‘Bring Her Back’ Movie Review: Sally Hawkins Is Terrifying in Philippou Brothers’ Disturbing Horror Drama About Grief and Loss (LatestLY Exclusive)

Bring Her Back Movie Review: Bring Her Back is the latest horror film from directors Danny and Michael Philippou, the former YouTubers who made a stunning splash with their debut, Talk to Me, one of 2023's best horror hits. If you loved their first film, here's the good news: Bring Her Back is equally creepy, equally queasy, and every bit as good. 'Bring Her Back': Makers Drops Terrifying Trailer for New Horror Movie.

The film feels influenced by the Grimm brothers' tale of Hansel and Gretel, with two siblings trapped in the gingerbread house of a seemingly friendly witch who wants to consume them. But the Philippous add a devastating twist: what if not only the siblings are dealing with the grief of losing a parent, but the witch is also consumed by the grief of her own loss?

'Bring Her Back' Movie Review - The Plot

After their father dies suddenly in the shower, teenager Andy (Billy Barratt) and his younger, visually impaired stepsister Piper (Sora Wong) are placed in foster care. With Andy just three months shy of being old enough to become Piper's legal guardian, they are sent to live with Laura (Sally Hawkins), a former counsellor.

Watch the Trailer of 'Bring Her Back':

While Laura is overly eager to care for Piper, whom she says reminds her of her dead daughter, Cathy, Andy senses something is off immediately. This feeling is compounded by the presence of another foster child, the mute and strangely behaved Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips).

'Bring Her Back' Movie Review - Unnerving Psychological Horror

If Andy feels something eerie about Laura's house, that is precisely the same sensation we experience as viewers from the very start of Bring Her Back. The film opens with disjointed VHS visuals featuring deeply creepy and largely unexplained imagery. It soon jumps into the lives of the protagonist siblings, though we are given little time to appreciate their heartwarming bond before a shocking jolt: the grisly demise of their father, shown lying naked in the shower with pus emanating from his mouth.

This deeply disturbing scene is revisited several times throughout the film, including a squeamish moment where Andy attempts mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. While shocking, the scene is integral to the film's core theme - that trauma and grief are its most potent horrors. This applies to Andy's guilt and shame over his father’s abusive behaviour towards him, as well as to Laura's all-consuming grief over losing her daughter, which transforms her into a desperate and monstrous mother.

'Bring Her Back' Movie Review - Quite Disturbing

This is not to say the film is devoid of conventional spooky elements; many of these centre around the creepy and mysterious Oliver, whose muteness hides a tragic backstory. There are several icky scenes involving blood, gore, and other bodily fluids, but the psychological horror is far more disturbing. It is clear Laura is not keen on having Andy in her house, nor does she want him to become Piper’s guardian in a few months. The methods she employs to sabotage his mental state are deeply unsettling. Her initial ‘normal’ techniques - including one involving urine - are so distressing that her later turn to the occult can feel unnecessary, though it does little to diminish the scene's eeriness. ‘Weapons’ Movie Review: Zach Cregger Delivers 2025’s Definitive Horror Masterpiece.

I appreciate how Bring Her Back avoids traditional jump scares. Every moment the siblings spend in Laura's house feels unsafe, as we wait to discover what this overly cheery woman has in store for them. When Cathy's story is revealed, we get a hint of where the film is headed. Yet, to the credit of the Philippous' storytelling, this predictability never becomes a weakness, as you remain utterly unsure of what bizarre and squeamish twist awaits next. The soundscape works quietly but relentlessly, slipping into your subconscious to amplify the dread without ever needing to announce itself. This is horror born of precision, not gimmickry.

When the film does lean into brutality, particularly in the third act, it does so with a calculated hand. The gore is not constant, but when it appears, it is sharp, stomach-turning, and impossible to shake. There is nothing cartoonish about it (unlike, say, Weapons)—the violence feels uncomfortably real, designed to horrify rather than entertain, and it makes you want to look away. I did during several scenes, particularly those involving Oliver (the makeup team deserves special praise). A one-take drowning scene is so brutish and shocking that its subsequent comeuppance feels almost unfulfilling.

Bring Her Back is also not particularly keen on clarifying its own lore; several questions are left unanswered, and not necessarily in a way that encourages fan theory. This might leave some viewers unsatisfied. However, if you view the film through the wider lens of its exploration of grief, guilt, and trauma, it proves to be a satisfying - if highly unnerving - watch.

'Bring Her Back' Movie Review - Good Performances

With only four principal characters to focus on, each is given room to leave an indelible mark. The standout is undoubtedly Sally Hawkins as Laura, who, alongside Aunt Gladys from Weapons, ranks among the most terrifying horror villains of the year (with Sinners' Remmick a close contender). What makes Laura so terrifying is that the film uses her pain and anguish as a bereaved mother to invoke a sense of sympathy for her, even as we are repulsed by her actions. Hawkins is simply sublime in the role.

Billy Barratt also delivers a solid performance as the guilt-ridden teenager determined to protect his sister. Sora Wong performs her part well, but it is Jonah Wren Phillips's horrifying and yet heart-wrenching performance that truly shook me.

'Bring Her Back' Movie Review - Final Thoughts

Bring Her Back is a bleak, emotionally bruising film about how grief and trauma warp people into monsters, delivered with surgical precision by the Philippou brothers. Disturbing, atmospheric and anchored by a phenomenal Sally Hawkins, this is one of the most unsettling horror films of the year - and one that refuses to let you look away.

(The opinions expressed in the above article are of the author and do not reflect the stand or position of LatestLY.)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 23, 2025 01:20 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).