Original-Cin Q&A: Daisy Ridley’s Reflections on Zombies in We Bury the Dead
By John Kirk
Zombie films typically follow a storyline about human survival against an overwhelming and unbeatable foe. Rare is the film that gives thought to zombies as people rather than just monsters. Yet the new horror/thriller We Bury the Dead, in theatres January 2, does just that. (Read our review of the film).
Actor Daisy Ridley in a scene from We Bury the Dead
The story: when an American pulse weapon malfunctions off the coast of Tasmania, hundreds of thousands of people simply… go offline. Their brains cease to function and they drop dead. Days later, when the dead are recovered, some return to a semblance of life, aimlessly wandering in a shambling state. At first, they are docile and seem puzzled. Later though, they develop violent tendencies. Here is where the fear begins.
In We Bury the Dead, Daisy Ridley plays Ava, an American woman who arrives in Tasmania to find out what happened to her husband. Original-Cin sat down with Ridley and asked her to share her thoughts on the film and its focus on transformed people.
ORIGINAL-CIN: This is a film that’s very thoughtful in its portrayal of zombies. What attracted you to this role?
DAISY RIDLEY: I feel that Ava’s journey is very representative of what the zombies are going through in the movie. She is caught in this very limbo state of her own, neither here nor there and she’s searching for answers before she can move on to the next stage of her life. So, I think how thoughtful the script is in dealing with one’s journey and one’s grief. She’s alone, but she’s part of things and going through things with other people. I found all of that in the script and continued to as we were filming.
O-C: Would it be fair to say this is a film that explores more of our own humanity than the zombie genre?
DR: I think it really depends on who’s watching. My mum watched this and said, ‘Oh my God, that’s so sad.’ My sister watched it and said that it was so scary. I thought that was so brilliant because we all experience films differently and whatever you take into the film with you is how you are going to experience it. I felt, in playing Ava, it was an exploration of humanity and how far someone is willing to go to get an answer.
O-C: What was your favourite scene in the film?
DR: To film? Ooh, that’s a good question. I really loved was the camper scene. To me, this scene really encompasses the whole movie. We filmed this on the last evening. The actor who plays the zombie was so fantastic and it’s such a moment and you think that this is just another thing for Ava to deal with, but what she witnesses is someone caught up but will not continue without his family and how she has to intercede. It was so beautiful and such a simple moment. It’s also the turn for Ava before she gets her answer and doing that scene really felt like Ava understood the inevitability of what she has to meet. Not only was it a beautiful scene to film but it sets her up.
O-C: What sets this film apart from other zombie films?
DR: I don’t know, really, because there are so many sorts of movies within the zombie space. Like you said, it’s a very human movie rather than a zombie film, but the ways that the zombies are played are so very different. Then there’s a progression in the emotional story because of the ways that the zombies are played, because all the actors are so different. Maybe it’s the progression of these human things and what they’re trying to do.
O-C: With such a powerfully emotional film, what are your favourite moments, your takeaways from this film?
DR: That’s a great question! The thing is, we had such a lovely time filming, when we were filming the end scene, Brenton (Thwaites, Ridley’s costar) always had his guitar with him and I made up a song that started ‘Sad, sad Ava / Some happiness she craves / yeah.’ That was my attempt at rhyming (laughs). We were doing this scene that was so hopeful and between the very end and everything, we’re having a strum, singing this song and having a lovely time. For me, it was a sort of humanity in our filming that mirrored what was happening in the movie that Ava is experiencing too. That felt like such a great moment.
Want more We Bury the Dead? Check out Bonnie Laufer's interviews with actor Brenton Thwaites and writer-director Zak Hilditch.