Possessor Uncut
I’ll definitely have to revisit this in the future. By the time I got down with it, I felt a bit disappointed. My problem was that I just never got into it. There wasn’t any kind of pull or hook that sucked me in, and kept me in. I kind of went in and out between being interested and waiting for the next scene. I thought the first and third act were fantastic, but for some reason, most of the second act just lost me. Not that it was confusing or anything, I just lost interest. I got back into it a little later, but not enough to really be emotionally invested. On the flipside, I do think this is a well made film and definitely delivers on a lot of things. The weakest category is the character development, because there wasn’t a truly good character. Everyone seemed bland and just there to be there. However, the story was really good, and it had a strong mix of violence, drama, physical effects, and atmosphere. The whole structure was pretty unique, while still having the classic Cronenberg touch. You can clearly see the influence that Brandon Cronenberg’s dad has on this. I was completely absorbed in the surreal sequences (but everything in between was a bit boring, as I said). The use of practical effects and in-camera sequences is what helps keep this chugging forward and remaining one-of-a-kind. Lastly, the performances were all pretty good, and though nobody really stood out, you can feel a certain energy coming from the cast, especially from Christopher Abbott, who was the standout. Overall, this film itself is pretty decent and has so many good qualities, but unfortunately, I found a chunk of it very slow and not super moving. But I really want to watch it again to see if I’ll change my mind. I’d probably recommend it to most sci-fi/horror fans, especially if you like either of the Cronenbergs.