An agent works for a secretive organization that uses brain-implant technology to inhabit other people's bodies - ultimately driving them to commit assassinations for high-paying clients.An agent works for a secretive organization that uses brain-implant technology to inhabit other people's bodies - ultimately driving them to commit assassinations for high-paying clients.An agent works for a secretive organization that uses brain-implant technology to inhabit other people's bodies - ultimately driving them to commit assassinations for high-paying clients.
- Director
- Writer
- Stars
- Awards
- 15 wins & 40 nominations total
- Policeman
- (as Daniel Park)
- Ira Vos
- (as Gage Graham-Arbuthnot)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Featured reviews
It is quite slow moving and you do have to pay attention to get the most from it. Personally, I enjoyed it, and it makes a change from the usual sci-fi 'factory' movies churned out by Hollywood.
The acting, writing, and production are superb.
In this science-fiction horror film, an agent working for a secretive organization uses brain-implant technology to inhabit other people's bodies, driving them to commit assassinations for high-paying clients.
It goes without saying that Cronenberg is heavily influenced by the earlier films his father made but I also couldn't help but think of John Frankenheimer's "Seconds"while watching this. You can see where Cronenberg wants to play with sci-fi, horror and even reality. It's a daring vision and one you won't soon forget (if you have the stomach for it). Christopher Abbott is haunting in the lead role and Andrea Riseborough delivers a solidly chilling performance. It's a scary-ass film and I'm telling you there are visuals in "Possessor" that will haunt you for days, but I recommend you see it.
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This is a Brandon Cronenberg film. It has his father penchant for blood. It's a fine sci-fi flick with a dash of style. The filming does need something more. I can't quite put my finger on it. It has style but it needs more. It has moments of intensity but it needs more. It has ideas about control and self-identity. I'm not completely bought into the character Tasya. I don't know who she is and quite frankly, she may not know herself. That would have been an interesting idea if it's clearer about being murky. All in all, this is more interesting than not. There are enough in here worthy of the Cronenberg name.
To be frank i wasn't familiar with Brandon Cronenberg and his work up until now, and I must say this is a treat for the fans of his Dad's work.
The beginning is kind of meh I admit and nothing special but from the mid point towards the end it keeps getting better and better and the main thing is the beautiful atmosphere and cinematography and visuals and practical effects in the style of 80s masterpieces of his famous father.
This is by far the most interesting movie in this "subgenre" of horror in years and maybe even from the 80s/90s and since David shifted more towards the "mainstream" if that is something you can ever say about David Cronenberg.
Also the acting is great as is the casting. The colors and the mood of the film are really on point. Shot out to Director of photography.
To top it all of the "ending theme" or "possessor" as it is credited in the soundtrack by Jim Williams is nothing short of a masterpiece.
If you loved David Cronenberg's "Videodrome" or "The Scanners" or even "Dead Ringers" you will surely appreciate this one..
Do not be thrown away by the bad reviews and take a look for yourself!
The movie has an ethereal kind of narration, which is a good choice, considering the main theme, but the pace is too slow. The director, which is also the main screenwriter, wanted to experiment, by creating strange effects and applying weird sound design and music, which I personally appreciated, but the story is not going on. There are a lot of stuff that are not explained: we never know what this agency is, why it exists, is it some kind of secret government project? Who are these agents? Why they are doing what they are doing? Do they receive a special training? Because none of this is clarified, I did not care about the context nor characters, I could not bound with them. The main character, Tasya Vos, played by Andrea Riseborough, has clearly some personal issue with the ex fiancée, or maybe husband, I don't get to know, but why her relationship is broken? What happened? Is it because of her job? You see how many questions I am writing in this review? There tons of plot holes.
After an interesting and involving intro, the screenplay starts to crumble. I have understood that the director wanted to keep a mistery-vibe, but you cannot keep your audience completely blind for the entire movie. There was a lot of potential, but it was wasted, because the director decided to play too much with visual effects, instead on focusing more on the story.
Did you know
- TriviaMost of the special effects in the film were done practically, with an effort to use as little VFX work as possible. The hallucination scenes' effects in particular were done in-camera. Cronenberg credits his effects specialists, Dan Martin and Derek Liscoumb, and his longtime cinematographer Karim Hussain for being able to pull off convincing visuals with a minimum of CGI.
- GoofsWhen John Parse is being mutilated, his skin in the close-up shots of the wounds on his face looks completely different than it does in the rest of the scene. Mainly, it has a different color and is much smoother.
- Quotes
Colin Tate: Just think, one day your wife is cleaning the cat litter and she gets a worm in her, and that worm ends up in her brain. The next thing that happens is she gets an idea in there, too. And it's hard to say whether that idea is really hers or it's just the worm. And it makes her do certain things. Predator things. Eventually, you realize that she isn't the same person anymore. She's not the person that she used to be. It's gotta make you wonder, whether you're really married to her... or married to the worm.
- Alternate versionsPossessor exists as a cut US R rated version and an uncut MPA Unrated Version titled Possessor Uncut. The producers were keen to differentiate between the two versions and the 'Uncut' tag is an official re-titling of the film. UK releases are the Uncut Version and are 18 rated.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Possessor/Possessor Uncut Review (What's the difference?) (2020)
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Possessor: Controlador de mentes
- Filming locations
- Toronto, Ontario, Canada(Shot on location)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $752,885
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $252,664
- Oct 4, 2020
- Gross worldwide
- $911,180
- Runtime1 hour 43 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.78 : 1