--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: 'Hereditary' is unabashedly a horror…" description: "\"'Hereditary' is unabashedly a horror film, whereas 'It Comes at Night' was a lot of things: it was a thriller; it was a postapocalyptic drama. It was a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88c/ari-aster-15271_dark_hereditary-is-unabashedly-a-horror-film_881721.jpg" --- # 'Hereditary' is unabashedly a horror film, whereas 'It… ![“'Hereditary' is unabashedly a horror film, whereas 'It Comes at Night' was a lot of things: it was a thriller; it was a postapocalyptic drama. It was a slow-building, very dark movie about relationships. 'Hereditary' is also about relationships, and I hope it functions as a vivid family drama, but…” quote by Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88c/ari-aster-15271_dark_hereditary-is-unabashedly-a-horror-film_881721.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88c/ari-aster-15271_dark_hereditary-is-unabashedly-a-horror-film_881721.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88c/ari-aster-15271_dark_hereditary-is-unabashedly-a-horror-film_881721.jpg) > “'Hereditary' is unabashedly a horror film, whereas 'It Comes at Night' was a lot of things: it was a thriller; it was a postapocalyptic drama. It was a slow-building, very dark movie about relationships. 'Hereditary' is also about relationships, and I hope it functions as a vivid family drama, but it is also very much a horror film.” [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Both movies explore family dynamics, but one leans fully into horror while the other blends genres. **In simple terms:** Family drama can be horror or thriller. Key Takeaway Recognize genre cues in storytelling. Themes family horror genre drama Mood thoughtful analytical Type critical interpretive When to use this quote - family - personal crises - creative projects Key Concepts psychology fear survival Questions to Reflect On - How does genre affect your emotional response? - What family themes resonate most with you? A Different Perspective Genre labels can limit interpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Drama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drama/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Family drama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family-drama/) [Hereditary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hereditary/) [Hereditary Relationships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hereditary-relationships-1059347/) [Hereditary Unabashedly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hereditary-unabashedly-901496/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Horror film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror-film/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Relationships Hereditary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relationships-hereditary-1059346/) ## Related quotes > ['Hereditary' is unabashedly a horror film. In a lot of ways, it's in dialogue with other horror films. But I do know that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/hereditary-is-unabashedly-a-horror-film-in-a-lot-of-ways-it-s-in/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [When I originally auditioned for 'Hereditary,' I didn't think I'd get it because everyone there was, like, three years younger than me and had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milly-shapiro/when-i-originally-auditioned-for-hereditary-i-didn-t-think-i-d-get-it/) [Milly Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milly-shapiro/) > [With 'Hereditary', I wanted to make a film about what bothers me about life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/with-hereditary-i-wanted-to-make-a-film-about-what-bothers-me-about/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [Every single moment in 'Hereditary' is linked to a moment in the end for the payoff. I think it has the ability of captivating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/every-single-moment-in-hereditary-is-linked-to-a-moment-in-the-end/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I can say that I put a lot of personal feelings into 'Hereditary', though I can also say that none of the characters in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-can-say-that-i-put-a-lot-of-personal-feelings-into-hereditary/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I know that I put a lot into 'Hereditary', and I'm proud of what it is. Beyond the fact that the film takes its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-know-that-i-put-a-lot-into-hereditary-and-i-m-proud-of-what-it-is/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [A great horror film works as a communal experience more than almost anything else, except for maybe a comedy. That's something that I've experienced,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/a-great-horror-film-works-as-a-communal-experience-more-than-almost/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [The next film I'm making is a horror film, and I'm making it with A24. It's a dark break-up movie that becomes a horror…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/the-next-film-i-m-making-is-a-horror-film-and-i-m-making-it-with-a24/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [These are films that I really love, but I would say I'm not somebody who runs out to every horror film. I avoid most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/these-are-films-that-i-really-love-but-i-would-say-i-m-not-somebody/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [In some ways, the audience becomes complacent when they go to a horror film. And so it's fun to take that attitude and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/in-some-ways-the-audience-becomes-complacent-when-they-go-to-a-horror/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I believe I understand anti-Semitism which is a very complex movement. I see it as a Jew, but without hatred or fear. I recognize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodor-herzl/i-believe-i-understand-anti-semitism-which-is-a-very-complex-movement/) [Theodor Herzl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodor-herzl/) > [“Seat thyself sultanically among the moons of Saturn, and take high abstracted man alone; and he seems a wonder, a grandeur, and a woe.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/seat-thyself-sultanically-among-the-moons-of-saturn-and-take-high/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [We stand a better chance with aristocracy, whether hereditary or elective, than with monarchy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-stiles/we-stand-a-better-chance-with-aristocracy-whether-hereditary-or/) [Ezra Stiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-stiles/) > [The major cause for American Negroes intellectual and social deficits is hereditary and racially genetic in origin and thus not remedial to a major…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shockley/the-major-cause-for-american-negroes-intellectual-and-social-deficits/) [William Shockley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shockley/) > [No one is born with good character; it's not a hereditary trait. And it isn't determined by a single noble act. Character is established…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-josephson/no-one-is-born-with-good-character-it-s-not-a-hereditary-trait-and-it/) [Michael Josephson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-josephson/) ## More by Ari Aster > ['Hereditary' is unabashedly a horror film. In a lot of ways, it's in dialogue with other horror films. But I do know that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/hereditary-is-unabashedly-a-horror-film-in-a-lot-of-ways-it-s-in/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [My films typically veer towards the darker side, and I enjoy turning things on the audience. I really enjoy working in genre because people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/my-films-typically-veer-towards-the-darker-side-and-i-enjoy-turning/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I have more fun talking about other movies than talking about my own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-have-more-fun-talking-about-other-movies-than-talking-about-my-own/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [The joy of making a genre film is that you have audiences in that place, and it's a perfect place to start because all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/the-joy-of-making-a-genre-film-is-that-you-have-audiences-in-that/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I love the horror genre. I consider myself a genre filmmaker. I love genre, but I think there's a certain amount of complacency that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-love-the-horror-genre-i-consider-myself-a-genre-filmmaker-i-love/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I enjoy turning things on the audience. I really like working in genre because people come into the films with certain expectations. They know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-enjoy-turning-things-on-the-audience-i-really-like-working-in-genre/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [The nice thing about a horror movie is that people go in looking to be unsettled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/the-nice-thing-about-a-horror-movie-is-that-people-go-in-looking-to/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I graduated from the American Film Institute in 2010, where I studied as a director, and came out with a few features I really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-graduated-from-the-american-film-institute-in-2010-where-i-studied/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I don't necessarily consider myself a horror filmmaker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-don-t-necessarily-consider-myself-a-horror-filmmaker/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I found that the things I am afraid of most are things for which there are no obvious remedies. Like, what do you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-found-that-the-things-i-am-afraid-of-most-are-things-for-which/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [One reason I think I am able to work with such dark material is the fact I was never really discouraged from making this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/one-reason-i-think-i-am-able-to-work-with-such-dark-material-is-the/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [Most horror films are made very cynically, and they're usually made by studios for an audience that they know is there, no matter what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/most-horror-films-are-made-very-cynically-and-they-re-usually-made-by/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [Sometimes you want pain to be acknowledged and not whitewashed - or erased by some exceptionalist point of view.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/sometimes-you-want-pain-to-be-acknowledged-and-not-whitewashed-or/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I like to play with transgression and upending conventions, and I like the idea of rooting genre films in character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-like-to-play-with-transgression-and-upending-conventions-and-i-like/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) > [I know that I put a lot into 'Hereditary', and I'm proud of what it is. Beyond the fact that the film takes its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-aster/i-know-that-i-put-a-lot-into-hereditary-and-i-m-proud-of-what-it-is/) [Ari Aster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) [Explore all 43 Ari Aster quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-aster/) ## More Dark quotes > [Crony capitalism is essentially a condition in which... public officials are giving favours to people in the private sector in payment of political favours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/crony-capitalism-is-essentially-a-condition-in-which-public-officials/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [“I could see her will leaving and death seeping through her skin to skewer her soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-stroube/i-could-see-her-will-leaving-and-death-seeping-through-her-skin-to/) [J.D. Stroube](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-stroube/) > [The soul wanders in the dark, until it finds love. And so, wherever our love goes, there we find our soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-zimmerman/the-soul-wanders-in-the-dark-until-it-finds-love-and-so-wherever-our/) [Mary Zimmerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-zimmerman/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [All comedy comes from a dark place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katt-williams/all-comedy-comes-from-a-dark-place/) [Katt Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katt-williams/) > [It's a really dark, emotionally wrenching world that we've created on 'The Walking Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-holden/it-s-a-really-dark-emotionally-wrenching-world-that-we-ve-created-on/) [Laurie Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-holden/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“Once upon a time, there was a naïve and innocent girl who thought she could tame the beast and live happily ever after. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/once-upon-a-time-there-was-a-na-ve-and-innocent-girl-who-thought-she/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) > [Memory revises me. Even now a letter comes from a place I don’t know, from someone with my name and postmarked years ago, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-young-lee/memory-revises-me-even-now-a-letter-comes-from-a-place-i-don-t-know/) [Li-Young Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-young-lee/) > [Like the water of a deep stream, love is always too much. We did not make it. Though we drink till we burst, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/like-the-water-of-a-deep-stream-love-is-always-too-much-we-did-not/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [Let death bless me with you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-death-bless-me-with-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“what do you call/that space between the dark geographies of sex?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-trethaway/what-do-you-call-that-space-between-the-dark-geographies-of-sex/) [Natasha Trethaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-trethaway/) > [Twinking tears in a sea of black. Soft light in a world of darkness. Tiny wishes in a place of dreams. Do you see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-gentile/twinking-tears-in-a-sea-of-black-soft-light-in-a-world-of-darkness/) [Nicole Gentile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-gentile/) > [Even in the dark your shadow is like a guide to me! you are my rising sun that brings forth hope just as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nkemjika-linus/even-in-the-dark-your-shadow-is-like-a-guide-to-me-you-are-my-rising/) [Nkemjika Linus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nkemjika-linus/) [Browse all 10,198 Dark quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "'Hereditary' is unabashedly a horror film, whereas 'It Comes at Night' was a lot of things: it was a thriller; it was a postapocalyptic drama. It was a slow-building, very dark movie about relationships. 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