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| Sophie Wilde in "Talk to Me" Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com |
When it comes to horror storytelling, the concept of campfire tales or urban legends is an enticing part of the genre. Given how every culture has their own selection of such stories, there’s a wealth of horror to be had across different backgrounds.
A new horror release that has a campfire/urban legend quality to it is the Australian film, “Talk to Me,” from directors Danny and Michael Philippou, which marks their feature-filmmaking debut. With an intriguing angle and some very effective scares, this is a chiller that will satiate your horror hunger as we go through the back half of summer.
Mia (Sophie Wilde) is a high-school student who’s still trying to handle the loss of her mother from two years ago. While at a party, she and her friends use an embalmed hand that has the ability to contact supernatural forces. When their experiment goes too far, they’ll be faced with a terror they never could’ve imagined.
Wilde gives a terrific breakout performance as someone who’s life is upended by horrors from another realm. Wilde has a superb naturalism about her as she interacts with her costars, bringing us a character who’ll make us care for her and then fear for her safety when she makes contact with the dead. Throughout the film, she brings across the sense of loss that Mia’s experiencing, while also showing someone who loves to have a good time with her friends in the first third of the movie before the spirits appear and wreak havoc. Wilde gives Mia a personality that’s both emotional and fun-loving, helping us become invested in her life as she goes from trying to get over a painful loss to enjoying time with her friends to going through an existence invaded by malevolent forces. Wilde exhibits a well-rounded character who’s both flawed and brave, bringing to life a horror protagonist who must save her loved ones from the unthinkable.
While the screenplay by Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman falters a bit in the last half hour when the rules become a tad murky as to how the spectral forces work, the story nevertheless offers an eerie setup for what becomes a frightening descent into spiritual terror. Before they bring us the scares that soon permeate the characters’ lives, Philippou and Hinzman take time to build up the emotional stakes as we get to learn about Mia and the relationships that she has with her father and friends. We only get a small look at the possibilities of the mysterious hand when the friends first use it, but once we get about a third of the way through and the friends continue using it, it’s then that Philippou and Hinzman really show us the horrific heights that the cursed object can go. And, as we learn a little more about Mia and her background as we go on, the screenwriters imbue their story with some clever symbolism and foreshadowing that show how much thought went into this film in between the scares, offering some depth to the overall horror experience and adding layers as to what the characters are going through emotionally.
One of the best things that a modern horror movie can do these days in the midst of CGI overload is utilize practical effects, and this one sure knows how to make them effective. This is done the best when it comes to the makeup. The appearances of the spirits when they breach the world of the living will make you squirm in disgust, but also recoil in fright as they haunt the characters and become more menacing as the film goes on. With this being the Philippous’ first movie, it’s amazing to see what they’re able to pull off with practical effects, and this shows how committed they are to going the more challenging route in order to make things seem more real.
The Philippous also offer some great jump scares and sound design. By doing so, they nail the otherworldly atmosphere as it seeps into the natural world, creating a strong sense of dread as the spirits become more threatening as the film goes on. When it comes to the scenes of possession early in the movie, the Philippous make you feel the twisted sense of fun that the friends have as they record each person when they’re under the influence of evil, while also making you tense up at the danger with which Mia and her friends are playing. The directors strike an enjoyable, yet ominous tone during these scenes, and then give you the full force of the terror at the film’s turning point when the hand’s disturbing nature becomes much more potent.
If you’re looking for a horror movie to add some scares to your late-summer moviegoing, “Talk to Me” will grab you by the hand and pull you there.
Grade: A-
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