Films by YouTubers are something that can be so good… or so… not good (looking at you, Logan Paul). I’m pleased to report, however, that A24’s “Talk to Me” is a rare YouTuber film success! Australian twin brother directors Michael and Danny Philippou had been producing fictional scripted short film-type content for years on their YouTube channel RackaRacka, and their slide into long-form cinema is pretty seamless (at this point, I’m starting to think me not being born with a twin brother was a blow to my writing career). With a few negligible issues, “Talk to Me” is stylish, brutal and a hell of a debut feature.   

The film follows Mia (Sophie Wilde), a teenage girl in southern Australia who is currently grieving the unexpected death of her mother. Mia is childhood friends with another girl, Jade (Alexandra Jensen), and her younger brother, Riley (Joe Bird), having grown closer to their family in the wake of her mother’s death and refusal to carry on a conversation with her father. One night, the trio attends a party where their larger group of friends discover an embalmed hand that can conjure spirits and let them inside you. The activity seems like a gas, and it is — at least until they go too far and unleash much more malevolent spirits.   

The script is tight, and the film clocks in at a cool 92 minutes, which I appreciate. Some scenes do lull a bit, but the incredibly well-done possession and party scenes keep the film balanced and stop it from being a depressing drag. Speaking of parties, nearly all the possessions we see are in the context of a house party, with the excellent cold open taking place at a house party gone awry after a victim of the hand’s possession commits a murder-suicide. This cold open sets the tone of the film perfectly, with a fantastic long take that paints a fun and hedonistic picture of Gen Z parties in contrast with the panic and dread being felt by the victim’s friend, who screams for everyone to put their phones away and stop recording the victim’s breakdown as they all blankly stare. The use of the hand at parties specifically furthers the film’s depiction of possession as a type of drug, specifically a psychedelic like salvia (the directors mention their inspiration for the characters’ behavior while possessed was watching their friends do drugs at parties).   

When you decide to sit for the possession, your friends tie you to a chair, light a candle, and you shake the hand and invoke the title, saying, “Talk to Me.” At this point, the spirit materializes in the room, usually looking disgusting, and if you want to go all the way — as Mia and her friends do, you can invite the spirit inside to possess you. Just like salvia, which is also incredibly intense but short-lived (note: I have not done salvia), your friends set a timer for 90 seconds before ripping the hand away from you (what happens if you go for 90 seconds? Don’t worry, you’ll see). The trip is quick and usually horrific, but you come out of it thrilled and euphoric. The best scene in the film is an early expertly edited montage of different people being possessed and partying interchangeably highlighted by the best song on the soundtrack, a fun and sometimes diegetic party piece that is edited on beat with the lighting of the candles and the banging of the chair on the floor. It was at this point that I turned to my friends in the theatre, and we admitted to ourselves that the possession did look a little fun.  

The fun is soon over, though — once Mia crosses the 90-second threshold, she begins to see more and more threatening spirits constantly, not just when using the hand (insert addiction metaphor). Things only continue to worsen when Jade’s fourteen-year-old brother Riley, wanting to impress his sister and Mia’s older friends, decides to undergo the ritual. Things go okay until something more akin to a demon enters Riley and refuses to leave. Other than the previously mentioned montage, this is easily the best scene in terms of horror. The possession effects (the characters get really gross-looking) are practical and look great, and the film does not let you miss out on the gore, even when it comes to fourteen-year-olds (I had to look away for nearly all of Riley’s possession scene). What is it with 2022/2023 horror movies and mangling kids? “Skinamarink”, “Evil Dead Rise,” now this? The iPad kid epidemic must be getting to people.  

From then on, the rest of the film only gets more dreadful, with the themes of grief and the film’s tone becoming more and more bleak, but not to a degree that’s soul-crushing. The sound design is also worth mentioning because it is mixed very specifically to get under your skin, which works for the most part but was a bit overwhelming for me personally, especially in a small theatre. Mia picks at her nail polish, bones crack, people breathe and gasp, and you hear it all. Overall, “Talk to Me” is a successfully ambitious, expertly gnarly, and surprisingly dark debut. I’m excited to see how the already filmed/greenlit prequel and sequel turn out. In summary, to quote my friends: “WHY invite a demon into you. Just do drugs at that point.”