Talk to Me (2022) – Light the Candle, Hold the Hand, Face the Abyss

Talk to Me (2022) – Extended Review

Having recently experienced Bring Her Back (2025), it became clear that it would be necessary to see where this all started. A few years earlier, Philippou brothers, Daniel and Michael, hit the screens with their directorial debut Talk to Me (2022). While Bring Her Back didn’t necessarily blow these doors off, it was plain to see that these guys had an eye for the macabre and should be watched closely.

Summoning Demons is NOT a Game

Long has the Ouija board been a staple of the horror business. There is no other device that can dial a a horror film to 11 s quickly or reliably as the Ouija board. In an intriguing twist, Talk to Me skips the board and planchette and goes one better creating an even creepier device to communicate with the dead. A group of teenagers posses a disembodied ceramic hand that communicates with the dead. You can be damn well sure that that they are going to use it, and you can be even more certain that it is not going to go well.

RTFM

Let’s get into the technical bits concerning the disembodied hand.

Step 1, light a candle to open the door to the underworld. Step 2, grip the disembodied and utter the phrase “Talk to Me” to bring a member of the spirit world to the table. Step 3, say “I Let You In” to let the spirit possess your body. As long as the process goes on for LESS than 90 seconds and the candle is blown out to ‘close the door’, this is a really cool party trick. DO NOT LET IT GO ON FOR MORE THAN 90 SECONDS. Remember that time I told you not to feed the Mogwai after midnight. It’s serious this time… 90 seconds… don’t screw it up.

A Handful of Characters

The linchpin of Talk to Me is Mia, played by Sophie Wilde. Mia is a young woman dealing with the untimely death of her mother. Her estranged relationship with her father further adds to her emotional distance. She she lacks confidence and apart from her best friend Jade, Alexandra Jensen, struggles to maintain strong relationships with her peers. Jade has a brother named Riley, and the story mostly revolves around these three and their exploits communicating to the spirit world.

It is not overstating it to say that Sophie Wilde carries this entire film on her back. It’s not that the film could not have worked without her, but her performance is an absolute smash. Her eyes are absolutely captivating as she projects her metal state through them. She so effortlessly exudes her fears and anxieties. She often shows flashes of strength, but is mostly a passenger on a hellish roller coaster that she set in motion. Her emotional anchors to her mother, Rhea, and her father, Max, becomes a lightning rod for her actions, much to the dismay of everyone around her.

A Well Crafted Vehicle

The success of Talk to Me is its ability to create a thrill ride around the performance of Sophie Wilde. The Philippou brothers are keenly capable of building and releasing tension while maintaining a brisk pace that keeps the audience engaged. While the film leans on some good old fashioned jump scares, the camera hovers uncomfortably close, creating claustrophobia. More times than not, the tension pays off more than the release.

Talk to Me does not overly reliant on gore and special effects, but when it does, the practical effects land with a visceral and believable weight. The decaying spirits possess features well worn within the possession horror genre, but it is done well even if not original.

Visually, the film is immaculate. Cinematographer Aaron McLisky paints in sickly neons and muted blues, framing the characters in a sterile, disconnected world. The horror doesn’t come from creaking doors or sudden jolts, it comes from the unshakable sense that none of the characters really know how to be alive.

Tip-Toeing on the Brink of the Abyss

Talk to Me carrys a ton of emotional baggage, but it never really reconciles its balance. It teases deeper meaning, catharsis and even a glimpse of the cosmic unknown, but never closes the deal. The ending is neat in an ‘I see dead people’ kind of way, but it feels a bit vacuous and unfulfilling. The film leads the audience to the edge of the abyss. It even looks down at times. It just never gathers the fortitude to jump.

The Wrap

Talk to Me is smart, stylish, and more honest than most horror films. Again, it’s impossible say enough about the performance of Sophia Wilde and the is worth the runtime simply to witness her. The film is wholly enjoyable so long as expectations are in-line with the deliverables as the film plays strangely safe for an A24 film. The film avoids landmines that turn off some horror viewers and will cater to audiences looking for something that doesn’t demand a lot of cognitive load.

Talk to Me (2022) – TL;DR Review

Talk to Me introduces a refreshingly sinister twist on spirit communication, ditching the Ouija board for a grotesque ceramic hand. With a ritual that involves gripping the hand, lighting a candle, and saying “Talk to me,” a group of teens unlocks a gateway to possession. There is one crucial rule: don’t go past 90 seconds. Naturally, they do, and all hell follows.

At the heart of the chaos is Mia, played with gut-wrenching vulnerability by Sophie Wilde. Grieving her mother’s death and emotionally adrift, Mia becomes the linchpin of the story. Wilde’s performance is magnetic, quietly devastating and uncomfortably raw. She elevates the film beyond its possession tropes into something far more tragic and personal.

The Philippou brothers direct with precision, leaning on creeping tension over gore. Claustrophobic camera work and stark neon visuals from Aaron McLisky reinforce the film’s sterile emotional landscape. While the spirits are familiar, the execution is sharp. The horror comes less from jump scares and more from the gnawing emptiness beneath the surface.

Talk to Me flirts with existential dread but never fully commits. It hints at deeper meaning, then backs away. Still, it’s stylish, emotionally charged, and anchored by a performance that makes it worth the watch.

Talk to Me (2022) - Light the Candle, Hold the Hand, Face the Abyss - Malevolentdark

Director: Danny Philippou, Michael Philippou

Date Created: 1970-01-01 00:33

Editor's Rating:
3