Bring Her Back is Rated R by the Motion Picture Rating (MPA) for strong disturbing bloody violent content, some grisly images, graphic nudity, underage drinking and language.

Bring Her Back Review

Grief lingers. It festers. And in Bring Her Back, it possesses.

With their explosive 2022 debut Talk to Me, the Philippou brothers—Danny and Michael—stormed the horror scene with a haunted-hand chiller that felt equal parts TikTok-fueled gimmick and quietly unsettling gut-punch. It was divisive, sure, but it marked them as filmmakers with flair and an eye for youthful unease. Now, with Bring Her Back, they’ve returned not just to scare us, but to unsettle us—and while the film doesn’t quite stick the landing, the journey it offers is far more assured, emotionally harrowing, and, dare I say, grown up.

If Talk to Me was the jumpy adolescent shriek of grief, Bring Her Back is the pained, exhausted whisper that follows.

The Story & What It Tries to Say

The plot—kept thankfully spoiler-light—is deceptively simple at first glance: teenage Andy (Billy Barratt) and his younger, partially sighted stepsister Piper (Sora Wong) are orphaned after the sudden death of their father. The foster system sends them to live with Laura (Sally Hawkins), a well-meaning but off-kilter counselor already caring for a mute boy named Oliver.

As with many horror setups, the new house isn’t quite right. But Bring Her Back isn’t interested in cheap haunted-house tropes. It’s a slow bleed of psychological deterioration and suppressed trauma, filtered through Andy’s increasingly shaky perception. Is something wrong with the house—or with Andy himself?

Beneath the surface, the film isn’t really “about” ghosts or possession. It’s about the ghosts we carry. Grief, guilt, generational pain, and the desperate, sometimes dangerous, ways we try to hold onto what we’ve lost. The Philippous—working from a screenplay co-written by Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman—seem far more interested in the manipulations we accept in the name of healing, and the blurry morality of surrogate caregiving.

Does it all land? Not quite. But when it hits, it hits deep.

Performances & Characters

This is a cast that gets the material. Billy Barratt is raw and reactive as Andy, capturing the twitchy burden of a boy forced to be a man too soon. There’s a constant tension in his eyes—as if he’s watching himself unravel in real time. Sora Wong gives Piper warmth without veering into “inspirational kid” clichés, and their bond is the film’s emotional spine. Their whispered code word “grapefruit,” used to signal honesty, is a lovely, quietly heartbreaking touch.

But it’s Sally Hawkins who steals the show. As Laura, she’s a fascinating contradiction—fragile yet domineering, nurturing yet cruel. Hawkins knows how to weaponize kindness, and she delivers a performance that makes you lean in even as you want to pull away. She doesn’t play Laura as a villain but as someone utterly broken—and maybe dangerous because of it.

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From the grainy VHS opening to the hushed terror of its more intimate moments, Bring Her Back trades the neon slickness of Talk to Me for something grimier, more lo-fi and lived-in. The Philippou brothers have dialed down their YouTube-influencer energy and leaned into something more atmospheric. It’s a smart move.

The cinematography leans heavily on shadows and muted tones, matching the film’s psychological weight. The sound design is a star in its own right—piercing, unrelenting, and intentionally overbearing during moments of psychological rupture. When things finally do get gory, the imagery is brutal but not indulgent—more about psychological violation than shock value.

If there’s a flaw here, it’s in the pacing. The first two acts are tense and tight. But the final third meanders into a murky, drawn-out climax that loses some of the taut momentum built earlier. The film wants to wallow in its mess—and while thematically appropriate, it loses narrative steam.

Horror fans expecting a jump-scare rollercoaster might feel underfed. This isn’t that kind of movie. Bring Her Back leans harder into the realm of psychological horror—more The Babadook than The Conjuring. Its scares are slow-burn and cerebral, often coming from implication rather than revelation.

Still, when the horror arrives, it’s unnerving and visceral. The interactions between Andy and Oliver (the mute child) are particularly chilling—charged with ambiguity and threat. The film wisely resists the temptation to over-explain its supernatural underpinnings, letting the dread fester and mutate in the viewer’s imagination.

Final Thoughts & Recommendation

Bring Her Back doesn’t redefine horror, but it does deepen the Philippous’ cinematic language—and suggests a creative maturity I didn’t fully expect. It’s a film that lingers more than it startles, preferring to haunt you slowly rather than chase you with a knife.

The final act may wobble, but the emotional groundwork laid early on is strong enough to carry you through. With commanding performances—especially from Sally Hawkins—and a story that’s more interested in grief than gore, Bring Her Back is a melancholic, bruising descent into the lies we tell ourselves to survive.

Who’s it for? Fans of psychological horror who don’t mind a slower burn and a little emotional devastation. If Hereditary and Relic are in your wheelhouse, this might be too.

Bring Her Back 2025 Parents Guide

Violence & Gore: The movie begins with old, grainy footage of a ritual involving the occult. The visuals are messy and not fully developed, including people screaming, others under control and hints of violence. The film is not overly graphic, but the atmosphere is very creepy and stays with you.

The film opens with a teenage boy finding his father dead in the shower. The scene may not be overly violent, but it is filled with intense emotions. The scene of the body and the way the protagonist reacts to it may be upsetting for some people.

The movie includes a lot of strong language, especially “fk,” which is used often when the characters are feeling intense emotions.

You can find milder profanity like “sh*t,” “damn,” “hell,” and “ahole”** used frequently.

At times, Andy or others may shout profanities during emotionally charged situations.

Alcohol, Drugs & Smoking: In a short scene, Laura is shown drinking wine which might be her way of dealing with her grief. It is presented in a negative way, highlighting how it is a crutch.

Drugs are never shown or discussed in the film.

While the feelings and mental changes might make readers think of substance abuse, they are meant as a metaphor, not a real comparison.

Sexual content and nudity: In a scene where Andy discovers his father, there is a quick glimpse of partial nudity. Male nudity (rear) is present but is not clearly shown because of the lighting and the way the camera is used.

There are hints of sexual tension and emotional intimacy between Andy and Laura, but these are meant to disturb the audience rather than suggest romance.

There are no sexual scenes, but the film creates an unsettling mood by manipulating emotions and confusing boundaries.

Overall Family Suitability: NOT suitable for children or pre-teens.

I Recommended for adults only, particularly those who can engage with slow-burn psychological horror that’s more emotionally driven than traditionally scary. Viewer discretion is strongly advised.