Talk To Me is directed by Danny and Michael Philippou. The film stars Sophie Wilde, Alexandra Jensen, Joe Bird, Otis Dhanji, Miranda Otto, Zoe Terakes, Chris Alosio, Marcus Johnson, and Alexandria Steffensen.
Talk To Me fills its 95-minute run-time with zero fluff, a brilliant young cast, and the always magnificent Miranda Otto, some excellent practical effects coupled with shifty camera work, creating one the best supernatural horror films I have seen in years.
When a group of teenagers discover how to conjure spirits with the use of an embroiled hand, what starts as simple thrill chasing, takes a sinister turn when one of them oversteps the rules of the séance, leading to the unleashing of supernatural entities.
In the horror genre, there are too many times when filmmakers opt for cheap scares and over-the-top scores, with characters written into the story, not to benefit the plot or support character development but solely for use as a sacrificial lamb. Most of the time, these films try to gloss over the paper-thin story and uninteresting characters. However, with Talk to Me, there is none of that and simply no need for it. Every jump scare is earned, and every eventual death serves the story without deviating from the mechanics of the lore created. Some scenes are visually brutal, some are skin-tingling, creepy and certainly some, oh my god, did that happen scenes. Even with all this, you are constantly guessing throughout to see where the film leads, and most times, it went in directions that I didn’t expect, but once the credits rolled and the realisation of what just happened hit me, everything made sense, such perfect sense.
The film is scattered with brilliant performances from a predominately teenage cast, with Sophie Wilde leading the line as Mia and putting in an incredibly layered performance. Her character hides the grief of her mother’s passing with a fake smile and will do anything but sit still as she tries to keep her mind away from her thoughts. When supernatural entities are unleashed, her whole performance switches, and it was a marvel to watch. As good as Sophie and the entire cast were, newcomer Joe Bird, who played Riley, was the film’s star. His possession scene is magnificent, one of the best I have witnessed on screen. I must give a special shoutout to Miranda Otto, who is simply as sublime in this as she is in everything. Playing Jade and Riley’s mother, she brings the comedic beats and adds some Australian star power to the film.
Talking about Talk To Me without touching base on the practical effects and makeup department is impossible. I am no detractor of VFX and CGI, but there is just something about effects done in the camera that cannot be replicated. The possessions and supernatural entities here are incredibly well done. There are brutal scenes in this film, and the ability to do all that with practical effects, makeup, and some shifty camera work is a credit to everyone involved.
Talk To Me puts Danny and Michael Philippou (RackaRacka) on the map as the hottest new Horror directors in town.
