By DEIRDRE CRIMMINS
Starring Olivia Taylor Dudley, Jordan Gavaris and Lou Taylor Pucci
Written and directed by Addison Heimann
WTFilms
Modern living can be awfully strange. This is not to take an overly simplistic, nostalgic look at the past through rose-colored glasses, but it is to say there are many more ways to derail a life these days. TOUCH ME takes a silly and satirical look at addiction, body horror and lust while maintaining its core of empathy and humanity. And how many films that also feature tentacle sex can say that?
Joey and Craig (Olivia Taylor Dudley and Jordan Gavaris) are two codependent friends and roommates. Aside from their truly impenetrable personal inertia keeping them pinned to the couch, doomscrolling and vaping, they are not very similar. Joey is starting therapy and dealing with some heavy recent trauma in her life. Craig’s bruised personal history is further in the past, and he is floating along through life without needing to work or find purpose and reveling in that freedom. A (literally) shitty issue in their shared home is just enough reason for Joey to reconnect with a strange ex-boyfriend and get them invited to a concrete palace for the weekend. Though not the only catch, the biggest factor that should give them pause is the fact that Brian (Lou Taylor Pucci), the ex, is an alien. And he is not just any old alien. Brian is horny as hell, dances hip-hop and has an overbearing housekeeper named Laura (Marlene Forte) whose jealousy is rivaled by the massive square footage of his remote home.
As TOUCH ME descends into lustful soirees, it would be understandable, yet inaccurate to draw comparisons to The Rocky Horror Picture Show. A horny, non-monogamous alien wooing both the man and woman in a sexless duo as they stay the night at his generously sized home when left with little choice could describe both films. However, by peeking further into Brian’s motivations and Joey’s personal demons, the comparison can stop there.
Brian feels a bit like a Mad Libs created character. He likes vaping, wearing track suits and hip-hop dancing, but none of those interests go any deeper than the surface of his primally-driven character. Sure, he is an alien and he feeds off of sex and attention, but none of that has anything to do with his dated hairstyles or athleisure wear. Joey, on the other hand, is a character worthy of empathy and understanding. Dudley’s performance of an addict who lies and manipulates is spot-on. When not on what we think of as traditional drugs, the want and inability to be logical shines through on the screen, thanks to both Dudley and writer/director Addison Heimann’s script. Joey simply cannot quit Brian, and we are able to see how he functions to fill a void in her life, with disastrous consequences.
The quirky and quick editing of TOUCH ME does a fair job of making the silly bits of the film feel silly. Conversely, their absence in the more emotionally weighty scenes help to underline the difference between the two. Though the film clearly has a microbudget, it certainly works with what it has to make the most of it.
TOUCH ME is certainly not for everyone. But for those who love irreverent horror comedies, charismatic cult leaders and a filmmaker with a strong voice, it’ll do just fine.
