A group of friends discover that they can speak with spirits from beyond by using an embalmed hand. When Mia (Sophie Wilde) discovers that she can speak with her deceased mother, she becomes addicted–accidentally inviting maniacal and manipulative spirits into the world of the living. Once you ask the spirits to “Talk to Me” there is no turning back.
As soon as Talk to Me begins viewers are able to feel the intensity of all that happens before them. The deeper we move into the narrative, however, the more powerful the discomfort becomes, enveloping viewers. Viewers feel panicked and nauseated as a result of what plays out on screen, and there are moments when Talk to Me feels like it’s too much to handle; and I’d venture to guess that it would in fact be too much to handle for some. I genuinely enjoy the intensity, as this is a horror film that got into my head, fucked with my emotions, and had me paralyzed in my seat.
Talk to Me is a supernatural horror film much like many that have come before it. Some unknowing individuals stumble upon a supernatural power far beyond what they can handle, ultimately leading to death and destruction. What Talk to Me does so wonderfully different, though, is it extends itself past the supernatural, to a place that I’m not sure I’ve ever been taken before. And to juxtapose that, it pulls itself back enough to remain grounded and accessible. There’s no doubt that the idea of addiction made its way into the writers room, that it didn’t, at least in a small way, play a role in developing this story–and this familiar subject bleeds into the rest of the story and out into the audience. It’s familiar territory that the world will get behind–but more importantly they will understand.
Light helps to tell Mia’s story throughout Talk to Me and blur the line between reality and the beyond. The film is so artistically made that viewers feel completely immersed in this world, like they are playing along in this sick game, struggling with Mia and her cohorts. Talk to Me has one of my favorite shots ever in cinema. As Mia sits there, staring into space, seemingly not mentally or emotionally present, a light shines through the rain and the window, splitting her face in two and representing Mia perfectly at that point in the film. It’s beautiful, it’s technically sound, and it helps to set up the remainder of Talk to Me.
I absolutely love the pacing of Talk to Me. It’s a layered narrative that, out of necessity, follows something of an ensemble cast through the dark depths of their new reality (and their minds). Character after character make their way into the fold, and it’s important that Directors Danny Philippou and Michael Philippou find a way to incorporate them all into the film organically, rather than shoving them all into one space hoping that it sorts itself out—and they pull it off brilliantly. By being thrown right into the mix in the opening seconds of Talk to Me, viewers are given an extreme preview of what is to come–but then it dials back the intensity just for a second, just long enough for us to catch our breath, and then it throws us back in. There’s never a dull moment in Talk to Me, but there are certainly times when the Philippous bring us back down to earth just long enough that we don’t suffocate on our own anxiety, and the sort of tug of war that exists between simplicity and extreme helps to drive the film forward at just the right speed. Again, there are moments in this film when we feel just as tense and uncomfortable as the characters–but before too long our feet are back on the ground as we regroup and prepare for the next kick in the chest.
I’m always looking for the next great horror film, and I’m afraid that I’m almost always disappointed. However, Talk to Me shakes things up and tells the rest of the horror-making world to get on its level. There’s nothing quite like Talk to Me, at least not that I’ve ever seen–and if there is, I’m glad I missed them. I sat in a theater with only two other people in the middle of the day on a Wednesday. I sat there not anticipating much at all, but hoping that I’d be surprised–and this was one of the best theater experiences that I’ve had in a long time. The dark, the quiet, the isolation–all played perfectly into Talk to Me. This film will absolutely thrill even at home, but I encourage you to see this film before it leaves theaters–because it will amplify your experience to an infinite degree. Talk to Me is one of the best horror films that I’ve ever seen.
Directed by Danny Philippou & Michael Philippou.
Written by Danny Philippou, Bill Hinzman, & Daley Pearson.
Starring Sophie Wilde, Joe Bird, Alexandra Jensen, Miranda Otto, Otis Dhanji, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/10
Comentarios