Psychological horror film 'Bring Her Back' has been described as so unsettling that viewers are warning others not to watch it alone. The movie, directed by Danny and Michael Philippou, stars Sally Hawkins as a grief-stricken ex-social worker who becomes disturbingly fixated on her new foster child.
The film opens with Hawkins' character Laura scrutinising the face of her partially sighted foster daughter Piper, played by Sora Wong. The scene immediately sets a tone of deep unease, as something is clearly wrong. Laura, who has recently lost her own vision-impaired child, begins a campaign of manipulation and gaslighting that includes pressuring Piper's stepbrother Andy (Billy Barratt) for details about his father.
A Masterful Performance
Hawkins delivers a nuanced performance, balancing sympathy and revulsion as Laura is driven to the brink of psychosis by grief. Her comic timing is razor-sharp, and her unsettling softness when she purrs, 'I'm a counsellor,' complete with art-teacher beads and bayonet reading glasses, leaves viewers almost physically recoiling.
Billy Barratt, as the teenage Andy, is praised for his wide watery eyes that raise the stakes. The audience is firmly on his side, desperate for him to survive. The Philippou brothers excel at creating unsettling moments, but the film suffers from two weaknesses: a tired miscommunication storyline and an over-reliance on Freudian horror tropes.
Unforgettable Horrors
Despite these flaws, the film delivers genuinely disturbing scenes. In one, an abused child begins eating his own flesh, peeling off his forearm like a snap-on bracelet. The audience was seen hunched forward, hands covering mouths, a testament to the film's ability to maintain attention without provoking laughter.
One viewer admitted they kept their eyes shut throughout the entire second half because they 'just couldn't do it.' Another scene shows a child using a fruit knife like a saw to create a cleft in his lip. The film tackles cannibalism, child abuse, parent loss, child loss, abuse of power, body horror, drowning, ghosts, and exorcism within a modest runtime of an hour and a half.
Viewer Warnings
Critics advise giving the film a wide berth if feeling even remotely sensitive. However, for those seeking a thoroughly unsettling experience, 'Bring Her Back' is now available to watch. It has been dubbed the 'scariest film of the decade,' and fans are warning others not to watch it alone.
