Bring Her Back: A Movie Worth Watching, Even if You Can’t Look at The Screen
Horror that pulls at the heart strings.
As the credits rolled the cinema was silent. This silence followed me home, sitting in the corners of my house that now felt ominous, sleeping an impossible feat whilst shut eyes replayed gruesome scenes from the eerily quiet Complex I’d come from.
It’s the Philippou Brothers I have to thank for this disconcerting arrival home, their Sophmore A24 film “Bring her Back” crawling into theatres this month. Like Talk to Me, Lake Mungo and The Babadook , Bring her Back’s focuses on the human struggle of processing loss and grief. Exploring the insanity that follows leaving a loved one behind, and the complex trauma that arises in times of immense mourning.
There’s something to be desired with the western film industry of today. Cookie cutter stories based off bloated franchises litter out silver screens to no avail, and it’s incredibly refreshing to see something original, let alone Australian made.
17 year old Andy (Billy Barratt) and his visually impaired 13-year-old sister Piper (Sora Wong) are taken into the foster system when they discover their father on the shower floor unresponsive from Chemo complications. They are sent to stay with a retired councillor Laura (Sally Hawkins) and her foster son Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips) in her secluded home.
Laura has lost her child, Cathy, who was also visually impaired. It’s made clear immediately that she’s very interested in Piper and is ambivalent, even frustrated, with Andy’s presence. Sally Hawkins’ ability to dance between the fun aunt and frightening monster is haunting. What’s even more impressive is the complexity of Laura’s motivations. At the heart of the character, you feel that she’s trapped by the grief and Hawkins expertly cranks up the reckless torment at the cost of the protagonist when the story calls for it.
Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman’s screenplay relies on the cyclical; through visual and aural motifs there is never a line of overt exposition explaining the motivations and intentions of the characters nor the lore behind the story. Characters are written with humanity, have relatable flaws and the familiarity towards them emotionally attaches you to their spiral into hell.
A ridiculous lack of communication in horror films is most often the reason for the antagonists to find themselves in their predicament, but this film’s moments of miscommunication feel all too relatable. Not once in Bring Her Back’s 104 minutes do you feel the need to stand up from your seat and yell at our protagonists, Andy and Piper’s insecurities are felt through the screen as they face manipulation from their former councillor turned possessed grief avoider.
Billy Barratt’s Andy is troubled yet deeply caring and this makes him a protagonist to root for. He strikes that balance of frustration out of care and conveys the anger from the trauma of his relationship with his dad with complex nuance. Sora Wong vulnerable performance is sensitive, and as the story progresses, we are shown that she’s defiant and strong willed. For her first acting role she strikes that tone exceptionally.
The three of them are not alone. Jonah Wren Philips’ thousand-yard stare is leaves you uneasy. The way he moves his body about the house aimless but hungry turns the stomach, and the horror his character embodies comes with a pensive silence. The mood of unease is accompanied by an brooding ambient soundtrack with visceral sound effects that ramp up the tension. It’s a gruesome film which is heightened by actors’ performances and the thrillingly realistic special effects through the film.
The film’s descent into a stressful and horrifying nightmare will have you gripping the armrest for an hour and a half, with moments that make you turn away from the screen is anguish and disgust. With the budget of only 15 million dollars it makes every penny count, there is passion in this production. this film should be championed as good reason to invest in more homegrown film and television and go back to the era of the 90s and early 00s with iconic Australiana stories.
In Cinemas Now
Runtime
: 104 minutes
Directed by Danny and Michael Phillipou
A24 production