with less faith in humanity than you already have. (Where your levels start is another question entirely.)

infidel In cinemas starting Friday, November 8. Check out the trailer below.