Netflix’s Brick (2025) is a tense, cerebral addition to the platform’s growing catalog of European thrillers. This new movie is directed by Philip Koch and stars Matthias Schweighöfer and Ruby O. Fee. Brick is a psychological puzzle box that traps its characters, both literally and emotionally, within the confines of their Hamburg apartment. What seemingly begins as a domestic drama between a grieving couple soon mutates into a slow-burning survival mystery. This movie plays with themes of isolation, communal trust and technological advancement.

The movie was released on July 10, 2025 and has gained mixed reviews. Some have praised its eerie premise, while others find the German language film to be a bit off-kilter. For movie lovers interested in understanding what happens on-screen, here’s our Brick movie ending explained.

What is the plot of ‘Brick’ (2025)?

The plot of Brick centers around a couple, Tim (Matthias Schweighöfer) and Olivia (Ruby O. Fee), who are on the verge of a breakup. They’re reeling from the aftermath of a miscarriage, which leads Olivia to need a change in scenery. She wants to change her life and move to Paris, but Tim hesitates. The two grapple with their own grief very differently, which seemingly is destroying their relationship. In an argument, Olivia gathers her things and attempts to storm out of their apartment. She plans to move to Paris without him. But to their surprise, they can’t even get out. The windows and doors of their apartment are encased in an impenetrable wall of black bricks. These bricks aren’t made up of ordinary materials either. Instead, they are magnetic, nanotech-based barriers that repel forces used against them. 

As they attempt to drill their way out (through the floor), they encounter other trapped tenants. And the mix of people they encounter makes the situation much more interesting. One by one, the couple makes their way to different apartments and realizes that everyone is in the same predicament. They first meet a couple, Ana and Marvin (Salber Lee Williams and Frederick Lau, respectively), who are drug addicted Airbnb guests in an abusive relationship. Then they get to the next apartment and meet Mr. Oswalt and his granddaughter (Axel Werner and Sira-Anna Faal). After teaming up with this weary pair, they smash into another apartment, where they meet a man named Yuri (Murathan Muslu). All tenants discuss what could have caused the bricks to appear, but no one knows the full situation. 

Why do the characters keep dying?  

Tension justifiably rises quickly as each attempted escape ends in a tragedy or death for the tenants. But there are many reasons why people keep dying in the movie Brick. For one, paranoid and conspiracy theory believing characters like Yuri keep undermining escape plans. Then there were accidental deaths, like how Marvin shoots at the brick wall out of frustration, and the bullet ricochets and fatally hits Mr. Oswalt. And the mystery about the deaths in the building deepens when they learn that one of the tenants, Anton, worked at the same company that developed the bricks. Yet they never got to talk to him because, as Yuri claims, he had a weak heart and was so worried about the bricks that he died from a heart attack. 

Upon attempting to get to the basement of the apartment, they finally make it to their landlord’s apartment on ground level. They find him dead, in a pool of blood, with his hands seemingly chopped off. This death is one of the most perplexing, but turns out to be connected to the bricks they so desperately want to escape from. 

How does the new Netflix original end?

When they investigate his home, they discover that Mr. Friedman has a chilling secret of his own. He has a surveillance room full of monitors watching their every move. Despite the creepy factor of this revelation, they all attempt to use this new resource to help themselves escape. They use past surveillance recordings to see if Yuri left behind anything helpful that may help them escape. And they do partially find something helpful. Video of Anton reveals that he did something with his phone and was temporarily able to open the wall. But as the video continued, they found out how he really died. Yuri, shaken by his conspiracy about what may wait for them outside of their apartments, choked him to death before he could escape the bricks. 

So, once they realize what he has done, they rush back and realize he has killed Mr. Oswalt’s granddaughter. Then, when they search Anton’s notes, the ones that Yuri hadn’t destroyed yet, they discover that the bricks were intended as a next-generation defense technology meant to isolate and contain dangerous zones in times of crisis. And according to Anton’s theory, a fire across town led them all to malfunction. They restrain him as Tim (who works as a game programmer), attempts to recreate the program Anton used to escape temporarily. 

Do any of the couples in ‘Brick’ escape?

Finally, the programming begins to work, and the bricks react to the phone by dissolving into an opaque material. Seeing her way out of the nightmare, Ana attempts to put her arm through it, but it gets stuck. Then, it starts to solidify again, with her whole torso already submerged. When she attempts to pull herself out, she is split into two and dies immediately. This brutal ending shows an example of what most likely happened to Mr. Friedman’s hands before the tenants got to him. Marvin, obviously upset about the loss of his partner, kills Yuri and then himself, which leaves just Tim and Olivia alive. 

But before their final attempt at escape, they clear the air from their near breakup. This tender moment reveals that Olivia felt emotionally abandoned by Tim. At the same time, he closed himself off to stay strong for her during the tragedy. After they hash out their relationship problems, they return to action. The two rewatch the surveillance video to correct any mistakes in their programming and are prepared to try again. Then suddenly Yuri comes out of nowhere and attacks them (surprise, he’s still alive). A fight ensues, and Tim tells Olivia to use the phone and leave him, but she doesn’t. She instead smashed Yuri in the head with a sledgehammer, and the couple escaped through the basement’s bomb shelter tunnel. 

Once they reach the outside world, they are met with a haunting view of the place they call home. The buildings in the city are covered with them, and the streets are abandoned. So, the strange occurrence is widespread. And the big question about the strange black bricks is seemingly answered, but the clarity about things only comes in the movie’s last scene. To escape the ghost city, they steal a car. Then they hear over the crackling radio that the whole thing malfunctioned. The nanotech security system throughout the city went haywire due to a lab fire, which is a defensive security feature gone wrong. Ultimately, the couple survived the crazy predicament, but whether anyone else remains alive is a mystery. 

Is ‘Brick’ worth watching?

Whether Brick is worth watching depends on what viewers attempt to get out of the experience. If you’re drawn to atmospheric yet minimalistic thrillers, Brick will likely keep you hooked. The film’s central performances are compelling and the tension is almost tangible. But the movie isn’t without its flaws. Some critics, including Decider, cite that supporting characters feel underdeveloped, so they simply don’t enrich the plot much. But the platform also found the ambiguous ending and layered symbolism hauntingly effective. So, if a claustrophobic thriller with an unsettling undertone is something you’re in the mood for, Brick is the right thing to watch.