Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

The Surrender

Play trailer 1:24 Poster for The Surrender Released May 23 1h 39m Horror Mystery & Thriller Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
85% Tomatometer 40 Reviews 48% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
A fraught mother-daughter relationship is put to a terrifying test when the family patriarch dies and the grieving mother hires a mysterious stranger to bring her husband back from the dead. As the bizarre and brutal resurrection spirals out of control, both women must confront their differences as they fight for their lives -- and for each other.
Watch on Fandango at Home Stream Now

Where to Watch

The Surrender

The Surrender

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Extracting a maximum amount of creepy mood from a simple setup while reaching surprising poignancy as a mother-daughter story, The Surrender is a victorious feature debut from writer-director Julia Max.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View More (40)
Claudia Puig FilmWeek (LAist) It's a very strong strong directorial debut... It's really fun to watch as an acting exercise, too. Jun 3, 2025 Full Review Simon Abrams RogerEbert.com “The Surrender” accomplishes a lot with a sketch-sized story and matching compositional agility and precision. It’s short (less than 90 minutes!) and sweet and the best kind of upsetting. Rated: 3/4 May 23, 2025 Full Review Alexandra Heller-Nicholas AWFJ.org The Surrender is a solid horror film, but where it truly excels is in its wholly singular, authentic and deeply empathetic portrait of palliative caregiving, which – as anyone who has ever done it knows – is a nightmare in and of itself May 18, 2025 Full Review Alex Saveliev Film Threat Horror fans will appreciate the grotesque examination of grief that is The Surrender. Rated: 7/10 Aug 21, 2025 Full Review John Daniel Tangalin The Cinema Spot The Surrender is focused on how carefulness and carelessness can go hand-in-hand. It’s one thing to attend to word of mouth, but it’s another thing not to take one’s beloved into consideration. Rated: 4/5 Jul 19, 2025 Full Review Cody Allen Geek Vibes Nation It’s not a film that seeks to startle, but to haunt—to leave you sitting with thoughts about your own family, your own memories, and the things we carry forward from those who raised us. Rated: 7.5 Jul 17, 2025 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More (52)
Ted J Please don't waste your time watching this movie, I can't even think how terrible it was, no story, no sense, no horror, no ending, no acting, I think even a 5 year old can do better than this movie, it's the first time I really waste around 2 hours of my life watching this, Rated 1 out of 5 stars 09/07/25 Full Review Hidden P I really liked this movie. I've been trying to find new, original, genuinely scary movies, and I've had hard time doing so. The first thing I liked about this movie is that it feels very human, very real. The characters are flawed, relatable, even funny sometimes. The pacing is good, the images really striking, and at times truly nightmarish : it's been a long time since I've seen such unsettling visions, and I'm becoming rather difficult. The whole subtext about grief, memory and acceptance is very powerful and spot on. If I had one negative thing to say about this movie, it would be that I regret not seeing more of the ... [POSSIBLY SPOILER NEXT] "other" side. It looked awesome, and I really wish it would have been explored more, although I understand it was not the point of the movie. Anyway, if you're searching for something that'll give you some chills, don't expect too much but you're definitely in for some, and the originality of the movie will provide the rest of the enthusiasm. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 09/06/25 Full Review Ale C I give it points for not going like i thought it was going to go. If you ran out of great movies, this is a good movie too. There is just something about it that when you compare it to the rest of the movies made on this decade, you appreciate some details too. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 09/04/25 Full Review Jen G This movie is based on grief and from my prospective; it circle around “I’ll be there for you” kind of moment. Key take aways is to learn how to let go, though it hurts but it’ll hurt you more by holding on. The ending could’ve been better tho. Honestly, the whole movie could’ve been better. It’s definitely one of those movies you might wanna watch while playing a game of uno or while sewing or something. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/02/25 Full Review Steven F I appreciated the acting on both lead ladies' parts. That said, I think my favorite part of the movie was when the sister went to cover up the tall mirror in the bedroom. It was creepy and made me think the rest of the film was going to be just as good, full of sinister tension in the dark. But that ended up being the peak. I laughed out loud when they were trying to close the deceased dad’s mouth - not sure if they intended it to look comical, but it set me off with a long, loud laugh. And then the shaman…what a guy LOL. The actor really nailed that whole enigmatic, unpredictable vibe. But there’s so much damn anticipation up until the last fifteen minutes, and then you’re left hanging - for fifteen minutes - before it lands on the most anticlimactic ending possible Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 08/30/25 Full Review Erman A. Y Colby played an excellent villain in Fear the Walking Dead. She is a great actress Rated 3 out of 5 stars 08/16/25 Full Review Read all reviews
The Surrender

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW
Sinners 97% 96% Sinners Watchlist TRAILER for Sinners Bleeding 83% 93% Bleeding Watchlist Raging Grace 95% 60% Raging Grace Watchlist TRAILER for Raging Grace Speak No Evil 83% 83% Speak No Evil Watchlist TRAILER for Speak No Evil Nightsiren 100% 78% Nightsiren Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis A fraught mother-daughter relationship is put to a terrifying test when the family patriarch dies and the grieving mother hires a mysterious stranger to bring her husband back from the dead. As the bizarre and brutal resurrection spirals out of control, both women must confront their differences as they fight for their lives -- and for each other.
Director
Julia Max
Producer
Julia Max, Mia Chang, Lovell Holder, Ian McDonald, Robert J. Ulrich
Screenwriter
Julia Max
Distributor
Shudder
Genre
Horror, Mystery & Thriller, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 23, 2025, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
May 23, 2025
Runtime
1h 39m
Most Popular at Home Now