We’ve been in a golden age of horror movies for the last decade, and we can thank the film studio A24 for a lot of what we’ve seen. Since 2013, A24 has been distributing and producing films of all different genres, but the horror films they’re also known for really started to take off in 2016 with Robert Eggers’ The Witch (although it showed at festivals in 2015). Fast forward to 2023 and A24 has several modern horror masterpieces to their name (Green Room, Hereditary, Midsommar). What makes A24 so important to the horror film industry is the freedom they give their directors and filmmakers to make whatever they want. That is where Talk to Me comes in.

Danny and Michael Philippou are first-time directors known for their wildly successful horror YouTube channel RackaRacka. With fans itching for a full-length theatrical release from the talented Australian duo, it was finally time to make the jump. With their unique vision and often impressive horror visuals, A24 and the Philippou twins felt like a match made in heaven. After a bidding war at the Sundance Film Festival in 2023, Danny and Michael left with a deal with A24. They could feel confident that they would be able to release their film in the way they intended.

Talk to Me was being released with several months of hype tied to it, with some people calling it one of the scariest movies they’ve ever seen. Was the hype justified? Almost. That kind of chatter before a movie can be both a blessing and a curse. While it might not be the scariest movie I’ve ever seen, there is no doubt that Talk to Me is the best horror movie of 2023 so far.

After an unsettling opening scene, our journey with Mia, played by newcomer Sophie Wilde, begins. Mia has recently lost her mother to somewhat mysterious circumstances. It’s affected Mia in indescribable ways, and her life has been turned upside down. She has seemingly lost friends at school and has become a bit of a troublemaker. Mia has never been more isolated, but she did befriend brother-sister pair Riley and Jade (Joe Bird and Alexandra Jensen) who are now more family than just friends.

The three friends go to a party one night where the intention is to play a new game. To play, you need to grip a severed hand that has been embalmed and encased in ceramic while somebody else lights a candle. You need to blow it out to end the game. Once you grab the hand and say, “Talk to me,” the body of the player is taken over by the spirit of a dead person. It’s crucial that they only play for 90 seconds at a time. If you were to stay in the game for longer, you might lose control.

As soon as Mia walks into the party, it’s clear that not everybody wants her there, but she is brave enough to volunteer for the game. The possession scenes are undoubtedly one of the strongest elements of the film. Mia’s large black eyes are piercing once she’s been taken over, her face tenses up, and she is now no longer Mia. Part of what makes Wilde’s performance so striking is her ability to be incredibly convincing when she’s possessed, and also so genuine and troubled as Mia. Sophie Wilde is a star in the making.

Once they’ve played the game once, there is no stopping the group from playing more. We get an exhilarating montage of more parties where the sole purpose is to film their friends getting possessed by spirits. This ceramic hand is their version of drugs, always pushing their limits to get a better and better fix. The parties aren’t complete without filing and posting the possessions on social media. That’s likely why they even bother playing, except for Mia who simply needs an escape from her sorrow.

Around the half way point the joyfulness of teens messing around comes to a screeching halt. A switch flips and the Philippous shock the audience with one of the most gruesome horror scenes I’ve ever seen. What makes Talk to Me such a success are not only the impressive horror visuals, or the naturalistic and convincing performances from the entire cast, but it’s the emotional weight and stakes the movie is interested in tackling. It has all of the fun of your typical teen-centered horror movies, but with a premise the audience can buy into and sympathize with.

8.7/10

Written by: Stefano Todaro