Hereditary movie review round-up – What did the critics say?

In 2018, supernatural horror movie, Hereditary arrived in UK cinemas. The film – directed by Ari Aster – starred Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, and Gabriel Byrne and focused on a small family, targeted by a demonic cult.

If you’re a fan of horror movies, you will know that since its release, Hereditary has built up a strong cult following and is often praised as a standout piece of modern horror. But what was the general perception when the film first hit cinemas? Did critics like it?

In this post, I rewind the clock to summer 2018 to take a look back at the critical opinion of Hereditary. Utilising snippets from old reviews, I can showcase whether or not the critics thought this film was a classic in the making.

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Hereditary review round-up: What the critics said in 2018

Below are a selection of review snippets about Hereditary. All of these snippets are taken from reviews that were published during the film’s theatrical run.

• Peter Bradshaw of the Guardian was very impressed with the movie and awarded Hereditary five stars (out of five). He said: “Hereditary is basically a brilliant machine for scaring us, and (Toni) Collette’s operatic, hypnotic performance seals the deal every second she’s on the screen.”
• Ryan Scott of MovieWeb was also a fan of Hereditary and said: “This will seriously mess you up.” He added: “If you’re at all interested in seeing Hereditary for yourself, don’t watch a trailer. Don’t do anything other than go to a theater and experience this for yourself. A24 and Ari Aster have cooked up something that is, above all else, a memorable and horrifying experience.”

• More praise for Hereditary came from Alissa Wilkinson of Vox, who called the movie “the terrifying arthouse horror film of the year” and awarded the movie four-and-a-half stars (out of five). She said: “It is one wild, wild movie.”
• A.A. Dowd of AV Club called Hereditary “the most traumatically terrifying horror movie in ages.” He added: “Like some of the best horror, Hereditary claws at deeper anxieties; it’s a serious, adult psychological study that also happens to double as impeccably crafted haunted-house ‘entertainment.'”

• And finally, Clarisse Loughrey of the Independent, called Hereditary a “film not here to play back your own worst nightmare in front of your eyes, but to render a feature-length iteration of the paranormal experience.”

So, as you can see, the critical reception to Hereditary was extremely positive. Critics were all in agreement that this was a standout piece and one to keep an eye on.

Personally, I think Hereditary is an excellent movie which gets better with each viewing. It now sits firmly within my list of top ten horror movies.

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I hope this information about Hereditary has proved useful. If you have still not watched the movie yet, but you consider yourself somewhat of a horror buff, now could be the time to give it a go.

And should you wish to know more about other horror movie series, please check out one of the recommended reads below.

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