Possessor is one of those indie films that feels like a casualty of 2020's cinema predicament. As I watched the thriller, I couldn't help but think, "I really would have liked to experienced/discovered this in theaters." It works fine on my TV, but there's just something special about being surprised by a film in theaters that isn't quite the same as home.
This was in theaters in Denver over the past month or so, but with our COVID numbers becoming increasingly worse, I felt it was prudent to wait for VOD which was around the corner (looking at you Synchronic, hurry up!).
Watching Possessor felt like a dare. The obviously-striking poster suggests something haunting while most reviews were emphasizing [read: exaggerating] the gore. Nervous - in a fun way - I began the film. What I found was a mostly-great movie with a premise that I cannot stop thinking about.
Selfishly, I wish this movie was a different one, diving deeper into the premise (I'll explain more in a second) vs. trying to do the things it did. I won't hold that against it at all because we're talking a seismic genre shift, for the most part, but it's a weird side effect that gave me energy after I saw it. One that results in me basically saying, "Oh yeah, Possessor? It's great. Kinda weird...but what if...?!?!".
The premise behind Possessor feels unique, plus it's established well in a violent opening scene. A cohort of assassins uses brain-wave technology to assume the body and mind of a person who is closer to their target, and thus easier for them to take out. Meanwhile, the person controlling this humanoid skin is miles away lying down on a table under a facial medical device. It's a nifty little sci-fi setup that continues to deliver "rules" I found immediately interesting, but ones which I won't ruin the surprise here. It feels like it deserves to be deep dived and/or have an entire assassin world created around the premise a la something like John Wick and the delightfully zany society it contains. So yeah, my mind immediately goes to an action/spy/thriller genre. Possessor, in ways, scratches a few of those itches but is ultimately trenched in the indie/psychological thriller genre, for better or worse.
Possessor was not as much "horror" as I'd been hearing about, but there are definite overtones of it here. Instead, I found it incredibly effective at providing an out-of-body experience, not at all dissimilar to the characters of the film. Much to my delight, this was one of those indie films that paid special focus to the tone and mood it was creating with visuals, featuring some color-drenched scenes across the spectrum, gorgeous cinematography, and eerie (but seldom) original score. Particularly for smaller sci-fi films I find that your premise can be the most interesting thing in the world, but if you don't make the film feel unique, it likely won't get past "good" on my scale. Possessor's emphasis on these small but effective details pushes it into that great realm.
"Is the head massage supposed to be this intense?!?"
The story plays out in surprising ways and the aforementioned "shock" gore is here. If I differentiate "gore" (body parts, guts, bones, etc.) and "bloody" (just lots of blood) then Possessor is much more to the latter. The moments of explosive violence are chilling though, because of the tone and out-of-body feel the whole thing has to it. As it progresses, this sense becomes intensified, particularly in a scene of battling psyches. To my slight annoyance, I found that Possessor sometimes felt like it wanted to be smutty for the sake of doing so. Not normally stuff I complain about, but some of the sex scenes and nudity feel shoehorned in and, to a certain extent, the violence seems over the top for the sake of it. To be fair, that's kind of the point, but when it doesn't feel like it adds to the film in a meaningful way, I find it to be a tad unnecessary. 
Ahh such mood! Much blood!
Similarly disappointing, but not catastrophically so, is that I didn't feel much connection to these characters. Part of that is because of the distraction around them from the premise and blood and style, but part of it is...well...they're just not that interesting. Andrea Riseborough plays our assassin, Tasya Vos (very cool name BTW) and the "most" is done with her, but I didn't really latch on to her or, eventually, Christopher Abbott's Colin Tate. It feels like the film tries to dive into these characters, so perhaps others found it more impactful than I did, but it feels like a slight missed opportunity otherwise.
I can tell already that Possessor is a film that gets under your skin and lingers. It's obvious when you're watching it, sure, but now with a day separation I can tell I'm still thinking about it. To that effect, I'm thinking less about the movie and more about the possibilities of where it could have gone, but I still found a lot to like in the film. It may not be as shocking or gory (or hard to stomach) as you've heard, but it's a neat blend of science fiction, horror, and thriller elements in an "elevated" Black Mirror package.
CONS
- Didn't feel like it did a whole lot with character development outside of the basics. Perhaps I'm alone on this island
- Certain elements felt gratuitous for the sake of it
- Not counting it against the film, but I feel like there's an untapped deep dive into this world of assassins
- Highly intriguing premise that has me itching to build off it via a new novel spy series. So many ideas
- Comes with plenty of style that pushes it further than just the content. The tone, use of color, cinematography, and rare original score are used to great effect. It makes me wish I could have discovered this in theaters
- Explosively violent and bloody at times. Not as dramatic as you've heard, but yeah. As the saying goes..."there will be blood"
- Well-tuned blend of sci-fi, horror, and thriller. Doesn't outright commit to any one of those three, all for the better
- Somewhat of a slow burner that will stay with you afterwards. Likely not for everyone
No comments:
Post a Comment