The following contains spoilers for Bring Her Back, now playing in theatersBring Her Backis A24’s latest horror film to cover the intersection of grief and the supernatural, but it does it a lot better thanHereditary. The second feature film from Danny and Michael Philippou, following the success ofTalk To Me,Bring Her Backis a painful exploration of grief in the face of death, filtered through an emotionally grounded and terrifying tale of resurrection and demonic forces. Theending ofBring Her Backvisualizes grief in a beautifully tragic way, a strong finish for one of the year’s best horror films.
Bring Her Backis far from the first film to explore grief through a horror lens, but it’s one of the best. It actually has a lot thematically in common with a popular pick for one of the 21st century’s best horror movies, Ari Aster’sHereditary. I’ve always felt that movie is one of the 21st century’s most overrated movies, a well-made film that nevertheless lacks the necessary humanity on a story level to make the bizarre horror swings land.Bring Her Backis a far more impressive filmand should dethroneHereditaryas the gold standard for A24 horror.
Bring Her Back Is Really Similar To Hereditary
Bring Her Back And Hereditary Explore Similar Themes
Bring Her Backshares a lot of thematic focus with A24’s critically acclaimed 2018 horror filmHereditary— but does it all in a much more compelling and effective way. Released to rave reviews and an impressive 90% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes,Hereditaryfocuses on a family falling apart and under a mystical influence after the death of a child.Bring Her Backis also about the nature of grief, focusing on a grieving mother Laura, as she takes in Piper and Andy, who’ve recently been orphaned. Both films explore similar themes and ideas.
Both also take a purposefully mysterious approach to the supernatural elements that pervade their world. Both films push their lead characters into dark directions, especially Laura andHereditary’s grieving mother, Annie. Both films are ultimately tragedies about the ways grief can transform people into their worst selves, althoughBring Her Back’s hauntingly bittersweet ending is slightly more positive than the bleak climax ofHereditary. Both movies are very much performance pieces, but the scripts give the stars ofBring Her Backbetter material to play with.
This is the biggest difference betweenBring Her BackandHereditary, and where the films separate in my eyes.The script forBring Her Backis more grounded in character interactions and connections, which makes for a more engaging story than the relentlessly dourHereditary. There’s lots of impressive work going on inHereditary, from a visual standpoint and in the performances. However, the script forHereditarylacks the necessary levity and humanity to keep the story truly compelling, whichBring Her Backachieves much better.
I Like Sally Hawkins' Laura Way More Than Toni Collette’s Annie
At the core of both films is an impressive and dark performance from a talented actress. Toni Collette is mesmerizing as Annie inHereditary. For all my problems with the film, Annie’s character isn’t one of them. She’s a raw nerve, whose anger and sadness over the loss of her daughter push her into some very dark places. She’s a grim character who isn’t meant to be likable, even as her plight remains deeply tragic and heartbreaking.Collette is terrific in the role, but the character is purposefully one-note. She’s grief personified, unable to be anything else but in pain.
Hawkins finds these little moments of humanitythat make the character fare more real.
Laura is also grieving the accidental death of a daughter, but she responds to her pain inBring Her Backin a more painfully human way. She’s charming at times, often to manipulate others around her. However,Hawkins finds these little moments of humanitythat make the character fare more real. She seems to open up to Piper and Andy at times, and has real moments of hesitation and horror at what she is doing. This makes her willingness to do it all the scarier.
Their respective endings highlight why Laura is a better character than Annie. Annie is possessed and transformed as part of the demon king Paimon, claiming the body of her son. Annie spends the last stretch of the film transformed into a monster, a creepy concept that is thrown off by some special effects that I always found cheesy. In contrast, Laura’s turn in the third act ofBring Her Backis heartwrenching as she tries to reason with her victims and overcomes her own horror to commit atrocious acts —making her all the more human and horrifying.
Bring Her Back’s Supernatural Elements Are More Effective Than Hereditary
Bring Her Back’s More Understated Scares Are More Effective Than The Big Swing Of Hereditary
I appreciate how bothHereditaryandBring Her Backeschew going too into detail about the supernatural forces at play in their respective stories. This makes both of them more unsettling in the build-up to the climax, butHereditarygoes all out with the arrival of the cult surrounding Paimon. It’s a muted moment that uses a palpable sense of dread to ratchet up the tension. However, it’s so overwhelmingly idiosyncratic and purposefully strange,as is much of the third act of the film, that it stops feeling like a human story.
Bring Her Backkeeps much of its supernatural horror focused on Ollie, who gradually becomes one of the film’s greatest scary assets. Laura never loses herself to a demonic presence, very much keeping her actions her own. The supernatural elements are scary and unnerving, but never take away from the human edge. The scariest part inBring Her Back’s ending is Laura, almost through tears, telling Piper she’s going to drown her as part ofthe resurrection ritual. It’s blunt, tragic, and absolutely terrifying in a wayHereditarynever is.
Why I Love Bring Her Back (And Don’t Like Hereditary)
Bring Her Back Tells A Similar Story In A Better Way
When I first sawHereditary, I was genuinely surprised. I could see Ar Aster’s skills as a director (which I think were far better utilized in his follow-up feature,Midsommar) and could acknowledge the strong performances by the cast. However,there are so many elements ofHereditary’s story and characters that I just can’t stand. Their trauma and disconnect are the point, but the characters weren’t interesting enough before Charlie’s death to make them engaging, and their worst qualities only become more magnified by their grief. It’s purposefully painful in a way I can understand but don’t enjoy.
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Everyone had been raving about the film, calling it a modern masterpiece of the genre. While I won’t deny the talent of the people who made it, I don’t understand why the one-note story and bleak characters connected so hard with audiences and critics.I much prefer the more three-dimensional approach to Andy, Piper, and Laura inBring Her Back. Ollie gets to bring the unnatural vibes to the story, while the bizarre and cruel actions of Laura are never brushed away as mere acts of evil.
Laura is a far more compelling, tragic, and scary character than Annie, and that overall strength is something that makesBring Her Backa more compelling character study thanHereditary. The actual scares of the Philippou film are more frightening, and the tragic elements are more powerful. While I can respect whatHereditaryis going for, I don’t think it deserves all the praise it gets. Instead, I’d love to see that level of admiration pointed towardsBring Her Back.
