Hugh Grant in Heretic (A24)

In Scott Beck and Bryan Woods’s talky cat-and-mouse thriller, missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints go door-to-door in a small town (license plates suggest Colorado, though the film was shot in British Columbia) and unfortunately find themselves in a sinister situation that tests their faith and endangers their lives. From the start, Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East) are charming, sympathetic, and funny. (In the opening, they earnestly discuss Magnum condoms.) Sister Barnes is the steelier, more experienced of the two, while Paxton, sweet and naïve, is determined to find her first convert.

As a storm begins, they arrive at the steps of a charming, cozy-looking home surrounded by lush, leafy green trees. Its owner, the batty, outwardly affable Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant, in an unnerving performance), invites them inside. The women, unable to be alone in a room with a man, ask for his wife to join them. He tells them she’s making a blueberry pie and will be right there, but it doesn’t sound like anyone is in the next room. (At my Alamo Drafthouse screening, in a charming William Castle–like gimmick, a blueberry aroma was pumped into the theater, and slices of blueberry pie were served.) By now, most people would leave, but there’s something about the politeness and decorum of the two missionaries that keeps them there, giving Mr. Reed a sense of sinister control. Once they are led into his lavish study, the two are lectured about religion and given a chance to escape the locked house through the door of “belief” or “disbelief.”

Mr. Reed’s theological lecture is long-winded, with pop culture references to Radiohead, Jar Jar Binks, and Monopoly. It’s reminiscent of a college dorm room conversation where someone rambles on too long about an existential subject. I couldn’t tell if Beck and Woods’s script was presenting his ideas as ingenious or as mere prattle, or perhaps a bit of both. It’s odd too because everything Mr. Reed says and has set up in his home seems tailor-made for this situation. (How long has he been waiting for the perfect missionaries to mansplain to, and have there been others?) Grant, still known to most as a romantic comedy cad or period drama intellectual, is foreboding and unsettling here, quickly weaving a disturbing villain while occasionally dropping a line in a suddenly charming, humorous manner. Early on, I was already patiently waiting for the women to outsmart him, before the movie takes a The Silence of the Lambs/Barbarian–inspired basement horror swerve—making the film a frustrating sit.

Despite the static locations, the sets are well dressed and realized by production designer Philip Messina. The brown wood paneling and shelves of Reed’s home are reminiscent of the look and feel of another chatty, claustrophobic suspense tale: Sidney Lumet’s 1982 film adaptation of Deathtrap. Chung-hoon Chung’s cinematography (a frequent collaborator with Park Chan-wook) creates a tense, enveloping atmosphere with its occasional close-ups of hands and sweat beads. Outside of Mr. Reed’s house, the film captures a bizarre and visually appealing array of weather: from a sunny day to a rainy early evening to a blizzardy, snowy night (all set against those lush, green landscapes).

Grant’s against-type performance will no doubt get the most attention, but East is truly the standout here. Hilarious in Steven Spielberg’s The Fabelmans as an ultra-enthusiastic Christian girlfriend, she was also a scene-stealer, seeming more organic and unbridled than the rest of the studied ensemble. Her character’s journey in Heretic is a queasy, miserable, harrowing one, but East grounds the narrative with her authentic performance. Those who enjoy horror and find Reed’s meditations on religion and faith intriguing will be satisfied, but horror fans who find his monologues trite and overlong may find this film harder to endure, despite its strong craftsmanship and performances.