Those wondering how Laura (Sally Hawkins) first discovered the dark ritual that fuels the events of Danny and Michael Philippou’s Bring Her Back, a mysterious new website may have answers for those feeling brave.
Bring Her Back, now playing in theaters, follows a brother and sister subjected to a horrifying nightmare when sent to a foster home after a tragedy. Yet the Philippous never reveal too much about the ritual itself, keeping focus on the heavy emotional toll.
Enter Black Angel Tapes, an eerie darknet-like site that has surfaced and comes laden with warnings.
“Observe. Absorb. Interpret. This is a site of offerings, not instructions. The flow is nonlinear, the clues are embedded, and the path is crooked on purpose. Those who need clear steps aren’t ready.” Users can scour the site for details, artifacts, and unsettling videos, perhaps even submit an offer for a ritual object of their own.
The site also contains further connections that tie Talk to Me and its memorable embalmed hand to the same universe as Bring Her Back.
Black Angel Tapes is suitably bleak and unsettling, a perfect tie-in to the year’s feel-bad horror movie. The site’s FAQ, explaining how dangerous dabbling with the dark arts can be, says it all, “Absolutely. Possession. Madness. Interdimensional bleed. Night visitations. Emotional disintegration. Ecstatic awakening. Every item has its degree of volatility, but the risk is yours. We are not responsible for what wakes up with you.”
As for the film itself, I wrote in my review, “is a more refined effort from the Philippous, but it’s also more restrictive and simple. It’s impressively bold and shocking in the way the directors continue to push horror boundaries and shatter taboos, especially when it comes to kids, ensuring a nail-biting and grueling experience that’ll leave you wincing and squirming in your seat. But it’s so utterly soul crushing in its unwavering darkness that it’s hard to imagine anything coming close to beating it for the mantle of feel bad horror of the year.”
Visit the creepy in-world piece that expands the Bring Her Back and Talk to Me universe, if you dare.
