“Touch Me”

Written and directed by Addison Heimann, I can guarantee that the psychosexual horror comedy “Touch Me” is going to split audiences. It’s a strange mix of horror, science fiction, dark comedy, and hentai drama that swings for the fences, even if it rarely ever connects.

The story follows Joey (Olivia Taylor Dudley) and Craig (Jordan Gavaris), two hopelessly codependent best friends whose lives are already falling apart before Joey’s impossibly attractive ex Brian (Lou Taylor Pucci) suddenly reappears. The catch? Brian is also an alien whose touch instantly erases anxiety and depression. Desperate for relief, the pair head to his secluded compound, only to discover that Brian’s promise of healing hides something much darker.

Heimann clearly wants to say something meaningful about trauma, OCD, addiction, narcissistic abuse, and the unhealthy comfort of codependent relationships. Even the alien’s touch becomes an obvious stand-in for any addictive escape that makes emotional pain disappear for a little while. Those ideas are surprisingly thoughtful, and the movie deserves credit for taking them seriously instead of turning them into cheap jokes.

Unfortunately, the execution is all over the place.

The opening sequence (which is also the film’s most memorable) is built around a lengthy therapy monologue by Joey, and it gets things off to a rough start. It’s rambling, awkwardly written, and never lands the comedy highs it’s clearly aiming for. This scene ends up setting the tone for much of the film. Despite being marketed as a horror-comedy, the comedy rarely works, leaving scenes that feel more uncomfortable than funny.

And be warned that the movie certainly isn’t afraid to get weird. There are tentacles, bloody practical effects, graphic sexuality, bursts of shocking violence, and enough bizarre imagery to make plenty of viewers squirm. At first it’s a tad revolting (and even a little nauseating), but after a while, it starts to feel like the film is piling on outrageous moments simply because it can. Even with a premise involving alien seduction and world domination, surprisingly little of it is genuinely entertaining.

It’s not all bad. Heimann creates a visually stylish world that feels like a warped indie B-movie filtered through late night cable horror, and it looks and feels appropriate for the story. The practical effects are memorable and Dudley’s lead performance is so good that she keeps Joey relatable even as everything else flies off the rails. None of these positive aspects completely succeeded in winning me over, though.

“Touch Me” feels like a messy experiment filled with interesting ideas that never quite come together. Its exploration of trauma, consent, and emotional dependency is sincere, but those themes constantly fight for attention against the movie’s relentless desire to shock. Some may admire its fearless originality while others will find it exhausting and self-indulgent. I appreciated what the film was trying to do, but for me, the weirdness eventually overwhelmed the story.

By: Louisa Moore