‘Bring Her Back’ Mines Grief and Dread for a Masterful Horror Outing [Review]

Danny and Michael Philippou stunned audiences with their tense supernatural horror tale Talk To Me. It’s a frightening exploration of grief and warning against conjuring forces beyond your control. The Philippou brothers have returned with Bring Her Back, a very different exploration of grief’s terrible consequences. Written simultaneously to Talk To Me, the film is a stunning follow-up that feels fresh, explores emotions skillfully, and builds a creeping sense of dread companioned by exceptional performances and memorable body horror. It’s a masterful outing from the Philippou brothers, and easily one of the year’s best horror outings.

In Bring Her Back, newly orphaned step-siblings Andy (Billy Barrat) and Piper (Sora Wong) are requested by hopeful foster mom Laura (Sally Hawkins), or rather, Piper is. It’s clear that the nice but eccentric Laura, whose own daughter drowned in the mother’s pool, wanted Piper specifically, but the duo are inseparable. Also in her care is Ollie (Jonah Wren Phillips), an emaciated boy who seems famished and won’t speak. Laura treats Piper with laser focus and perpetual kindness, but unnerving details catch Andy’s suspicions. As it turns out, Laura has a dark supernatural secret that threatens Andy and Piper with grave implications.

Bring Her Back Is A Stunning, Claustrophobic Character Study

At the heart of Bring Her Back is a set of exceptional performances. Newcomer Sora Wong is exceptional, bringing both warmth and toughness to the role. Billy Barrat is similarly solid throughout as the edgy but protective brother Andy, and he has a strong sibling-esque chemistry with Wong that adds to our perception of the stakes. Sally Hawkins steals the show, however, with her layered, pained, eccentric portrayal of Laura. She’s sweet and menacing in equal measure as the film goes along, and Hawkins lands both unsettling subtleties and the bigger scenery-chewing moments with aplomb. She’s excellent. Additional credit goes to Jonah Wren Phillips, who delivers a shockingly good performance despite little dialogue.

It’s a beautifully shot film whose smart cinematography, courtesy of DP Aaron McLisky, allows the home and its surroundings to feel claustrophobic but not monotonous. As the film proceeds, cleverly arranged shots bring otherworldly forces into greater focus, and a home-movie-style ritual video (watched by Laura at moments) is grimy and shocking. The production design of the home itself works well, creating an isolated space that feels both inviting and menacing. The tight technical prowess that the Philippou brothers showed in Talk To Me is on full display here, backing a script that burns slow but never boring, and which grounds character choices in real and comprehensible emotion.

‘Bring Her Back’ Is A Harrowing, Emotional Sophomore Horror Outing

It’s worth noting that, while Bring Her Back is slower in pace than Talk To Me it is by no means slow, with a carefully built sense of foreboding. There are also stomach-turning moments of body horror with exceptional use of makeup and special effects. The effects work is extremely realistic and well executed, leading to extremely difficult-to-watch moments that should satisfy the pickiest of gorehounds. It’s complemented by a palpable sense of emotional suffering that makes the situation feel all the more desperate, both for the besieged protagonists and the antagonist at the film’s center.

Altogether, Bring Her Back is a horror story of a slightly different flavor from Talk To Me, and yet it’s a welcome one. It’s an immersive, confined horror tale that builds suspense and claustrophobia skillfully, making the situation feel all the more helpless for the trapped children. There is an interesting sense of mystery throughout, and it successfully builds dread to keep it engaging. Bring Her Back feels fresh and stays with you, showing that the skillful scares of Talk To Me were no fluke for the Philippou brothers, and the future of horror is as bright as it is terrifying.

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