Possession (1981) (Beyond Genres #11) Blu-Ray Review

Synopsis:

A woman starts exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior after asking her husband for a divorce. Suspicions of infidelity soon give way to something much more sinister.

Editing: Marie-Sophie Dubus, Suzanne Lang-Willar
Music: Andrzej Korzynski

Cast: Isabelle Adjani, Sam Neil, Margit Carstensen, Heinz Bennent, Johanna Hofer, Carl Duering, Michael Hogben

Director: Andrzej Żuławski
Writers: Andrzej Żuławski, Frederic Tuten
Cinematography: Bruno Nuytten

I’ve heard about Possession; it’s a film I’d listened to others rave about for years — especially the subway scene where Isabelle Adjani gives it 120% and then some. I pressed play thinking it would be a wild ride but wasn’t ready for how it would haunt me for nights, replaying scenes over and over in my head.

Umbrella Entertainment has released Possession as “Beyond Genres #11,” and boy does this film defy genres. It’s a Cold War thriller, a horror movie, and above all, a terrifying, dramatic roller coaster into a marriage tearing itself apart.

Mark (Sam Neil) returns home from a mission behind the Berlin Wall to learn his wife, Anna (Isabelle Adjani), wants a divorce. Assuming the worst, Mark inquires about another man — which Anna doesn’t hide — but the truth behind this relationship, how it started, and what it’ll do to Mark and Anna, as well as their son Bob, is something no one could predict.

If you’ve never seen Possession, like I hadn’t, do not read the film’s blurb. I’m aware the original trailer gives away a lot (as does the back of the packaging), but trust me: the less you know, the more terrifying and wild the experience.

Adjani’s performance earned her Best Actress at Cannes 1981, and it was well deserved. She communicates a woman who’s suffered for a long time and found someone to fulfill her needs — yet she’s torn apart by the two sides of her life. The subway scene is one of the most haunting performances I’ve ever seen in any movie, period. It’s not the gore or editing; it’s Adjani’s violent, raw embodiment of a worst moment. For a time, I forgot I was watching a film and felt bad for staring.

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Extras:

Audio commentary with Director Andrzej Żuławski
Audio commentary with Co-writer Frederic Tuten
The Other Side of the Wall: The Making of Possession
Interview with with Director Andrzej Żuławski
US Cut of Possession
Repossessed – Featurette on the US Cut of Possession
A Divided City – Location Featurette
The Sounds of Possession – Interview with Composer Andrzej Żuławski
Our friend in the West – Interview with Producer Christian Ferry
Basha – Poster Analysis Featurette
International Theatrical Trailer
US Theatrical Trailer

Sam Neil is also fantastic in Possession, riding a very thin line between overacting and the sweet spot Andrzej Żuławski seeks. This is Neil in his pre-Hollywood phase, with both Possession and Omen III: The Final Conflict released within a year. Both feature off-the-wall performances. I love it. Bring it back, Neil!

Possession is part of the “Video Nasties” — banned in the U.K. for nearly twenty years and butchered for the U.S. release — and needed a proper presentation. What’s included here is the final cut, “the version of the film Andrzej Żuławski intended.”

The disc bundles commentaries from Żuławski and co-writer Frederic Tuten and several behind-the-scenes features that are fascinating to dive into after watching Possession. There’s a lot to unpack, from production to direction and how the actors felt making such a wild, weird movie. The music is integral to several scenes, including the subway, so it’s great to see a conversation with Andrzej Korzynski included.

Possession looks and sounds excellent on Blu-ray with a 1080p HD remaster and a mono DTS audio makeover. The gray, textured Cold War cinematography paired with the graphic scenes makes the blood pop — and red stands out in more ways than one.

The review copy includes a striking slipcover; the Blu-ray case itself features flippable art. Both are striking, though one is a bit bloodier than the other.

I cannot oversell how wild Possession is, but what will hurt you most is the raw emotion between two people going through a violent, horrific breakup. It’s a raw film with performances from another world and well deserving of the Beyond Genres label.

Film Score