31 Days of Horror: Talk to Me is dark and emotional

There have been some good horror movies released in 2023, but my favorite so far has been Talk to Me. I think it’s perfect for our 31 days of horror movies series, because it’s surprisingly scary, while also managing to include some humor.

The film has been a much talked about success, and a prequel was recently announced, so there will be more to come.

Talk to Me is an A24 film, so you may go into it expecting their signature slow burn type of horror. Instead, it opens with a violent, chilling scene that sets the stage for the next 90 minutes.

Our main character is 17-year-old Mia, still caught up in grief two years after the death by overdose of her mother. Her father is struggling with his own grief, and as a result, the two are more or less disconnected from one another.

Mia’s way of dealing is to spend most of her time with her friend Jade, Jade’s 14-year-old brother Riley and their mother Sue (Miranda Otto, who provides a lot of the much-needed laughter in this otherwise dark tale).

One night, Mia and Jade go to a party in order to see a mummified hand that has been popping up on social media recently. The story is that you hold the hand in your own, speak the words “talk to me”, followed by “I let you in”, and this allows the spirit to come into your body. The online footage is terrifying, but being teenagers, Mia and the other partygoers are game to try it.

Mia is pretty much an outcast among the others, so in order to fit in, she steps up and bravely offers to go first. She is strapped into a chair and instructed that the “possession” can only go on for ninety seconds – any longer, and you run the risk of not being able to get rid of the spirit.

Talk to Me amps up the intensity in possession scenes

Some of the scariest scenes in Talk to Me involve the possession sequences, and Mia is somehow exhilarated by hers…even though it looks utterly terrifying onscreen. She is eager to try again, and another party is held at Jade’s house the following night. This time, young Riley wants to participate, and Mia allows it, despite Jade’s wishes.

Without getting into too much detail, it goes horribly wrong, mostly due to Mia. Riley’s possession scene is horrific, there is no other word to describe it, and from that moment on, Talk to Me just gets darker and scarier.

When a film has to rely on even one actor under 18, it’s critical that the role be well cast, and Talk to Me is blessed with the performance of Joe Bird as Riley. Even though the other main characters are young, 14-year-old Riley is truly an innocent in this whole story, and we HAVE to care about his fate. We do, and we are 100% with Mia as she tries desperately to figure out how to save him.

Talk to Me is currently available to stream On Demand, and I highly recommend it if you want to watch a film that is genuinely frightening.