“Talk to Me” is directed by twin brothers Danny and Michael Philippou, also known for their YouTube channel RackaRacka, which is dedicated to horror comedy. This film stars Sophie Wilde (Eden, You Don’t Know Me), Alexandra Jensen (Beat, Frayed), Joe Bird (First Day, Rabbit), Otis Dhanji (June Again, Aquaman), Miranda Otto (The Thin Red Line, War of the Worlds), Zoe Terakes (Wentworth, Nine Perfect Strangers), Chris Alosio (Surviving Summer, The Messenger), Marcus Johnson (The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee, Power Rangers: Ninja Steel), and Alexandria Steffensen (Eden, Neighbours). This film follows a group of friends who become obsessed with conjuring spirits using an embalmed hand. When things go too far, they must deal with the calamity that ensues.

My goto social media platform, if you can call it that, is YouTube. Despite its growing problems and greed in recent years, it remains one of the best sites on the Internet for sharing content. In fact, the story of how “Talk to Me” can likely trace back to the directors’ days of doing horror comedy on YouTube. I love how one’s activity and commitment to a simple platform people utilize for cat videos, or in my case, elevator rides and entertainment-related content, can one day lead to a big feature film like this. I have heard a little bit about this film before going into it, particularly nothing but good things at the time. Although it was a bit of a mystery as to how I would end up taking it.

Overall, I thought “Talk to Me” is both a clever concept and quite a good movie. When it comes to horror films, one of the common things that get in the way of characters happen to be their own curiosities. Sometimes as a viewer, it kind of takes me out of the movie when said curiosity happens because I can easily see a scare coming once said curiosity comes up. Something like that may occasionally make the film a bit less scary than I would wish it to be. But the way the curiosity is handled in “Talk to Me” is perfect. The curiosity ultimately regards everyone’s obsession with a hand that allows them to talk to spirits. This allows for some interesting interactions not only amongst the social group, but as for the one holding the hand, they have their individual experience with whoever is on the other side. I admire how the script handles the variation across the board. Despite being a horror film, the variation allows for moments that do not feel completely scary, and despite causing some occasional tonal shifts, they never feel jarring.

I am not going to pretend that this is is the scariest horror title I have ever seen. But that does not mean it is bad. For one, the creeps this film emits, are effective. When they are there, they work. But I was mostly interested in how this film handles its characters, concept, and how those things mesh together. In fact, when it comes to the overall intrigue of the film, I was immersed from scene one. “Talk to Me” may have my favorite hook I have seen of any film I have watched in 2023. As soon as a particular action happens around the one to two minute mark, I was sold. I wanted more.

With the straightforward hook that effectively thwarts itself into the nitty gritty, it should not come as a shock that “Talk to Me” is perfectly paced, which definitely helps with the short runtime. It never overstays its own welcome. It just gets to killer and avoids filler. There is not a moment of this film where I felt outright tired or bored.

There are a number of characters in “Talk to Me,” so if you had to ask me who my favorite was, that would not be an easy decision to make. Although I must say the entire cast in this film gives it their all. Everyone had genuine chemistry and felt like they belonged in their roles. This film mostly centers around Sophie Wilde’s character of Mia, and she is excellently portrayed. Sophie Wilde is a young individual with only a few credits. Additionally, she is from Australia, where this movie is set and shot. I have no idea where her career will take her. Maybe she will end up in Hollywood, maybe not. But I am glad this movie put her on my radar because she is a talented actress. I think if she keeps things up, we could be talking about her a lot more in upcoming years. Other enormous standouts in the cast include Joe Bird (Riley), Alexandra Jensen (Jade), and Miranda Otto (Sue). That said, the rest of the cast, for the most part, is great too.

What makes the handling of this movie’s concept great is how it utilizes the large cast to their full potential. The effects of the movie do not just have to do those who interact with the hand themselves, but their connections with each other. In this film’s case, curiosity does not just kill the cat, it kills the clowder. And when the turmoil amongst the clowder ensues, it adds to the film’s overall intrigue.

I also kind of dig the end of the film. I am not going to spoil anything for those who have not seen it. But not only is it kind of eerie, kind of disturbing, but it is also clever. The final few minutes is a quite a chain of events that not only emit chills, but serve as a perfect conclusion for a number of the characters’ arcs.

When breaking down the idea behind “Talk to Me,” it is simple. But it does not mean it is not effective. This film is twisted, haunting, and at the same time, kind of weirdly heartfelt in select moments. At the end of the day, this is a movie about a bunch of teenagers who take a dare too far and perhaps appear to not know any better. Have I seen scarier movies? Absolutely. But from start to finish, I was hooked. I admired the connection between our world and the spirit realm if you want to call it that. And I would recommend watching this movie with the lights down. If you dare.

In the end, “Talk to Me” is a film that I feel I cannot share a whole ton about, but that is also why you have to see it. Not a beat a dead horse, this is not the scariest film I have ever seen despite how effectively everything is handled. This film kind of feels more disturbing than it is terrifying. There are one or two moments of the film where certain things play out that had me thinking I somehow had been hypnotized into joining someone’s cult. The characters are great, the script is really good, and the direction from the Philippou brothers is masterful. I hope to see more from these two down the road. I am going to give “Talk to Me” a 7/10.

“Talk to Me” is now playing in theaters everywhere. Tickets are available now.

Thanks for reading this review! If you enjoyed this review, why not check out my other ones? If you are still in on the Barbenheimer craze, I have you covered as I have my thoughts on both “Oppenheimer” and “Barbie” now available for your reading pleasure! What did I think of this year’s biggest double feature? Click the links to learn more.

My next review is going to be for the brand new DCEU film, “Blue Beetle!” The cinematic universe may be on its last legs, but is this movie good enough to help this timeline stand on said legs? We shall see. Also coming soon, I have reviews coming for “Strays,” “Gran Turismo,” “Meg 2: The Trench,” and “Bottoms.” Stay tuned! If you want to see this and more from Scene Before, follow the blog either with an email or WordPress account! Also, check out the official Facebook page! I want to know, did you see “Talk to Me?” What did you think about it? Or, what is your favorite horror movie concept? Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!