The Philippou brothers deliver a fantastic Australian horror film with Talk to Me, creepy, smart, layered, and relatable characters make this one to watch, and get freaked out over.

Something is sweeping the social media of the kids in a town in Australia, parties built around a ritual involving an embalmed hand, candles, and ninety seconds on the clock.

Mia (Sophie Wilde) is reeling from the death of her mother, and is refusing to connect with her father. Instead, she finds herself partially taken in by Jade’s (Alexandra Jensen) family, her younger brother, Riley (Joe Bird), and mother (Miranda Otto).

Because of her personal grief, she’s been branded a bit of a weirdo by the rest of her social group, but sees a chance to win some of her peers back when she agrees to take part in the strange game they’re all playing. They grasp the embalmed hand, say ‘Talk to me,’ this allows them a glimpse of spirits on the other side of the mortal veil, and they can invite them in, but anything longer then ninety seconds is dangerous, and they have to light a candle to summon them, and blow the candle out to dismiss them.

Can you see what’s going to happen from what I wrote above?

It does, and so much more, it gets truly frightening, bloody, and emotionally horrifying. And the film doesn’t let up for a moment, it is relentless. It takes chances as a film, totally embraces the genre it’s in, and also makes the characters real, and not just stand-ins for a body count.

Mia is a great character, and the film makes sure you have time to get to know her. We see that she is in a lot of pain as she tries to figure out how to deal with the loss of her mother, and what her family and her friends mean to her. And the choices she makes not only affect her, but everyone around her.

The film can be an analogy for a number of things, or can just be viewed as a straightforward horror film, but it plays great, the ending is an emotional kicker, and we know that there is the possibility of more exploration of this world – the film got great reviews, and wowed audiences, so hopefully we’ll hear rumblings of a sequel.

This was a great ride, with lots of great, human moments and some really well-orchestrated scares and beats. I’m very eager to see what the brothers do next!

Talk to Me is a fantastic and solid horror film that stays on point, and doesn’t let up until the last moment of the film. The camerawork is fantastic, the effects are great, played just enough for you to realize something terrible is going on, and the makeup and visual effects for the spirits – just right.

Check this one out, it is so worth your time!