Talk to Me review visually and emotionally brutal horror

Some may roll their vision to the when of their throne like Reagan in The Exorcist at Australian YouTubers RackRacka (aka Danny and Michael Philippou) making the leap to full-length filmmaking, but their daring modern horror employs its inside concept of teenagers using demonic possession to get upper as a thrilling and emotionally engaging exploration of grief, peer pressure and teen life in the digital age.

The twin brothers overdue the mucosa have spent years making DIY horror-comedy and their passion and knowledge of the genre is glaringly unveiled in this thoroughly torturous debut. The mucosa hits the ground running with a violent prologue at a party all shot in one impressive and energetically paced take. The stakes are upper from the start so that when the main notation are introduced you’re once yellow-eyed for their safety.

Exceptional newcomer Sophie Wilde stars as Mia who is grieving her mother’s death. It’s the day of the one-year year-end of her passing and she’s looking to distract herself, so persuades her weightier friend Jade (Alexandra Jensen) to shepherd a possession party. Jade’s younger brother Riley (Joe Bird) and her celibate boyfriend Daniel (Otis Dhanji) tag withal too. The twins don’t forget to add humour to the mix and souvenir Miranda Otto, who plays the very knowing mother to Jade, with some of the funniest lines; her wordage is spot on.

It is essential that there are rules to the unconnectedness in teen horror and the Philippous thoughtfully lay them out in a similar way to films like It Follows, Ringu and A Nightmare on Elm Street. As the owners of a creepy embalmed hand that can unshut a gate to the spirit world, Hayley (Zoe Terakes) and Joss (Chris Alosio) explain them: touch the hand, repeat a phrase, let the spirit in and make sure to stop without 90 seconds.

To uncork with, the possession scenes are dizzyingly rendered, powerfully capturing the marvel of youth and the excitement of stuff part of the group. They are brought to life with fantastic make-up, horrifying effects, meticulous editing and an up-to-date soundtrack including music from social media sensation The Kid LAROI. As the thrill of the sessions wilt haunting Mia’s mental health deteriorates and she undergoes a transformation that parallels drug use.

The Philippou twins have crafted suppositious teen characters, each with their own particular set of fears which are preyed on as the possession scenes get increasingly darker. Sexual desires, loneliness and just wanting to fit in are all shockingly translated through single-minded physical performances from the very capable young cast. Wilde in particular uses her physicality to terrifying ends.

The teens get a real kick out of an unknown entity inhabiting them and the mucosa translates that whoosh of connection in a way that can be read as metaphor for meeting people online. The real danger and gasp-inducing violence emerges once they start to take unnecessary risks in search of IRL genuine connection. This is uncompromising horror that perceptively taps into trendy life with visual flair and smarts.

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