We Are What We Are (2013) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Emma died from Kuru disease, a degenerative neurological disorder caused by consuming human flesh. During the autopsy, Doctor Barrow discovers this condition, which explains her sudden collapse and bleeding from the mouth. The disease has been affecting the Parker family for generations due to their ancestral cannibalistic rituals.

• emma parker death
• kuru disease
• autopsy
• cause of death

Kuru is a fatal brain disease caused by consuming infected human tissue. The disease has a long incubation period and eventually causes neurological deterioration. Doctor Barrow discovers Emma had Kuru, which confirms his suspicions about the Parkers' dark practices. This revelation serves as the key evidence linking the family's present-day crimes to their pioneer ancestors.

• kuru disease
• cannibalism
• prion disease
• doctor barrow evidence

Frank is following a brutal family tradition passed down from their pioneer ancestors. The book read by Rose describes how their ancestors survived harsh winters by consuming human flesh after the men died. Frank believes this ritual keeps the family united with their mother and maintains their survival tradition, though he twists it into a distorted religious practice.

Foreshadowing: The pioneer flashback scenes establish early that the women resorted to eating their dead husbands and sons to survive winter.

• pioneer tradition
• family ritual
• cannibalism tradition
• frank parker beliefs

Frank catches Deputy Anders in an intimate moment with his daughter Iris. Consumed by rage and protective jealousy, Frank attacks Anders with a tire iron, killing him instantly. This violent act represents Frank's complete mental breakdown and his desperate attempt to prevent his family's secrets from being exposed.

Foreshadowing: Frank's increasing paranoia and isolation from his family foreshadow his violent reaction to any perceived betrayal.

• deputy anders death
• frank kills
• iris involvement
• murder scene

Marge is killed by Frank when he breaks into her home looking for Rose and Rory. After Frank murders Marge, he manipulates his children into returning to him by making them believe they have no other option. This tragedy demonstrates how completely Frank has surrendered to his darkness, murdering his own neighbor without hesitation.

Foreshadowing: Marge's earlier attempts to help the family with vegetarian meals and her concern about strange noises from the shed establish her as the only compassionate outsider.

• marge death
• frank breaks in
• murder
• neighbor killed

Rose bites Frank's neck as a desperate act of rebellion and self-preservation. After years of coercion and abuse, she finally fights back against her father in the only way she can. Alongside Iris, who drives a knife into Frank's hand, Rose kills their father to escape his control forever. This violent act represents their complete rejection of his twisted family tradition.

Foreshadowing: Rose's earlier resistance to eating the captive woman, despite Frank's insistence, shows her growing defiance.

• rose attacks father
• final confrontation
• escape
• rebellion

Rose places Doctor Barrow's daughter's stolen hair ornament on his chest as a grim acknowledgment of guilt. This gesture reveals that the Parkers are responsible for Barrow's missing daughter, who was one of the captives held and killed for the ritual. It also serves as a haunting confirmation of the family's crimes to the only witness left alive.

Foreshadowing: The missing teenage girls mentioned on the poster at the beginning, combined with Frank's captive in the shed, foreshadow this tragic connection.

• hair ornament
• doctor barrow daughter
• missing girl
• cannibalism victim

Iris participates in the cannibalism primarily due to intense psychological coercion and fear of her father. Though she initially resists Frank's orders to butcher the captive, she ultimately complies to protect herself and her siblings from Frank's violent wrath. Her relationship with Deputy Anders also reveals her inner conflict and guilt over what her family forces her to do.

Foreshadowing: Iris's insistence that they must follow the ritual, despite her mother's death, shows how deeply the tradition has been drilled into her.

• iris parker coercion
• family pressure
• cannibalism participation
• psychological abuse

Rose realizes Frank has added arsenic to the soup, intending to poison his children. She knocks over Rory's bowl in a desperate attempt to save him from being killed, similar to how their mother supposedly died. This moment shows Rose's protective instincts toward her younger brother despite the traumatic circumstances.

Foreshadowing: Doctor Barrow's discovery of Kuru in Emma's body suggests she was killed rather than dying naturally, foreshadowing Frank's murderous intent toward his own family.

• arsenic poisoning
• rory saved
• frank murders family
• rose protects sibling

The relentless downpour serves as both a literal and symbolic force that isolates the Parker family from the outside world while their secrets unravel. The storm prevents escape, traps characters together, and mirrors the building tension within the family. It also provides cover for Frank's crimes and creates the atmospheric dread that defines the film's tone.

Foreshadowing: The butcher's warning that conditions will worsen before improving directly foreshadows the escalating horror.

• storm symbolism
• atmosphere
• isolation
• weather motif

While Emma initially appears to die from Kuru disease, the circumstances are suspicious. Frank refuses to identify her body and sends his daughters instead, suggesting he knows more than he admits. The reveal that Emma likely had Kuru for years, combined with Frank's later attempts to poison his remaining family, strongly implies he may have hastened her death or deliberately infected her.

Foreshadowing: Frank's emotional withdrawal and strange behavior after Emma's death hint at his complicity or guilt.

• emma parker murder
• frank responsibility
• kuru transmission
• family secrets