The Possession – Movie Review

Sep 3 2012 – From the frenetic opening salvo, director Ole Bornedal  envelops Hebraic mystical undercurrents into tingling tensions of dread with an unnerving soundtrack as you feel a little part of your soul succumbs to The Possession.  Horror movies based on true event can be a slippery slope to ruin. Throw in religion and the slope quickly morphs into the Hahnenkamm of black diamonds if not handled with all the care and attention of a Faberge egg.  Thankfully, The Possession has successfully navigated the horror minefields that have sunk so many other promising projects in this genre by first, delivering on a truly original story of fear and following that up with solid performances.

With a combined 15 years of writing credits to their names, screenwriters Stiles White and Juliet Snowden have done their homework and it shows. This taut head twitching thriller doesn’t dawdle or get mired in the minutia of historical religious references that could grind ones horror mojo, but creates a graphically haunting narrative of possession desperation and ultimate salvation as a disconnected family struggles to save their daughter from the evils in a box.

The film centers on the last vestiges of a bitter couple in transition, Clyde (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and Stephanie Brenek (Kyra Sedgwick) are going through a less than amicable divorce as their youngest daughter Emily (Natasha Calis) bouncing between residences brings home a well worn antique box (Dibbuk) from a yard sale.  The Dibbuk  (or Dybbuk), believed to be a haunted spirit box from Jewish folklore soon takes hold of Em and the potential for any Judy Blume inspired vignettes soon gives way to the slow suffocating possession as Calis gives a good turn in this Friedkinesque roll where moths are the new demon seed of consumption. Jeffery Dean Morgan does most of the heavy lifting as his search and research for answers leads him to a Brooklyn Synagogue. Orthodox dub poet turned actor, Matisyahu is enlisted to rid Em of this all consuming evil with horrific consequences.

Producer, Sam Raimi‘s  DNA is delicately woven throughout The Possession and for horror audiences everywhere that’s a good thing.

Verdict: 4  / 5 The Possession more than delivers as a religious based horror film and this disarming new brand of fear may have you confessing long before the credits.