A new horror film is making headlines for being so intense that some viewers have reportedly fainted during screenings.
Australian directors Danny and Michael Philippou, who rose to fame with their 2022 debut Talk to Me, have made a chilling return to the big screen with their latest feature, Bring Her Back.
The newest movie is set in the suburbs of Adelaide and follows teenager Andy (Billy Barratt) and his blind sister Piper (Sora Wong) after the sudden death of their father.
The siblings are placed in a foster home with Laura (Sally Hawkins), a caregiver with a sinister obsession and a house full of dark secrets. Also living under her roof is Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips), a mute boy reeling from his own tragedy.
But Laura’s home is anything but a safe haven. Her "unhinged" presence sets off a series of terrifying and traumatic events for the children.
The film, running 1 hour and 39 minutes, also features performances from Sally-Anne Upton, Stephen Phillips, Mischa Heywood, Liam Damons, and Olga Miller.
This week, co-director Danny Philippou opened up about his latest project and revealed just how visceral audiences’ reactions have been.
“We’ve had three faintings at the screenings,” he told The Project host Sarah Harris, to which she jokingly asked: “What is wrong with you?” following the film’s intense jump scares.
One Reddit user was so shaken, they wrote: “This movie was so shocking I almost threw up in the car park.”
Before breaking into feature films, the Philippous were known for their YouTube channel RackaRacka, which blended horror and comedy and built a loyal following of 6.88 million subscribers. Still, early on, industry insiders weren’t convinced.
“RackaRacka was a talking point in meetings, but not a good one,” Danny told Variety. “They just didn’t think we could do a movie. To be fair, we weren’t making deep stuff on YouTube.”
But after Talk to Me became A24’s highest-grossing horror film ever, earning $92 million worldwide against a modest $4.5 million budget, the industry took notice.
Their latest project even drew in Oscar-nominated actress Sally Hawkins, marking her first role in a horror film. Despite initial skepticism about whether her refined acting style would mesh with the Philippous' wild energy, the collaboration proved to be a perfect fit.
“She enjoyed [our YouTube videos]! People said our energies weren’t going to match, but we got along so well,” Danny said, adding that they even brought her along to prank neighbors during filming prep.
Early reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. Collider called it “one of the year’s best horror films,” praising its emotional depth and unrelenting fear. Variety wrote that the film “justifies itself” with its impressionistic style and “lavish sensation of malevolent shock.”
Meanwhile, The Curb said it “is as unutterably sad as it is disturbingly frightening,” naming the Philippous “the premiere horror auteurs in Australia after only two films".
Bring Her Back currently holds a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and will hit theatres on May 30.