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Possession

  • 19811981
  • RR
  • 2h 4m
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
36K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
1,495
336
Isabelle Adjani in Possession (1981)
A woman starts exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior after asking her husband for a divorce. Suspicions of infidelity soon give way to something much more sinister.
Play trailer1:41
2 Videos
99+ Photos
DramaHorror
A woman starts exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior after asking her husband for a divorce. Suspicions of infidelity soon give way to something much more sinister.A woman starts exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior after asking her husband for a divorce. Suspicions of infidelity soon give way to something much more sinister.A woman starts exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior after asking her husband for a divorce. Suspicions of infidelity soon give way to something much more sinister.
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
36K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
1,495
336
  • Director
    • Andrzej Zulawski
  • Writers
    • Andrzej Zulawski(original screenplay)
    • Frederic Tuten(adaptation)
  • Stars
    • Isabelle Adjani
    • Sam Neill
    • Margit Carstensen
  • Director
    • Andrzej Zulawski
  • Writers
    • Andrzej Zulawski(original screenplay)
    • Frederic Tuten(adaptation)
  • Stars
    • Isabelle Adjani
    • Sam Neill
    • Margit Carstensen
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 197User reviews
    • 166Critic reviews
    • 75Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 5 wins & 4 nominations

    Videos2

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 1:41
    Watch Official Trailer
    Possession (1981)
    Trailer 1:57
    Watch Possession (1981)

    Photos103

    Isabelle Adjani in Possession (1981)
    POSSESSION (U.S. Blu-ray Cover)
    Isabelle Adjani in Possession (1981)
    Possession (1981)
    Isabelle Adjani in Possession (1981)
    Shock (1977)
    Possession (1981)
    Isabelle Adjani and Heinz Bennent in Possession (1981)
    Possession (1981)
    Sam Neill in Possession (1981)
    Sam Neill in Possession (1981)
    Sam Neill, Thomas Frey, and Maximilian Rüthlein in Possession (1981)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Isabelle Adjani
    Isabelle Adjani
    • Anna…
    Sam Neill
    Sam Neill
    • Mark
    Margit Carstensen
    Margit Carstensen
    • Margit Gluckmeister
    Heinz Bennent
    Heinz Bennent
    • Heinrich
    Johanna Hofer
    • Heinrich's Mother
    Carl Duering
    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…
    Gerd Neubert
    • Subway Drunk
    Kerstin Wohlfahrt
    Ilse Bahrs
    Karin Mumm
    Herbert Chwoika
    Barbara Stanek
    Ilse Trautschold
    • Director
      • Andrzej Zulawski
    • Writers
      • Andrzej Zulawski(original screenplay) (adaptation) (dialogue)
      • Frederic Tuten(adaptation) (dialogue)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Isabelle Adjani is reported as saying: "'Possession' is only the type of film you can do when you are young. He [Zulawski] is a director that makes you sink into his world of darkness and his demons. It is okay when you are young, because you are excited to go there. His movies are very special, but they totally focus on women, as if they are lilies. It was quite an amazing film to do, but I got bruised, inside out. It was exciting to do. It was no bones broken, but it was like, 'How or why did I do that?' I don't think any other actress ever did two films with him."
    • Goofs
      In the kitchen scene where Anna cuts herself with an electric knife, Mark picks it up and starts slicing his left arm multiple times. The next day, he is in the kitchen again with his sleeves rolled up, but there are no cuts on his arm. Given the surreal nature of this film, this could have been planned. The camera focuses on the supposedly sliced arm. One can only speculate what message was intended, if in fact the "gaff" was intentional.
    • Quotes

      Anna: I can't exist by myself because I'm afraid of myself, because I'm the maker of my own evil.

    • Alternate versions
      The film was severely cut and re-edited for its American release - those versions vary from 81 to 97 minutes. The original is barely recognizable so try to catch the full version.
    • Connections
      Edited into Style is Substance: Possession (1981) - Sexuality and Family Structure (2018)

    User reviews197

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    10/10
    What an experience!!!
    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
    helpful•131
    35
    • Krug Stillo
    • May 31, 2003

    FAQ3

    • Why is this movie so hard to find?
    • How many versions of this movie exist?
    • What did I just see?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 28, 1983 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • France
      • West Germany
    • Languages
      • English
      • French
      • German
    • Also known as
      • The Night the Screaming Stops
    • Filming locations
      • 87 Sebastianstraße, Kreuzberg, Berlin, Germany(monster's apartment)
    • Production companies
      • Gaumont
      • Oliane Productions
      • Marianne Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $1,158,473
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $24,232
      • Oct 3, 2021
    • Gross worldwide
      • $1,158,473
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 4 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.66 : 1

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