Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz Take Their New Thriller to Terrifying Places | TIFF Review

Image via Sony Pictures Classics; Everett Collection Published Sep 25, 2026, 2:50 PM EDT Tania Hussain is an Executive Editor at Collider responsible for creative, editorial, and managerial duties. In addition to leading content ideation and development, she works to generate innovative and compelling ideas for feature articles and reviews with her editorial team across Features, Lists, Reviews, and Interviews. She also serves as the primary editor overseeing Collider’s Signature Series profiles, spotlighting some of the most influential voices in film and television. Tania has helped cover and ideate content for major events for Collider, including the Toronto International Film Festival. She has also conducted more than 100 interviews since her start in the business more than 15 years ago. Some favorites include Joel McHale, Charlie Cox, Jennifer Garner, Tina Fey, Kate Winslet, Bob Odenkirk, Andy Richter, Jordan Schlansky, Jamie Dornan, Yeardley Smith, Rafe Spall, Esther Smith, and a reasonable toss-up between Cookie Monster and Kermit the Frog. She has covered set visits, in-person junkets, and red carpets for several films and TV shows, including most recently, The Sheep Detectives, Masterchef, and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. Sign in to your Collider account Director Florian Zeller isn’t exactly known for making movies about happy homes. After The Father and The Son, the playwright-turned-filmmaker is back with Bunker, another story about a family struggling behind closed doors. This time, though, we get real-life couple Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz as Miguel and Sofia, a long-married pair living in London with their two daughters. They’re the epitome of big city wealth, hiring a nanny to look after their kids, going to art gallery openings, and mingling with folks who come from old money. From the outside, they have everything — but on the inside, things are far less settled. Those “things” suddenly take a turn when Miguel, a “starchitect,” receives an unusual request from an elusive, Elon Musk-type tech billionaire named Andrew (Paul Dano). Andrew wants Miguel to design a massive bunker that will protect a chosen group of wealthy people when the world falls apart. While the job becomes one source of trouble, the family’s other issues also keep mounting. Sofia feels stuck at her literary agency job, while Miguel soon suspects she’s spending too much time with the new, young author James (Patrick Schwarzenegger) her company just signed. On top of that, their neighbor Toby (Stephen Graham) has knocked a hole through his wall to install a window that overlooks their property. Nobody outside the couple’s house is entirely trustworthy, especially after their cat Blue unexpectedly vanishes. Zeller makes good use of that slow-simmering uncertainty, allowing the smallest of interactions and unclear intentions to keep the film tense. Though not every idea in Bunker is explored as fully as it could be and some of its supporting characters are noticeably thin, Bardem and Cruz make the troubled marriage hard to look away from. At 126 minutes, Bunker is a thoughtful, suspenseful thriller with a tinge of dark comedy that may not floor audiences, but it’s well-made, sharply acted, and definitely worth your time. What Is ‘Bunker’ About? On paper, Bunker looks like a story about an architect building some fancy HGTV-style shelter for a billionaire. But Zeller is more interested in what happens when two people who’ve built a life together stop agreeing on what that life is. Miguel (Bardem) and Sofia (Cruz) have been married for 17 years, with five of them now spent in London after leaving Madrid to advance Miguel's career. While the move worked for Miguel, Sofia’s career as a literary agent stalled. When she advocates for a promotion, she meets a prejudiced response. It finally confirms her fear that London is Miguel’s home, but it will never fully be hers. And that bunker project only widens the gap. Miguel and his business partner (Mark Gatiss) see the assignment as a chance to earn enough money to empower their next move. But Sofia can’t ignore the disparity of the project itself, which will help wealthy people escape to a private spot while everyone else is left behind. Not to mention, the job would separate Miguel from his family for months, at a time when their daughters are already having complex reactions to their presence. Their teenage daughter Lucia (Chloe Conh) already keeps both parents at a distance, usually disappearing behind her headphones, while young Rosa (Leah Conh) still misses them whenever they are gone and has a tinge of loneliness. Sofia’s doubts deepen after meeting James (Schwarzenegger), whose outlook on life reminds her of choices she could have made if her own life didn’t revolve around Miguel. And finally, there’s Toby’s (Graham) window, which Miguel sees as an invasion of privacy. While the neighbor insists he needs natural light for his studio, Miguel sees it as anything but an innocent request. Already uneasy about what’s happening in his home life, he responds by installing state-of-the-art security systems and begins watching everyone around him more closely. This tightened grip pushes Sofia to pull away. Soon, that growing doubt between husband and wife erupts in a genuinely terrifying conclusion that will leave you at the edge of your seat, absolutely stunned. It’s at this moment Zeller keeps the audience trapped in fear and unsure of what will happen next or who they can truly trust. Best of all, nothing about this sequence is rushed, as the film’s quieter anxieties turn into full-blown terror, creating a climax that’s stronger for it. ‘Bunker’s Writing Keeps Everyone Under Suspicion Image via Sony Pictures Classics; Everett Collection Zeller, alongside his co-writers Louise Krieger, Mariano Cohn, and Gastón Duprat, builds the film’s suspense by making sure everyone’s intentions are slightly out of reach. This is best seen when Graham’s character is viewed through Miguel’s eyes while in his own house, so that the audience is encouraged to share his distrust. That uncertainty runs through the film, especially when we meet James, who’s attentive to Sofia but also represents life outside her marriage, or Andrew, who convinces Miguel enough that he too shares similar concerns. Zeller also slips dark humor into these uncomfortable exchanges, preventing the movie from becoming too grim while still leaving everyone under some distrust. But the script is less successful when it tries to connect some of those personal fears to larger ideas about wealth. Toby’s anger over gentrification or the billionaire’s plan to abandon society create a sharp argument about inequality, but Bunker never digs deeply into either. Whereas Toby is frustrated over people like Miguel transforming neighborhoods and pricing out those who grew up there, that resentment only appears threatening because it’s one-sided. Meanwhile, the billionaire is even more removed, and though he speaks of social collapse, we only see him briefly through Miguel’s one conversation with him. Where the writing lands best, though, is with Miguel and Sofia. These are two people who love each other even as they become less certain of their life together. Zeller never turns either spouse into the obvious villain. Miguel’s desire to protect his family is logical, but that concern blends quickly with jealousy and a need for control. Sofia has every reason to talk to her husband about her sacrifices, but we see that she struggles with it. The most lived-in aspect of their relationship is in the conversations and arguments that begin with smaller things, like work or children, before they really blow up. That attention to detail and escalation gives Bunker its emotional weight and makes everything, specifically its terrifying final act, hit harder. Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz Are ‘Bunker’s Greatest Strength Image via TIFF 2026 One of the reasons Bunker remains so compelling from start to finish is Bardem and Cruz. With the pair knowing when to push against each other and when to step back, the couple gives both characters room to exist without ever outdoing the other. This dynamic also makes up for some of the script’s holes, as neither performer needs dialogue to prove this marriage has changed. Bardem’s Miguel is grounded and logical, making sure his concerns for the family are genuine. But as his character changes and his confidence slips, you see his body stiffen, and his attention shift toward his family’s growing discomfort. Cruz is equally expressive as she internalizes Sofia’s unhappiness through her eyes or posture. Their real-life relationship adds a natural familiarity and, of course, chemistry, but it’s never a gimmick. The supporting cast is a bit bumpier. While Graham is elusive as Toby, playing him with enough hostility for us to understand Miguel’s upset, Dano is detached and almost too one-dimensional — though that can be argued as what billionaires actually project. Schwarzenegger is just fine as James, even if his character is more of a plot device than a memorable presence who creates his own tone. That said, none of these characters sink the film, but they do depend heavily on Bardem and Cruz to keep it afloat. Bunker may not break new ground or explore every idea as deeply as it should, but it remains a well-made and consistently engaging thriller with Bardem and Cruz, who alone make it worth your time. Release Date February 19, 2027 Runtime 126 minutes Director Florian Zeller Writers Florian Zeller Producers Alice Dawson, Federica Sainte-Rose, Fernando Bovaira, Florian Zeller, Simón de Santiago Cast Pros & Cons Bardem and Cruz share compelling, perfectly balanced chemistry. The slow-building suspense pays off in a terrifying final act. Its striking glass-house design reinforces the themes of privacy and isolation. The class commentary is introduced but never fully developed. Dano and Schwarzenegger's characters feel thin and one-dimensional.