Abhiroop Das
Danny and Michael Philippou’s supernatural horror film ‘Bring Her Back‘ follows three orphaned children, Andy, Piper, and Oliver. Their lives unravel in the short amount of time they spend living with Laura, a former counsellor turned foster parent, who seeks to have her own plans for their future. However, the house has one more resident, a cat named Junkman. From the very beginning, the pet contributes to the unnerving nature of the story, calmly navigating its way in a house ridden by violence and manipulation. As darker forces creep their way in and corrupt everything they touch, Junkman’s reaction to it opens up a new perspective on the role these characters play. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Junkman Adds to the Mystery of Bring Her Back
Junkman’s introduction to the story is marked by the limitations placed on the cat by its owner, Laura. While checking out their new foster home, the half-siblings make their way to the backyard. Laura warns them not to let the cat out, but by then, it is too late, as Junkman zips past the door. Andy and Piper’s search for the cat is what introduces them to Oliver, the third foster child, who becomes the central enigma of ‘Bring Her Back’ from hereon. He appears to be forcibly holding the cat, although its scratches seem to have no effect on him. Laura steps in and separates the two before introducing him to her new foster children. As Oliver and Junkman are introduced in the same scene, their fate seems to be tied inextricably, and the narrative constantly follows through on their juxtaposition.
The mystery of Oliver’s dynamic with Junkman continues in the following scenes, when on one occasion, Andy wakes up in the middle of the night to see the young child heading out of the house with the cat. On yet another instance, Oliver, frustrated with being locked indoors, breaks through the glass and ventures outside yet again, and soon, the cat follows suit. The young child’s aggression appears to take the form of an insatiable hunger. While he never explicitly expresses his desire to eat Junkman, he does so for the chickens that Laura raises. Eventually, Andy finds out that Oliver is, in fact, Connor Bird, a missing child who is being abused by Laura, his kidnapper. While looking for him, Andy discovers several mutilated chickens, suggesting that they have likely become victims of Oliver, or specifically, the demon Tari that seems to reside inside him.
However, Junkman is notably not a part of the ending sequence. On one fateful day, when Laura heads out with Piper and leaves Andy in charge of Oliver, tragedy strikes as the latter bites into a knife, gravely injuring himself in the process. When Andy tries to get him to the hospital, the child resists, refusing to leave the white line at the perimeter, and begins to convulse in pain when he is forced to. While Laura eventually manages to handle the situation, amidst all the chaos, Junkman seems to have exited the house and disappeared, this time not coming back. The last time it is mentioned is by Piper, who searches for the cat within the white line perimeter created by Laura. Junkman’s departure from the narrative potentially serves a symbolic purpose, one that can be interpreted in several ways.
Junkman Most Likely Makes It Out of The House
Much like Oliver and the half-siblings, Junkman the cat is likely another victim of Laura’s abusive practices, and thus, stands as a mirror to their suffering. For instance, Junkman not being allowed to leave the house is analogous to the restrictions placed on Oliver, and the two seem to enjoy the freedom of mobility more than the confines of the house. Similarly, Laura’s nefarious scheme of pouring urine over Andy’s pants during his sleep in order to paint him as unstable, finds a parallel in the cat excreting feces on the sofa. Abnormal defecation from felines often suggests fear and distress, implying that Junkman might have been suffering under Laura’s care. The possibility of the cat escaping past the white line before is thus a positive opportunity for it to live a better life.
However, there is also another, more gruesome possibility that Junkman’s absence from the narrative might also mean that it died at the hands of Oliver, who also kills and consumes chickens in his frenzied state. The boy’s obsession with Junkman has been evident, and thus, a cruel end to their dynamic is a real, unfortunate possibility. But, given the fact that Oliver holds the cat at multiple points in the story without harming it, there is also the possibility that the two develop a silent friendship, with the cat being spared. Junkman’s survival is also thematically supported, as it contrasts with the fate of Laura’s previous pet, Pom-Pom, a deceased dog that she has since taxidermized, an action that parallels her preservation of Cathy’s corpse.
Pom-Pom can be interpreted as a symbol of Laura’s obsession with the past and the idea of a soul lingering in a body. Her beliefs find expression outward, hindering the lives of those in her care, such as Junkman. Therefore, the cat’s exit stands as a rejection of abuse, which is echoed by Piper and Connor, both of whom similarly leave the house on their quest to live. While there is no confirmation regarding Junkman’s fate at the end of ‘Bring Her Back,’ several elements of the narrative support the idea that the cat might survive.
