We Bury the Dead (2025) Review

Zombie season is upon us. It's one of the supposed horror trends of 2026. While you won't find much "zombie action" in this one, We Bury the Dead still manages to offer a new perspective in the genre. Written and directed by Zak Hilditch, the film explores the humanity and grief that is often left out of the conversation in these types of stories. 

We Bury the Dead follows Ava (Daisy Ridley), who is desperately trying to find her husband after a catastrophic military disaster that killed an entire population in Tasmania, where he was at a work retreat. Ava signs up as a volunteer to bury the dead but uses it as an opportunity to find her husband because some of these dead, aren't staying dead. 

The film opens with Ava's arrival to join a body retrieval unit. We learn the details of what happened in Tasmania through news footage on her flight before being thrust in the mayhem that is taking place on the ground. Once she is registered, she's given a rundown of what to expect on the job, including what to do when faced with the "docile, slow moving" people who wake up. But we learn that they aren't all so docile after all. 

Ridley's Ava is an emotional, strong, and determined character. She reacts fiercely when she's pushed and breaks down when she's faced with the reality of her situation. Not long after starting to bury the dead, she meets Clay (Brenton Thwaites), who she eventually partners up with as they go inside houses and buildings to find and bury the dead left behind. Through moments of flashbacks, we unravel the pieces of the life Ava shared with her husband and her desperate need for closure. And that is what We Bury the Dead is about. 

Under the bloody and gory moments there's an emotional depth to this story. It's a real look at the humanity and grief left behind after loss. It's about belief and closure. It touches on many of these things, and more, however, Hilditch doesn't fully give them the attention they deserve it the film's runtime. The ideas are there, they just aren't realized enough to matter much beyond the surface. 

If you're looking for another zombie spectacle, you won't find that here. Instead, We Bury the Dead is an emotional look at the aftermath of a disaster, what's left in its wake. 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐.5