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Possession
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Possession (1981) More at IMDbPro »

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Possession (1981) -- Open-ended Trailer from Anchor Bay Entertainment

Overview

User Rating:
7.1/10   2,507 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 24% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Andrzej Zulawski (original screenplay)
Andrzej Zulawski (adaptation) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for Possession on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
27 May 1981 (France) more
Genre:
Tagline:
She created a monster as her secret lover! more
Plot:
A young woman left her family for an unspecified reason. The husband determines to find out the truth and starts following his wife... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 5 wins & 2 nominations more
User Reviews:
What an experience!!! more (67 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Isabelle Adjani ... Anna / Helen

Sam Neill ... Mark
Margit Carstensen ... Margit Gluckmeister
Heinz Bennent ... Heinrich
Johanna Hofer ... Heinrich's mother
Carl Duering ... Detective

Shaun Lawton ... Zimmermann
Michael Hogben ... Bob
Maximilian Rüthlein ... Man with pink socks (as Maximilian Ruethlein)
Thomas Frey ... Pink sock's acolyte
Leslie Malton ... Sara, woman with club foot
Gerd Neubert ... Subway drunk
Kerstin Wohlfahrt
Ilse Bahrs
Karin Mumm
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
The Night the Screaming Stops (USA) (reissue title)
more
Runtime:
France:127 min | UK:118 min | USA:80 min (cut) | USA:123 min | Australia:123 min
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Filming Locations:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Although co-produced by a German Company and shot in Berlin, the Film itself has never been released in Germany. more
Quotes:
Panel member: Does our subject still wear pink socks? more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Roz (2006) more

FAQ

What did I just see?
more
24 out of 36 people found the following review useful.
What an experience!!!, 31 May 2003
10/10

Acting, colour, camera movement and story thrown into hyperactivity…What do you get? Well, the headache inducing, enthralling Possession. Beautiful, erotic and extremely disturbing, Andrjez Zulawski's film (admired by the Italian Master of the Macabre himself, Dario Argento) is an extreme assault upon the senses.

Mark (played excellently and deliberately over-the-top by Sam Neil) returns home from secret government work to his wife in Berlin, cue many shots of the Berlin wall representing the couple's marital breakdown. However, Mark's wife, Anna (a truly unforgettable, no holds barred and hypnotic performance from the lovely Isabelle Adjani) is behaving inexcusably strangely. Mark finds out that she is having an affair with Heinrick (another crazy performance from Heinz Bennet) and confronts him only to find that the lover has not seen Anna for some time. This is the part of the rollercoaster ride before your cart

plummets into some real thought-provoking, unsettling and scary surrealism.

Possession is definitely the film that requires many subsequent viewings. Excellent performances that frequently go way OTT, dreamily fluid camerawork and migraine inducing metaphorical horror, this is a true beast of the imagination. Love it or hate it, it is a true original masterpiece that is definitely not for all tastes. If films were placed in boxes and divided by flavours, like crisps, POSSESSION would sit in a box entirely by its self, awaiting only those who can take it. Go into it with an open mind like you've never gone into a film with one before. It can seriously mentally damage you if you try and figure it all out on that initial viewing, so beware; if there is truly anything to work out. The now infamous miscarriage in the subway scene is confusing, painful and sickening to watch and nothing like it can be found elsewhere. This is a hell of a film, if you're prepared for it!

`This for me exceeds anything thrown up by The Exorcist for sheer impact on the nervous system.' David Thompson - Sight and Sound

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Other Films with Tentacle Monster Sex? robhiengler
Avoid this movie hallsten
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can i watch this online anywhere? freshprinceofdarknes-1
Obscure Masterpiece Enzyme405
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