Touch Me
The brief
Heimann crafts a genuinely unsettling body horror that feels like if David Cronenberg made a film about toxic friendships and emotional vampires. The alien angle works as both literal sci-fi threat and perfect metaphor for how we destroy ourselves chasing the wrong kind of intimacy, with Dudley and Pucci selling the codependent spiral with uncomfortable authenticity. It's slow-burn creepy rather than jump-scare scary, building dread through increasingly wrong human behavior. Perfect for fans of The Invitation or Annihilation who like their horror psychological and their metaphors unsubtle.
The verdict
If you crave psychological horror that burrows under your skin like Cronenberg's best work and don't mind unsubtle metaphors about toxic relationships, this is a genuinely unsettling triumph. If you need faster pacing or prefer traditional scares over slow-burn dread and uncomfortable human behavior, skip this for something with more immediate thrills.
Watch with
- 👤 Solo viewing for maximum psychological impact
- 👥 Horror fans who appreciate slow burns
- ⚠️ Avoid if sensitive to addiction themes
Heads up
- Body horror and disturbing transformations (moderate)
- Drug addiction themes and dependency (frequent)
- Psychological manipulation and abuse (moderate)
- Disturbing intimate/sexual situations (moderate)
Credits
- Director
- Addison Heimann
- Cast
- Olivia Taylor Dudley, Lou Taylor Pucci, Jordan Gavaris, Marlene Forte, Paget Brewster, Ashley Lauren Nedd, JJ Phillips
Official synopsis
Two codependent best friends become addicted to the heroin-like touch of an alien narcissist who may or may
The Double
Make a night of it
Pair this with Subservience (2024)
Both explore dangerous codependent relationships with manipulative non-human entities.
Total runtime: 1h 40m + 1h 45m = 3h 25m
