Synopsis: After a catastrophic military disaster, the dead don’t just rise – they hunt. Ava searches for her missing husband, but what she finds is far more terrifying.
Director: Zak Hilditch
Stars: Daisy Ridley, Brenton Thwaites
We Bury the Dead is one of those quietly devastating films that sneaks up on you, then sits heavy in your chest long after the credits roll. On the surface, it’s a post-apocalyptic drama about survival and loss, but beneath that familiar framework is something far more intimate: a study of grief, memory, and the stubborn human need to keep going even when the world has already ended.
The film follows Ava (Daisy Ridley), a woman navigating a ravaged landscape in the aftermath of a catastrophic event that has left much of humanity dead—or not entirely gone. Her journey is driven less by plot mechanics than by emotional necessity. She’s searching, processing, and slowly unravelling as she confronts the physical remains of the past and the emotional weight that comes with them. The film is deliberately paced, often bleak, and unafraid of silence, allowing its themes to breathe rather than rushing toward easy answers.
Ridley’s performance is the beating heart of the movie, and it’s easily some of the best work she’s done to date. Stripped of spectacle and dialogue-heavy scenes, she carries the film almost entirely through physicality and expression. Her face becomes a map of exhaustion, fear, guilt, and fragile hope. Every small gesture feels considered: the way she hesitates before approaching a body, the numbness in her eyes that occasionally cracks into something raw and painful. Ridley doesn’t overplay the trauma; she lets it simmer, trusting the audience to feel it with her. It’s a grounded, deeply human performance that reminds you how compelling she can be when given the space to fully inhabit a character.
Visually, We Bury the Dead leans into stark, desolate imagery. The landscapes are empty and unforgiving, reinforcing the film’s sense of isolation without feeling overly stylized. The direction favours restraint, which works in its favour, though some viewers may find the film’s minimalism challenging. This isn’t a movie chasing thrills or shocking twists; it’s more interested in emotional aftermath than apocalypse mechanics.
While the narrative can feel repetitive at times, that repetition feels intentional, mirroring Ava’s emotional loop as she confronts loss again and again. We Bury the Dead may not be for everyone, but for those willing to sit with its grief and stillness, it offers a haunting and thoughtful experience. Above all, it stands as a showcase for Daisy Ridley, who delivers a performance that is quietly powerful, deeply affecting, and impossible to shake.
Grade: B
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