Hereditaryis one of the best horror films in recent years. Its slow-burn approach effectively amps up the terror – starting as a devastating drama and a portrait of grief to an unexpected series of events that have you clawing at your seat. It’s an incredible watch, and one all horror fans should see at least once. For most, that one viewing is enough. But the true appreciation comes in a second viewing (or a third, or a fourth…). Once you know the outcome of the film, a second watch reveals the clever foreshadowing throughout, and hauntingly shows how the Graham family was doomed from the start.
RELATED:‘Hereditary’ and ‘Krampus’ Are the Same Movie (and Not Just Because of Toni Collette)
The Seal of Paimon
The seal of Paimon is introduced in the very beginning of the film, seen on a necklace worn by Annie (Toni Collette) and also by Ellen (Kathleen Chalfant), but that’s not the only time it shows up. It can be seen on the wall in Joan’s (Ann Dowd) apartment, on the cover of a book Annie finds in Ellen’s belongings, and most chillingly, it can be seen on the pole as Peter (Alex Wolff) and Charlie (Milly Shapiro) drive to the party.
The Decapitation
The most shocking moment inHereditaryis, of course, the moment in which Charlie is tragically decapitated, but it actually wasn’t an accident. In fact, it was hinted at multiple times — the first being when Charlie cut the head off of a dead bird. Of course, this could just be interpreted as Charlie being Charlie since she was introduced as a more offbeat character. But once the symbol on the pole is shown to us, it becomes very clear that nothing about Charlie’s fate was by chance.
The Séance
One of the titular moments in the film comes when Joan shows Annie how to perform a séance to connect with Charlie. But it’s actually mentioned earlier in the film. In a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, we see the Graham family’s mail pile up and a flyer advertising a séance comes through the mail slot. Of course, that attempt to reach Annie is unsuccessful and thus Joan approaches her directly, but it’s clever just how orchestrated everything was.
The Man From The Funeral
At the beginning of the film, when Charlie is standing at her grandmother’s casket, she looks up to find a man staring back at her — grinning. He’s quickly forgotten as the scene continues. It isn’t until the very end of the film that he makes a reappearance. Lingering in the shadows, and stark naked, he’s smiling eerily from the corner once again. Though this time it’s Peter he’s smiling at, and it’s a sinister hint at the character’s inevitable fate.
The Cultists
One of the most brilliant aspects ofHereditaryis its use of lighting, most notably how often it is used to hide things. A chilling example is a shot of the house after Steve’s (Gabriel Byrne) death. The shot flips from day to night and it’s so subtle it’s easy to miss but if you look closely you can see naked cultists surrounding the Graham houseand it’s all downhill from there.
The Chalkboard
Another brilliant tease that things aren’t as they seem is during the scene in which Joan flags down Annie in the craft store parking lot. During the scene, we can see what Joan has just purchased from the store: a chalkboard. Why is this significant? Because shortly thereafter is when she tells Annie about the séance and how she was able to talk to her grandson who is supposedly the owner of said chalkboard. It’s such a small detail and one that doesn’t raise any red flags, but if you caught it and were able to put two and two together, it’s a great way to show Joan’s true character before her ultimate reveal later on.
This one is very small but once again hints at how we shouldn’t trust Joan. While having tea with the woman, Annie spits out a small piece of herb. It’s strange and doesn’t seem like it has much meaning. That is until you remember the picture of Grandma Ellen feeding baby Charlie and note the same herb inside the bottle. So when Annie commented about how close Grandma and Charlie were she wasn’t kidding, but it was much more sinister than it appeared to be.
The Blackboard
All the conversations heard in Peter’s classroom have an eerie similarity to current events in the film, but most tellingly is the first classroom scene. If you look closely at the blackboard you’re able to see that it reads “Escaping Fate,” something that will ultimately be attempted by the Graham family but turns out to be futile.
As mentioned previously, light plays a huge part throughout the film, but it isn’t just used to hide things. Many times throughout the film there is a light beam that flits about, and it’s heavily implied that such beam is Paimon. It can be seen early on floating around Charlie’s room, drawing her attention to the window and ultimately leading her outside where the cultists have arranged Grandma Ellen’s corpse. It can also be seen in Peter’s school later in the film, taunting him. But the most brilliant use is when Annie is working on her miniatures and accidentally knocks over a bottle of paint. Only, it’s not her who knocks it over. She doesn’t even come close to touching the paint. If you rewatch the scene and look closely behind Annie you’re able to see the light beam flit into view just as Annie reaches for another bottle. It knocks over the one farthest from her, conveniently spilling it on the paper that has Joan’s number on it.
