To hype its buzzy new horror movie, A24 held advance screenings of Talk To Me in more than twenty markets around The United States, and spoiler alert, they went over very well. I attended one of them myself, and reaction was extremely positive, at least apart from one middle aged lady I sat next to who brought her daughter and seemed to have no idea what she was getting into. She watched most of the movie with her hands covering her face, trying to keep the spirit world out.
Everyone else, however, collectively let that spirit world in, and we shared a bumpy and deeply unnerving ride. Don’t take my word for it though. As part of CinemaBlend’s partnership with A24, we brought along a camera crew and interviewed about twenty people as they were coming out of the theater. We asked for their knee-jerk reactions, and in an effort to describe how scary it was, they used phrases like “my knees are kind of still jelly right now” and “finger-biting-what’s-gonna-happen-next kinda scare.” You can watch a round-up of their horror-stricken reactions below…
As you can see in the video, no two reactions were the same. The undercurrent running through them all was excitement and positivity, but how that was expressed was very different. Everyone experienced and interacted with the movie in their own way, which is a good sign that it’s going to resonate with a lot of people, no matter their background or what they typically look for in horror flicks.
If you’re out of the loop, Talk To Me follows a group of teenagers who figure out how to communicate with the dead using an embalmed hand. At first they use the appendage as a party trick, but life, or in this case the afterlife, comes at them fast, and suddenly, their fun little game turns into a lingering nightmare with real life consequences. I could elaborate more, but honestly, I think you’re better off going in as fresh as possible.
If you missed these advance screenings, have no fear. Talk To Me is getting a wide release in The United States on July 28th and will be hitting many other parts of the world around that date. Consult your local showtimes and pick up tickets. You’ll be happy you did.
