Talk to Me (2022) is an Australian supernatural horror film distributed by entertainment company A24. With such low numbers from previous A24 films such as Midsommar , we were less than eager to  strap a subject to our heart monitor. But after several members of our horror community reached out, some forcefully, and told us to watch it, we had no choice but to oblige. Could this horror film produce surprisingly high heart rates in time for Halloween? Read the terrifyingly accurate results.

SYNOPSIS:

When a group of friends discover how to conjure spirits using an embalmed hand, they become hooked on the new thrill, until one of them goes too far and unleashes terrifying supernatural forces.

Where to Watch: Prime Video

Test Subject: Chelsea

Age: 41

Gender: Female

Fears: Wiccaphobia or Fear of witchcraft

Resting HR: 60-65bpm

Walking HR: 80-85bpm

ANALYSIS:

Even with the late to the party monitoring, our subject cozied up on her couch unaware of the plot or the hype surrounding this horror film. Boy, did we get in trouble.

An uncomfortable opening scene, ending with a quick jolt, kicked off the film and drove our subject’s heart rate into action. But a lull sunk in for the next ten minutes as we discovered our main character’s backstory and issues. During these moments, our subject’s heart rate dipped below her resting average which made the following spikes even more impressive.

At 19:00, the hand made its first appearance along with a few terrifying characters. One of the strengths of Talk to Me lies in its ability to build tension. From the first appearance of the hand, our subject was immediately gripped by a sense of foreboding, unsure of what horrors may await. After this moment, a sense of dread and unease overwhelmed our subject each time the hand was brought out. This gave us clear-cut points of tension.

At 43:00, our subject’s heart rate climbed to an exhilarating 98bpm during a scene in which my only written note was , ‘shit gets real’.  After this mark, our subject was left feeling deeply unsettled and could not get comfortable for the remainder of the film. In fact, an hour into our monitoring session we heard our subject pray for the movie to be over.

Note: One of our fastest heart rate escalations in FearScale’s history came at 55:00 when we recorded a 71bpm to 96bpm climb within four minutes.

CONCLUSION:

Talk to Me (2022) is a powerfully disturbing horror film that skillfully blends supernatural elements with psychological terror. Click To Tweet This, combined with the unexpected gore, produced severe escalations in our subject’s physiological reactions. The visual effects created genuinely chilling moments that will haunt her dreams for days to come. But the scariest thought that crossed our minds while monitoring was: how many kids nowadays would attempt this dare simply for a TikTok challenge.

Afterward we asked our subject if she enjoyed the movie and her response… talk to the hand. We’ll be starting the search for a new subject soon. 🙂

Talk to Me (2022): Burns an average of 248 Calories

Arm Roast: 180 Calories

How many Fear Calories did you burn watching Talk to Me (2022) ?  Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook