The Possession possesses many similar qualities of great demonic possession films of the past, such as The Exorcist, as it focuses more on mood, atmosphere and character development than CGI and gore. The Jewish angle of the film was an interesting take, but just didn't work for me and kind have brought the effectiveness down a notch. The problem with the movie is that it doesn't do much to distinguish itself from other horror films of its kind, just follows them. That being said, the film offers several white-knuckle moments that will make you squirm in your seat and is well filmed and acted that it kind of makes up for its unoriginality.
The acting was all around solid, the characters were genuine and the story though overly familiar works in the beginning, creating some very creepy moments. Natasha Calis plays Em, a young girl who is dealing with the divorce of her parents and soon gets possessed by a mysterious entity from a box she got at a garage sale. She gives a chilling and captivating performance, even though it's too similar to Linda Blair's performance in The Exorcist. Natasha is the star of this movie and pretty much overshadows everyone else. Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Kyra Sedgwick play Clyde and Stephanie, the typical parents trying to save their possessed daughter from destruction, but you mostly felt their pain and terror and were relatable, making their ordeal all the more harrowing. Madison Davenport was the spunky one of the group, she gave her most to the role, but there was not much to her part and reminded me of some reason of the older sister in Poltergeist.
Director, Ole Bornedal definitely has some knowledge about this genre and is a skilled director, but coming from the guy that directed the superior film Nightwatch, I expected more originality from him. He borrowed the right ingredients but did nothing fresh with them and in the end perishable. The film was too routine and much like countless other possession films, it suffers from the same flaws of standing out.
Overall, The Possession is a whole lot better than critics make it out to be and uses moths more effectively than the recent horror film Mama did. The movie is more creepy and disturbing than flat out scary, but I did jump once or twice. The performances and solid filming style drive this film horror film from being a complete waste of time. The fact that it's based on a true story makes it chillingly fascinating, even though there were some plot holes that never got filled. The film has an intriguing premise, but ended up falling back on horror clichés and unoriginality, which is its downfall. It kind of leaves the door wide open for a sequel and I wouldn't mind, because if The Haunting In Connecticut gets one than this one should too. Rental at best, a decent one at that.
The acting was all around solid, the characters were genuine and the story though overly familiar works in the beginning, creating some very creepy moments. Natasha Calis plays Em, a young girl who is dealing with the divorce of her parents and soon gets possessed by a mysterious entity from a box she got at a garage sale. She gives a chilling and captivating performance, even though it's too similar to Linda Blair's performance in The Exorcist. Natasha is the star of this movie and pretty much overshadows everyone else. Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Kyra Sedgwick play Clyde and Stephanie, the typical parents trying to save their possessed daughter from destruction, but you mostly felt their pain and terror and were relatable, making their ordeal all the more harrowing. Madison Davenport was the spunky one of the group, she gave her most to the role, but there was not much to her part and reminded me of some reason of the older sister in Poltergeist.
Director, Ole Bornedal definitely has some knowledge about this genre and is a skilled director, but coming from the guy that directed the superior film Nightwatch, I expected more originality from him. He borrowed the right ingredients but did nothing fresh with them and in the end perishable. The film was too routine and much like countless other possession films, it suffers from the same flaws of standing out.
Overall, The Possession is a whole lot better than critics make it out to be and uses moths more effectively than the recent horror film Mama did. The movie is more creepy and disturbing than flat out scary, but I did jump once or twice. The performances and solid filming style drive this film horror film from being a complete waste of time. The fact that it's based on a true story makes it chillingly fascinating, even though there were some plot holes that never got filled. The film has an intriguing premise, but ended up falling back on horror clichés and unoriginality, which is its downfall. It kind of leaves the door wide open for a sequel and I wouldn't mind, because if The Haunting In Connecticut gets one than this one should too. Rental at best, a decent one at that.