A Nearly Flawless Follow-Up from the Directors of ‘Talk to Me’

Will Bring Her Back be too much for audiences? Danny and Michael Philippou think it might be. The duo’s first feature, Talk to Me (2022), was so successful that it now has a sequel in the works. Bring Her Back has a similar ring to it, but it’s not a sequel, nor is it set in the same universe. One character in Bring Her Back does, however, urge another to “talk to me” at one point, which may have been intentional.

Their new movie, hitting theaters May 30, is also centered around death. It’s much more of a “slow burn,” as the Australian brothers teased at this week’s Los Angeles premiere. But don’t let that turn you off. Bolstered by first-rate performances from two-time Oscar-nominee Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water) and a trio of young actors, Bring Her Back keeps audiences guessing, with a relatable undercurrent about grief and holding onto deceased loved ones.

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Holding On — At What Cost?

The directors also stressed that the movie is personal to them, and the end credits include a dedication to a young relative who passed in 2024. And the emotional authenticity is obvious throughout, even when it’s clouded by gruesome sequences and strange supernatural interventions. Talk to Me thrived on creative cinematography, with the camera constantly weaving and flowing through the scenes. There’s a bit of that in Bring Her Back, though viewers might be disappointed by the relatively staid look compared to the brothers’ 2023 film.

Instead, Bring Her Back employs a meta component, with characters holding vintage camcorders to capture ritualistic practices that seek to bring a person back to life. These grainy, videotaped images resurface throughout the story, reminding us of the characters’ sinister intentions. But it’s all shrouded in mystery as an eerie opening sequence leads into the A-story, involving step-siblings Andy (Billy Barratt) and Piper (Sora Wang).

Andy is protective of Piper, who is blind, around her snobbish schoolmates. But that’s nothing once they discover their dad dead in the shower one day. It’s quite a shock, of course, so the parentless teens then get assigned to a foster mom. That’s when they shack up with the eccentric Laura (Hawkins), who lives tucked away with her young son Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips). And it’s not just Oliver’s refusal to speak that makes Andy suspicious of this strange household. Laura speaks to a stuffed dog. She talks openly about her deceased daughter, who drowned in the pool. There’s a shed out back that is locked up tight, and Andy watches from his bedroom at night as Laura drags Oliver to the shed for unexplained rituals. What exactly is going on here?

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Gruesome Terror From A Standout Cast

It’s clear early on what the increasingly erratic Laura is trying to do. Piper is a bright young soul who, as it turns out, is about the same age as Laura’s daughter was when she died. Even if you can predict Laura’s next sinister move, however, young Oliver — who must remain in the doomed residence at all times — provides intrigue, especially when he starts showing horrifying side effects. Andy and Piper don’t know better, so when they try to mingle with the troubled boy, his devilish reactions provide some of the most shocking sequences in recent cinematic history. The blood-soaked special effects are awards-caliber stuff, and shouldn’t be ignored come Oscar season.

The young cast’s performances as Andy, Piper and Oliver are notable as well: In Bring Her Back, the kids don’t make a false move. Hawkins, who stole the show in Blue Jasmine, is reliably superb. But watch out for her teenage co-stars, who will make you cry, squirm and even chuckle on occasion. Bring Her Back is morbid throughout, as promised. And if it werenn’t for an ending that stumbles as it tries to wrap things up, the Philippou brothers’ latest horror movie would have been flawless.

From A24, Bring Her Back will be released in theaters everywhere on May 30.