Review: "The Womb" (2024)

From the writer of the Constantine screenplay, Frank A. Cappello, comes a new psychological thriller called The Womb. Sami, a deaf woman, is patiently waiting for her family to return after having left their home days (or longer?) ago. In the meantime, she has secured her home from a virus outside that is killing the residents of her neighborhood, leaving it a barren wasteland. While she waits, she fends off potential home invaders, rations her supplies, and buries the dead bodies that appear around her house. Has her family fallen to this malevolent force? How long can she hold out hope? What is the connection to the force outside and what Sami has inside? All of these questions and more are presented in this interesting twist on a common theme.

The Womb is a thought-provoking exploration into the effects of trauma on the human mind. Cappello managed to keep me guessing for most of the runtime. When the reality of what is going on is revealed, it still leaves things open to interpretation. While we see present-day Sami trying to survive, we are also given flashbacks to a major fateful event that happened to her as a child. The back and forth between past and present helps put the pieces in place to give a more complete picture. There is an added natural tension to the conflicts that Sami faces due to her lack of hearing. The story is intriguing, as is the performance of Cami Varela.

The Womb ©2020

Cami Varela’s Sami is an inspiring yet tragic character; inspiring to see her overcome her lack of hearing to survive the strange and deadly events happening around her neighborhood; tragic in the fact she is holding out hope for the return of her family when the audience knows that they are not coming back. Varela gives Sami layers; she has strength when needed, and compassion, but also fear. At a number of points we see that fear overtake her but her instinct to survive drives her through it. Below the surface, you can also see the underlying effects of the trauma she faced as a child. Hannah Zamora plays young Sami and she does an excellent job. Her mannerisms easily make you believe she is an actual younger version of Sami. Both actresses put their all into playing this character, and it shows.

The Womb has a number of special effects involved. For a film on a limited budget, most of the effects worked. Some of the dream scenes and a few moments of the malevolent force with the live actors looked rough, but special effects are not the main focus. The makeup effects and production design looked sharp. The majority of the movie takes place in Sami’s house which has its own character. While I would have liked the ending to be a little clearer as I found the resolution to be a bit of a head-scratcher, I understand that the filmmaker wants you to draw your own conclusions. 
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For an indie psychological thriller, The Womb is worth a watch. Much of the film rests on the shoulders of its main actress who does an excellent job in carrying it. I think the screenplay could have used one more revision to really tighten it up but overall, it was still an interesting tale. For fans looking for a character-driven dramatic thriller with some horror elements thrown in, then you will want to check this out.