Bring Her Back (2025)

Bring Her Back (2025)

In France, the film is called Substitution – Bring Her Back.

Directed by Danny and Michael Philippou (known as RackaRacka) and written by Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman. I already disliked Talk to Me (2022), and now this directing duo is back for more! What a shame!!!

It was already a completely ridiculous film with scenes that were impossibly childish and grotesque musical sequences. I should have slept through the end; I would have wasted less time. Luckily, the screening was free!

The Philippou brothers had initially planned to make a film adaptation of Street Fighter in 2023 (and perhaps they should have!), but left the film to focus on Bring Her Back, inspired by psycho-biddy horror, a film subgenre that combines elements of horror, thriller and mostly women films. It has also been called Grande Dame Guignol, hagsploitation and hag horror. Anyway!

Don’t be fooled by the positive reviews! This film is long and slow, and it’s the kind of film with no incredible story. In fact, when I realised how unhealthy the story was, I thought to myself that it was going to be a long one. And I was hoping for some great justice at the end! But I admit that I came out of it totally disgusted, sickened. Yes, this film made me nauseous.

I saw this film, but what a mistake! It’s really special, just like this story. You could say that it doesn’t really have a beginning or an end. I understand why some people have even called it stupid.

That said… Not for the faint-hearted!
Really! I’m not joking!
There are disgusting scenes throughout the film, and it’s almost traumatic. I don’t recommend it at all!

In fact, I’ve been wondering for years: do the children who act in these kinds of films watch them? I hope they don’t before they’re at least fifteen! And isn’t playing this kind of role, covered in blood and make-up, necessarily traumatic?

In any case, this feature film is typical of the kind of horror films I don’t like. I can understand that some people like it, but I don’t see what gore has to do with horror. For me, the differences really need to be specified. I don’t like these kinds of disgusting and uninteresting scenes at all.

Yes, it’s a really disturbing, unhealthy film that’s unsuitable for the cinema. The gore is disgusting and adds nothing as it’s completely unnecessary. In fact, I’m still looking for the horror and terror in the film. Those who had to pay so much to see something like this really threw their money away.

So, I wouldn’t say it’s boring to death. I’m also hypersensitive, so I’m far from being thick-skinned enough to say in a hyper-arrogant way that, in truth, it’s more comical than anything else! No, I’m not one of those degenerates who are no longer shocked by anything and who brag about it to anyone who will listen.

Here, everything is predictable for those familiar with the genre! There are a lot of situations that we’ve seen before. It’s simply the fact of making them even more shocking that is supposed to impress. There isn’t any extraordinary suspense, but you can’t say that it doesn’t create any reaction. Let’s say there are no jump scares, because this isn’t a jump scare film. On the other hand, what is scary is the atmosphere and the rather terrifying make-up. But I was honestly very disappointed.

This is not a cinematic masterpiece. The story lacks direction, with a long and confusing plot and many grey areas surrounding grief and human sacrifice. It’s fair to say that the script is flat. There are many unresolved details and too many things that the viewer is left to figure out for themselves.

Admittedly, Sally Hawkins is very disturbing as a manipulative psychopath, but this story is really twisted, creating a constant sense of unease. I have rarely hated a character in a film so much. This shows incredible talent, given that in Happy-Go-Lucky (2008), she played the quintessential radiant person, the one you couldn’t help but fall for.

It’s quite unsettling to see this new image of her. In fact, one wonders why she was chosen for this Australian film.

Seeing goalball training is a nice part of the film, as is seeing cantaloupe, a type of real melon with sweet, aromatic and usually orange flesh.

The young teenager is a very endearing character. The actor who plays him, Billy Barratt, is none other than the grandson of Shakin’ Stevens, the Welsh singer-songwriter who was the best-selling singles artist in the United Kingdom in the 1980s.

Sora Wong is there for her first role. She won’t see the film, because I think she’s actually visually impaired in real life. Fortunately, it won’t be the worst thing that could happen to her.