Hereditary(2018)
2018 · Ari Aster · 128 min
Following the death of the Leigh family matriarch, Annie and her children uncover disturbing secrets about their heritage. Their daily lives are not only impacted, but they also become entangled in a chilling fate from which they cannot escape, driving them to the brink of madness.
Horror · Mystery · Thriller
7.38.9k votes
TMDB score
5/5
Intensity
3/5
Gore
5/5
Stays with you
How scary is Hereditary?
Watching this feels like being slowly crushed by grief and dread that never lets up, with almost no jump scares to break the tension. The pace is patient and heavy, letting unease build through family conflict and strange details before things spiral into something much darker. It leans hard into psychological horror, with a sense of doom hanging over every scene rather than quick shocks. This is not a fun-scare movie for a party; it's for people who want to feel genuinely disturbed and shaken for days after.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, Hereditary rates psychological 5/5, visceral 3/5, gore 3/5, lingering effect 5/5, and overall intensity 5/5.
- Psychological: 5 of 5
- Visceral: 3 of 5
- Gore: 3 of 5
- Lingering: 5 of 5
- Intensity: 5 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 8 of 100 — leans Slow burn
Supernatural vs Real-world: 12 of 100 — leans Supernatural
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 92 of 100 — leans Disturbing
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A slow, dread-soaked build through grief and unease that erupts into a relentless, no-mercy final act.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 3, 3, 4, 5, 5, 5.
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