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The Philippou brothers - Danny and Michael - made their way from YouTube fame to the big screen with 2023's late-summer hit "Talk to Me." The movie (which made an impressive $91 million at the worldwide box office) served as a calling card for the directing duo and became quite popular, despite not totally working as a cohesive whole. They are back with distributor A24 to try and entice horror moviegoers again with their sophomore feature, "Bring Her Back."

The movie introduces us to Piper (Sora Wong) and her brother Andy (Billy Barratt). Piper is visually impaired, which often makes her the target of bullies at school. Andy is her protective older brother, who tries to shield Piper from life's hard realities. One day, they arrive home and their father has collapsed and died while in the shower, which renders Piper and Andy orphans.

There's talk of splitting Andy and Piper up, but Andy is just shy of turning 18 and his plan is to apply for guardianship over Piper when he's of age and they can live on their own. Until his birthday, they are required to be with a foster parent and they are placed in the home of Laura (Sally Hawkins), a grieving mother who lost her daughter. Laura is also caring for Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips), who is a young mute boy.

From the moment Andy and Piper step foot into Laura's home, something doesn't feel right. Piper is more accepting of their current living situation, but Andy's guard remains up when it comes to Laura's overzealousness in welcoming them into her home. Perhaps, Laura is just carrying too much grief and trying to keep it at bay by having foster children live with her. But, it's a horror movie, so something much more sinister is going on in the house.

Just as a sensory experience, "Bring Her Back" is much more engaging and effective than the Philippou's first film. The screenplay, written by Danny and Bill Hinzman, doesn't always add up in a satisfying way and the what and how of "Bring Her Back" doesn't necessarily work, but at some point it stops mattering. The movie builds such a stressful environment that Andy and Piper's safety becomes the main focus and the backstory of Laura's actions feel almost superfluous to the movie, when it should really be contextualizing the movie as a whole.

Like any horror picture, "Bring Her Back" uses jump scares, but smartly never relies on them as the main source to elicit reactions from the audience. The Philippou's get down and dirty with visceral images, which will leave the squeamish watching through their fingers. "Bring Her Back" can truly be unsettling at times.

"Bring Her Back" operates in the Philippou's mode of grief horror and can be effective in conveying Laura's grief without excusing her actions. Hawkins' relishes in playing such a role, which is completely different than what she usually plays. She's an anchor for the movie, but Wong and Barratt are given plenty of moments to express the horror of their living situation. The actors help "Bring Her Back" get under your skin, even when the story might leave you scratching your head.