Listen up, horror fiends! If you're a fan of Drag Me to Hell, Flatliners or Idle Hands, you're gonna love the gritty and gruesome Australian gem, Talk To Me.
Supernatural horror flick Talk To Me is the theatrical debut of directing brothers Danny and Michael Philippou, best known for their grisly YouTube channel, RackaRacka.
Talk To Me's story revolves around a group of teenage friends who stumble upon a peculiar discovery—the ability to conjure spirits using an embalmed hand. What starts as a thrill-seeking experiment (filmed and shared online, naturally) quickly spirals into a terrifying ordeal when one of them takes their curiosity too far, unleashing sinister and supernatural forces upon themselves.
Talk To Me interweaves the paranormal with real-world trauma. It's a gut-wrenching exploration of family, loss and trust.
With its tightly-woven narrative and waggish wit, Talk To Me is both engaging and entertaining throughout its entire 94 minutes. (I know! How refreshing in an era where unnecessarily long features have become the norm!) Talk To Me makes great use of its time and thanks to some efficient editing, it holds pace, builds suspense and provides levity at all the right moments.
But, be warned! For all its humour, Talk To Me contains some brutal and bloody scenes that’ll avert even the biggest gorehound's gaze. Personally, I haven't had such a visceral special effect experience since watching the Argentinian horror film Terrified.
As well as being a gut-wrenching tale of family, loss and trust, Talk To Me's raw and gritty cinematography embraces everything audiences have come to love about Australian film. Those who enjoy the distinct look and feel of movies like Animal Kingdom, Snowtown and The Babadook will no doubt appreciate the understated 'Adelaide aesthetic' of Talk To Me.
Talk To Me gets under the skin with its intriguing story, relatable characters and convincing performances.
So, who’s this movie for? Well, looking around me at the youngsters in the theatre, and considering the average age of the cast (basically fetal), I wondered if Talk To Me was going to be the typical, run of the mill, soft teen horror flick. But, I'm thrilled to say it got under my skin with its intriguing story, relatable characters and some pretty convincing performances from lead Sophie Wilde (Mia), newcomer Joe Bird (Riley), and the magnificent Miranda Otto (Sue).
This movie will appeal to all genre fans, but especially those who admire classics like Drag Me to Hell, Flatliners and Idle Hands.
Overall, Talk To Me is one of the most entertaining horror movies to emerge from Australia in recent years. So, what are you waiting for? Go watch it! Let it in! Possession has never been so much fun!
Talk To Me opens in Australian Theatres on 28 July 2023.
About Victoria Hall
Victoria Hall is an English-born writer and illustrator with a passion for anything gothic, eccentric or quirky. You can follow Victoria on Instagram or check out her bio here.
