Years after the apocalypse, a mute young woman fights for survival when zealots capture her for ritual sacrifice to appease an ancient evil. A film by E.L. Katz, starring Samara Weaving, Vic Carmen Sonne, Katariina Unt, Peter Christoffersen, Eero Milonoff, and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett.

Many years after the Rapture…
Among the survivors,
some are driven to renounce
their sin of Speech.

The film opens with a title card that provides us with a clue, hoping we can fill in the blanks ourselves. Apparently, an unexplained apocalypse occurred many years ago. We do not know what actually happened or why. There are survivors who have formed a cult believing that speech is a sin. They have surgically removed their vocal cords to prevent themselves from speaking, each bearing a cross-shaped scar on their throat.

In the forest, Azrael (Samara Weaving) and her lover Kenan (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) are on the move. Azrael’s paranoia is evident as she constantly scans their surroundings, behaving like someone being followed. When she discovers Kenan has lit a fire, she immediately stamps it out in panic. Based on their behavior, I suspect they are escaped members of the cult who were chosen for sacrifice and fled before the ritual could take place. This would explain their constant fear of being found.

Eventually, the zealots capture Azrael and Kenan, transporting them in separate vehicles. They bring Azrael to Josephine (Katariina Unt), who awaits at the ritual grounds deep in the forest. The zealots bind Azrael to a crude chair made from a tree trunk and wood. Josephine draws a razor knife across Azrael’s leg, and as blood begins to flow, an eerie wind stirs through the trees – as if some unseen presence has acknowledged their ritual. The zealots, including Josephine, retreat from the ritual grounds, turning their backs on Azrael. Something is coming for her, but they’re too terrified to witness it.

Through the woods, a charred, demonic humanoid creature creeps closer, drawn by the scent of Azrael’s blood. It advances slowly, releasing a horrific wail that pierces the air. While the zealots remain focused on their ritualistic breathing, anticipating the sacrifice, a young zealot spots Azrael struggling against her restraints. He breaks ranks and enters the ritual ground to secure her. In their struggle, the chair’s arm snaps, and Azrael accidentally drives the splintered wood into his neck.

Azrael tears herself free from the chair and flees into the forest. When the zealots finally turn around, they find only an empty chair – Azrael has vanished. In the distance, Josephine watches in horror as the Burned One drags away one of the zealot.

By a river near a collapsed bridge, Azrael stops to treat her leg wound. The moment she exposes the bleeding cut, another Burned One appears, drawn by the scent of her blood. To her surprise, the creature retreats when her wound stops bleeding. Later, she spots tire tracks in the mud and follows them, her path leading directly to the cult’s encampment.

Directed by American filmmaker E.L. Katz from a screenplay written by Simon Barrett, AZRAEL is a unique action-horror film that unfolds almost entirely without dialogue, focusing on a mute cult in a post-apocalyptic world.

What’s fascinating about this film is how effectively it conveys its narrative without relying on dialogue. The first half maintains excellent pacing, building intrigue around its morally ambiguous protagonist and the mysterious Burned Ones (formidable creatures that, while powerful, can be killed).

However, the lack of dialogue and exposition ultimately works against the film’s world-building, particularly in the second half where the story becomes confusing and repetitive.

Several crucial questions remain unanswered: Why is the protagonist so vital to the sacrifice? What drives her to repeatedly return to the camp where the zealots want her dead? Is it purely for revenge? The discovery of her image in the cult’s church suggests she’s part of a prophecy, but her significance to the cult and why they want to kill her remains frustratingly unclear.

While the film boasts stunning visuals and memorable kills, it fails to convincingly show how its protagonist transforms from an ordinary young woman into a merciless skilled killer by the film’s end.

AZRAEL premiered at SXSW on 9 March 2024. The film received a limited theatrical release in the United States on 27 September.