“Hereditary” is the type of horror film that continues to linger in the back of your mind long after you have left the theater.

In his first feature-length film, writer/director Ari Aster has crafted a ghost story that brings hair on the back of your neck standing up-type chills. It’s an engaging tale of the supernatural anchored by a show-stopping performance from Toni Collette.

She plays Annie, who when the film opens is coming to terms with the death of her mother. Annie is trying to figure out how to grieve while also re-examining their rocky relationship that included a long stretch where the two were not on speaking terms.

The one member of the family who seems to be taking it the hardest is Annie’s daughter, Charlie (Milly Shapiro), who developed a bond with her grandmother before she passed.

In the days after the death of her mom, Annie starts to notice strange things happening around the house and that Charlie seems a little more distant.

“Hereditary” then takes a turn that is best not revealed here, but I will say it has a lasting impact on the entire family, which includes Annie’s husband, Steve (Gabriel Byrne), and their oldest son, Peter (Alex Wolff).

It’s this turn where the film really starts to explore some dark areas – not just supernatural elements, but how events can shatter a family almost instantaneously.

Aster astutely allows everything to simmer in an uncomfortable manner, with wide-angle camera shots creating distance between these characters and audiences that rival the distance developing in the relationships between these people.

Those relationships help ramp up the horror and suspense, which builds to a third act that perhaps overstays its welcome a little bit – but features several jump scares that need to be seen with the largest audience possible.

As the danger surrounding this family becomes more imminent, “Hereditary” becomes even more haunting. But it wouldn’t work without performances that make the audience care for the characters, and the cast makes sure that is the case – especially Collette.

It’s a rare case in this genre when you can say Collette’s performance is worthy of award consideration, but this is work worthy of that praise.

Her slow descent into madness makes “Hereditary” worth your time. It’s a special performance in a film that nearly transcends its genre. If only they could have gotten the final act a little tighter.

– To get Micheal Compton’s review of “The Seagull” visit his blog at bgdailynews.com/blogs/reel_to_reel or follow him on Twitter @mcompton428. Email him at mcompton@bgdailynews.com.

Starring: Toni Collette, Gabriel Byrne

Directed by: Ari Aster

Rating: R for horror violence, disturbing images, language, drug use and brief graphic nudity

Playing at: Regal Bowling Green Stadium 12, Regal Greenwood Mall Stadium 10, Highland Cinemas (Glasgow)

Grade: B