We Bury the Dead is a 2022 Australian survival thriller directed by Zak Hilditch, now streaming on Hulu in the US. The film stars Sophie Lowe as Annie, a mine worker who searches for her missing husband Jack after a catastrophic explosion at Tasmania’s lithium mine triggers a reanimation event. Unlike the zombie films dominating streaming platforms, We Bury the Dead strips away gore and action to explore grief, isolation, and what it means to lose someone twice.
Key Takeaways
- We Bury the Dead premiered at Sitges Film Festival in October 2022 and earned a perfect 100% on Rotten Tomatoes from 9 critics.
- The film features slow-moving, non-aggressive reanimated figures called “returnees” that mimic the living but lack higher brain function.
- Runtime is 97 minutes; available on Hulu with ads at $7.99/month or ad-free at $17.99/month in the US.
- Director Zak Hilditch prioritizes emotional drama and human psychology over traditional zombie tropes.
- Sophie Lowe’s performance anchors the film’s exploration of survival, loss, and moral ambiguity in a post-disaster landscape.
Why We Bury the Dead Stands Apart from Typical Zombie Films
We Bury the Dead rejects every convention of the zombie genre. The reanimated figures in the film are not mindless hordes bent on consumption. Instead, they are tragic figures—shambling echoes of their former selves, non-hostile but deeply unsettling. This fundamental shift transforms the entire narrative tension. Rather than battling external threats, Annie confronts internal devastation: the psychological weight of searching for her husband in a landscape where the dead walk but do not attack. The film prioritizes atmosphere and character psychology over action sequences or gore, making it a stark contrast to zombie spectacles like World War Z or Train to Busan.
The setting amplifies this isolation. Tasmania’s post-disaster landscape becomes a character itself—desolate, unforgiving, and claustrophobic despite its vastness. Annie moves through this terrain not as an action hero but as a grieving woman clinging to hope. Every encounter with a returnee carries emotional weight rather than visceral threat. We Bury the Dead asks uncomfortable questions: What does it mean to survive when the world has ended? How do you grieve someone still moving, still present but fundamentally absent?
Sophie Lowe’s Performance Anchors the Emotional Core
Sophie Lowe carries We Bury the Dead entirely on her shoulders. Her portrayal of Annie is understated but devastating—a woman unraveling quietly, moment by moment. The film’s 97-minute runtime never feels bloated because Lowe’s performance commands every frame. She conveys desperation, confusion, and fragile determination through minimal dialogue and physical presence. Critics recognized this strength; the film earned a perfect 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, with reviewers consistently praising Lowe’s ability to anchor a slow-burn narrative that could easily collapse under its own bleakness.
The supporting cast, including Dylan Young as Jack and Jerome Meyer in key roles, rounds out the human element that makes We Bury the Dead resonate. This is not a film about spectacle. It is about how ordinary people respond when the rules of existence fracture. That emotional authenticity is what separates We Bury the Dead from the parade of zombie content flooding streaming platforms.
How We Bury the Dead Compares to Streaming Alternatives
We Bury the Dead occupies a narrow but compelling niche. It shares DNA with HBO’s The Last of Us in its focus on human connection amid apocalypse, yet it strips away action and spectacle entirely. Where The Last of Us balances emotional storytelling with set-piece drama, We Bury the Dead commits fully to introspection and dread. Fans of atmospheric horror like The Witch or It Comes at Night will recognize the slow-burn methodology—tension built through isolation and uncertainty rather than jump scares or gore.
On Hulu‘s crowded catalog, We Bury the Dead stands out precisely because it refuses to compete on the terms most survival thrillers demand. It does not chase runtime with unnecessary subplots. It does not inflate tension with manufactured conflict between survivors. Instead, it trusts its premise and its lead performance to sustain interest across 97 minutes. For viewers fatigued by zombie action films and real-world disaster coverage, We Bury the Dead offers something rarer: a thoughtful exploration of loss wrapped in speculative fiction.
How to Watch We Bury the Dead on Hulu
We Bury the Dead is now available on Hulu in the US with two subscription tiers. New subscribers can access the film free during Hulu’s 30-day trial period. Standard access costs $7.99 per month with ads, while ad-free viewing runs $17.99 per month. Hulu also offers a bundle combining Hulu, Disney+, and ESPN+ at $14.99 monthly, which includes We Bury the Dead. The film previously circulated on Shudder and other platforms; international availability varies by region. If you have been sleeping on this 2022 gem, now is the moment to catch up.
Is We Bury the Dead worth watching if I hate zombie films?
Absolutely. We Bury the Dead is not a zombie film in the traditional sense. It is a grief drama that happens to feature reanimation. If you have avoided zombie content because it typically relies on gore, action, and survival-against-hordes narratives, We Bury the Dead operates on entirely different principles. The returnees are not threats to overcome but symbols of loss to process. Sophie Lowe’s performance and the film’s meditative pacing appeal to audiences who prefer character-driven stories over spectacle.
Why did We Bury the Dead get overlooked when it premiered?
We Bury the Dead had a limited theatrical release in 2022 and never achieved mainstream commercial visibility. It premiered at Sitges Film Festival in October 2022 but did not secure wide distribution or major marketing campaigns. Most viewers discovered it only through streaming platforms like Shudder or word-of-mouth recommendations. Hulu’s recent addition gives the film a second chance at visibility, positioning it as a hidden gem for subscribers seeking alternatives to formulaic survival thrillers.
We Bury the Dead proves that zombie cinema does not require hordes, gore, or action sequences to resonate. Director Zak Hilditch built something quietly devastating—a film about loss that lingers long after the credits roll. On Hulu, it deserves to be seen.
Edited by the All Things Geek team.
Source: Tom's Guide
