My 5 ex-mormon takeaways from the movie Heretic
1. I have heard it said that this movie could inspire copycat crimes - bad people exploiting the soft-boundaries + naïveté of mormons combined with the inherent danger of a mormon mission.
I am glad it’s shining a light on this obvious danger. Growing up I heard horror stories from returned missionaries including my brother being kidnapped at gun-point by a guerrilla faction in Columbia. These stories were told as faith-promoting bragging rights. Danger is baked into the experience. If you survive it’s proof that the church IS true.
18 & 19 year-olds who are heavily shielded from the dangers of the world and groomed to have no boundaries are being sent out by an org. That has no investment in their safety. Danger & horror are more faith-promoting - and proven to anchor in the next generation of cult apologists. Perhaps the narrative of this film will inspire caution from those whom the danger might harm - missionaries.
2. Speaking of grooming… this movie is a pitch-perfect example of how easy it is for predators to exploit those who are groomed institutionally to give their power away. Predators move through the world with their eyes wide open. They see a world full of women who will deny their own knowing to keep up a polite pretense - to keep sweet. In mormonism women are particularly groomed in this manor - to be masters at keeping the peace and comfort of others above our own. Fawn for your life.
3. The conclusion(spoiler) that Mr. Reed attempts to make is “Control is the only true religion”. But he isn’t the master of control he imagines himself as. If he were he wouldn’t need cages. In truth he’s far less a predator than religions who have kept women locked in mental cages fawning & subservient for 1000’s of years. He’s just as dishonest and pretentious though, claiming some higher moral ground but really getting off on feeling superior to those with a heart open enough to be fooled.
4. The depiction of mormons was quite realistic, probably one of the most realistic I’ve seen in non-mormon produced media. (Spoiler) These women are naive and innocent victims shown in a nuanced way, the depth of their blind devotion to their faith isn’t even challenged in the way that the bad guy intends. Mr. Reed is poignantly showing them that they are already someone else’s victims, which makes them perfect prey for him, but that message is lost in the fact that he’s a cold-blooded murderer
5. The only change I would make is the last scene where she pulls out her phone. I said to my wife “I bet she calls the elders” and my wife said “no way! she’d call the police” and I said “You don’t know mormons if you think she’d call to police first”.
They don’t show who she calls, but it would have been peak mormonism to call the elders (thereby triggering a chain of events resulting in PR keeping mormonism out of the reports). Exposing a whole other layer of control the mormon church has.
In conclusion, I enjoyed this film because it felt so close to home and highlighted my growth as an ex-mormon who has been deconstructing and taking back my power. I can see the old me in these women and by contrast the new me comes into sharper focus. Mr. Reed might not have been effective in showing the girls exactly how their religion had groomed them to be victims, but perhaps the larger narrative will help women to see how they have been groomed to play nice, be sweet, keep the peace etc.
Jen Allyson