The Possession Experiment (2016) User Reviews

Decent film marred by horrendous acting and uneven direction

[manuelasaez · 5/10 · 16 October 2016]

Let me start off by saying that I have never seen a more uneven film in my entire life. The movie starts off fairly competent; a girl is possessed, and we witness the events that transpire during her exorcism. The director did a great job giving the scene a nice, gritty aesthetic, with some great shots in and around the house that resembled a stylish music video. Once the first scene is set up, the nose dive in quality is so abrupt, I really have no idea how they could have ruined this movie to such a drastic degree.

After the exorcism, the movie continues in a college classroom, with some of the worst acting by a professor I have ever witnessed. Gone is the music video aesthetic, as the movie now more closely resembles an amateur porn shot on an iPhone 4. There is no more stylized direction, as the movie now takes a more "found-footage" approach of poor direction, even worse acting, and some questionable dialogue that is pulled off with the skill of a community theater reject cast.

The movie jumps between the "possession house" and the school/street several times throughout its run time, and I just can't fathom how the director could be this schizophrenic with his directorial decisions. It almost seems like two people directed this movie; one was talented and did all of the shots inside the "possession house", using creative vision, talent and an understanding of basic horror filmography. The other lacked any such qualities, refusing to showcase any ability or tact, and was tasked to handle any scene not in the house. It was quite jarring when you watch the film and the quality has such disparate highs and lows, and I really wish that the director took a step back and realized that he really should have aimed to have a consistent aesthetic throughout.

Then there is the acting; these people cannot act. The protagonist appeared to constantly forget his lines, the side kick was a joke, and all of the adults had the acting chops of a porn film extra. It was bad. I have never seen a film where bad acting does not immediately ruin the overall experience, but unfortunately, this continues the trend. I really wish that nepotism and friendships took a backseat to actually hiring people who will help you realize your vision. Some people should not be allowed to act, ever. This movie proves this in spades.

Overall, this film has me at a crossroads. On one side, I liked how the film looked inside the house. The creative vision was well realized, and even with the bad acting, it made the movie at least visually appealing. But anything outside of the house was simply horrendous. This movie jumps between being a good B movie to being a horrid D movie too often to get a real, definitive score, so I'll just give it a 5 for the sole fact that I made it all the way to the end without falling asleep. It deserves at least that much.

Pinocchio is less wooden than these actors

[CraigHollands · 3/10 · 13 October 2016]

When "The Possession Experiment" opened i was greeted with a film which appeared to have some form of production value, this was a lie, as i think most of the budget must have been spent on that one scene, that single scene gave me hope, hope that was eventually possessed by the devil himself and subsequently destroyed, the actors were wooden and their characters were two dimensional, and i felt the "twist" was underwhelming, i also don't understand what happened with the editing and cinematography as at some points i was like "wow that was shot really well" then 80-90% was poorly edited and the lighting was just awful, i am now currently in mid seance as i type out this review, conducting an experiment to be possessed myself so i can forget about what i have just watched.

A redundant addition to the exorcism movie genre

[antoniokowatsch · 3/10 · 15 October 2016]

The title has caught my interest but as soon as the movie started rolling I immediately regretted my decision. Granted, the first scene (the possession scene) was actually quite good but everything that follows is just the exact opposite. The acting in particular can only be described as otherworldly (and not in the positive way). The scene where the protagonist has a "serious conversation" with his mother is one of those scenes that were so bad that I literally cringed. It definitely reminded me of the acting in the movie "The Room".

Other than that the movie definitely had its scary moments. But sadly they were overshadowed by the bad acting performances, I'm afraid.

Felt like a YouTube video

[helsaygh · 2/10 · 24 September 2016]

A little spoiling here and there Movie downs 1)The movie started off with the protagonist studying (brandon). He leaves the room and meets this really high guy. They get high and OMG LOL. They're BFFs now. 2)The camera work was trash, it looked like a highschool assignment. 3)There's two scenes in particular that were especially trash, involving the mother kicking out the son with this weird look at the light like a Mexican soap opera, the other scene with the father randomly telling this kid his entire reality in one scene. The escalation wasn't there and neither was the excitement... 4)The protagonist's acting gets progressively worse. 5)We meet a medicine student who is in this kid's experiment to test his vitals and as you expected they fall in love and have sex. way too predictable. 6)The devil's intention isn't exactly stated which makes it a very blank villain. 7)They repeated the bashing head against glass thing way too many times. 8)They start a gofundme page where the reward for $10 is a livestream of this kid's experiment lone and behold it made its goal perfectly 10,000/10,000 at that exact moment they checked. 9)The ending was strange to say the least the last policeman hesitates for some reason? Ups 1)The girl's hot. 2)Genuine twist at the end

Exorcise this film...

[P3n-E-W1s3 · 4/10 · 15 March 2017]

It appears to me, that at this moment in time, writers and directors are struggling to portray a decent horror story. This is another of those films that should have been much better. Once again it's a nice idea - A theology student decides to do his thesis on Exorcism, though while investigating he has the idea of getting an entity to possess him and then carry out an exorcism online. You know things are going to go wrong, though the main thing that went wrong with this movie was the acting and the directing.

Though, for the opening sequence, which is a flashback with Bill Moseley as Father Mark Campbell trying to exorcise a demon from the body of a woman, it pretty good. I even settled down to enjoy the movie. Not long into the second scene where we're introduced to Brandon Jensen, it becomes evident that the atmosphere previously built up has disappeared. Worst still, it never comes back. It's as if there are two directors working on this film instead of just Scott B Hansen. All the flashback sequences are the best if they'd kept the same grimy dark atmosphere this would have been a better film.

Bill Moseley is, by far, the best thing about this film (shame he's not in it too long), and he outshines all of the other actors. The actors struggle to make their characters believable, even likable, most of the time the come across as flat and uninteresting.

The direction suffers from the hit-and-miss with creating and holding tension as well as managing action scenes credibly. Though I know Hansen can do it, as the flashbacks are evidence to. Not sure why the other sections of the film fail.

Not worth watching unless you're into exorcism and there's nothing on telly.

One experiment to close the door on

[TheLittleSongbird · 3/10 · 15 August 2019]

Yet another film that wastes a creepy looking cover and quite intriguing concept. It is also another film that started promisingly but very, very quickly went downhill and never recovered, instead it progressively grew worse. This is coming from somebody who saw it in my "more like this" section when watching some other low-budget films, decided to ignore the rating and only skim through a few of the reviews, having been known to go against the grain.

Even when taking all of this into account, without any prejudice and giving it a proper chance, 'The Possession Experiment' was just very weakly done on most levels and on the most part it does not deliver. Am definitely going to have to agree with the low rating, don't always do with film and television having more than once in the past found ratings here too low, and the mediocre at best reviews (having read them properly just now) that sum up what's wrong with the film very well.

As said above, 'The Possession Experiment' did start off very well and the main reason for not scoring it lower as tempted to. It had genuine tension and creepiness and actually looked pretty good (the only scene really to be so).

The setting has moments of eeriness and the titles sequence was quite creatively done.

Can't say anything else good. The production values rapidly got worse in a jarring shift, with the lighting being far too dim and the photography being wildly disorganised in a particularly under-funded found footage sort of way, some erotic films actually look better. The editing is far too jumpy too with the constant setting shifts being choppy and sometimes confusing. The sound is too obvious and intrusive too often, pet hates of mine when it comes to audio, and the direction also shows signs of disorganisation and not thinking things through.

It doesn't feel like much of a script was written, as it constantly sounds awkward in flow and is woefully under (or should that be un)-rehearsed. The tension and horror is far too fleeting, with hardly anything scary after the opening, and when there is any signs of a story (barely there and it feels padded) it becomes more tedious, more predictable and sillier with each minute, with the sudden and choppy shifts making it harder to follow as well. Didn't find any of the characters interesting or appealing and the acting is horrendous enough to single-handedly wreck the film. The only halfway okay actor is Bill Moseley and he is wasted.

On the whole, good start but everything else is almost beyond redemption weak. 3/10

Disappointing

[indyj1 · 3/10 · 9 March 2017]

I watched this film because the plot sounded like a different twist on a worn-out sub-genre, and because it was made by a local production company (I even recognized some of the exterior shooting locations.) The concept was OK, most of the special FX were decent and the editing of the horrific visions was done well, albeit much like a music video, which is what I believe the production company is known for. However, the movie turned out to be yet another mediocre indie disappointment due to poor directing, a bad script and, as pretty much every other reviewer has mentioned, absolutely abysmal acting. I think if they'd taken their time to produce a solid short film based on the concept they would have been better off. Feature films are not their strong point.

The actors

[hrsdkzh · 1/10 · 7 July 2021]

Worst acting I've ever seen in my life 🤦‍♀️ stupid movie.

We shouldn't be here

[nogodnomasters · 5/10 · 4 September 2017]

The film opens with an exorcism of a woman that was filmed. Notice that only nimble contortionist are possessed by demons. Fat people who just sit around are left alone...pass me the chips. Years later Brandon (Chris Minor) working on his Theology/World Religion class final project opts to allow himself to become possessed by a demon so as to do a scientific experiment. He obtains information and goes to the spot of the earlier filming, finds a Ouija board. If nothing happened, there would not have been a film. In fact the film was interesting up to this point when nothing has happened with anticipation. However once we got into the twist of the film, it became a low budget cheap thriller, voice distorter production. Ending sets up for a sequel...good luck with that.

Guide: F-word, sex. No nudity.

Evil Hasbro coming to get you

[jackmeat · 5/10 · 17 October 2016]

My quick rating - 4,5/10. The movie begins with a strong opening scene of an exorcism. I really thought I was in luck in finding a decent unknown possession flick. The premise of a student doing a school project and attempting to possess himself was interesting enough to me. Sounds like the dumb stuff I would've tried in school (anyone who knows me is most likely agreeing) but then comes the downfall. The trio of our star, Brandon (Chris Minor) and two bit players go to the sign of an exorcism in hopes to conjure up the spirit and welcome it into himself. Thankfully Hasbro has created the key to the gates of hell and in comes the method, a Ouija board. The movie instantly lost all merit it had right there. Not only is this cliché getting so ridiculous, the movie then turns so stupid. Days pass and Brandon seems fine until his mother commits suicide (by ripping her own jaw off) and Brandons demon lies dormant no more. So far aside from the kids toy, it hasn't been too bad. In comes the shlock as Brandon puts on blades (Freddy Krueger style) and begins killing people on campus. And yes, throws in a couple one liners to complete the pointless rip off. I don't know if the makers were attempting to pay tribute to Wes Cravens classic (which they didn't) or just had no ideas. Sprinkle in the painfully obvious coincidence which leads to the far more obvious ending (no spoilers) and you are left with a solid 5 minute opening, and 80 minutes of horrible acting and pointless flashbacks/dreamscenes. Just another in the line of OK to watch but there are so many better out there I don't see why you would.

Total schlock, but still fun just the same

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 30 March 2021]

Obsessive overachiever Brandon Jensen decides to study exorcisms for his theology class project. Brandon, who ain't exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer, comes up with the none too bright idea that the best way to study exorcisms is to become possessed by an evil spirit so he can undergo an exorcism himself.

Man, is this movie quite the unintentionally hilarious cruddy hoot and a half: We've got hopelessly clunky direction that treats the silly premise with utmost seriousness, lots of comically bad acting from a lame no-name cast (the sole token name is Bill Moseley in a small role at the very beginning as an ill-fated priest), cheesy fake scares, a satanic cult, a satisfying serving of splatter, a few ridiculous plot twists, and all the usual formula cursing, levitations, vomiting, bad complexions, body contortions, and just plain nasty behavior that one expects to see in a fright flick about possession. By no means a good movie, but nonetheless still an extremely entertaining one in a blithely rubbishy sort of way.

Underrated by these reviews

[wendyc82983 · 7/10 · 25 July 2018]

I'm not sure why this movie is getting slammed so hard! I can agree that the acting is not the best by some, but I thought it was a pretty fun ride! Enjoyed the storyline, and it genuinely gave me the creeps. The imagery was fantastic and very awesome special effects, twists and turns galore! Was it a blockbuster success? Nah. Was it worth a watch? Most definitely! Maybe I'm biased because exorcism movies scare the %#!/ out of me, but I'm lulling myself to sleep with a Disney movie after this one.

1 word to describe this movie

[johnbamber-543-390505 · 1/10 · 29 December 2021]

Disturbing.

Completely unnerving, disturbing, demented, predictable... I wouldn't wish this on even my worst enemy. Save yourself the time, anything is better to watch than this.

I've seen bricks with more character.

[Shirei-181-368695 · 2/10 · 11 January 2017]

I'll give it a two just because some scenes were worthwhile. As posted by someone else, some scenes were hopeful and very well done - but those were few and very far between. Poor cinematography aside, the actors were chosen so poorly and executed so horribly that I really sincerely wish I can unsee what I've seen in this movie. The "lead" actor looked about a century too old to be in college, and the "comic relief" sidekick was about as funny and inspired as a baked potato; and even that might be giving it too much credit.

I'll keep it short and say this: You'll see more action and originality watching amber fossilise.

Not completely awful but not great

[patrick-killimett · 4/10 · 24 April 2023]

The opening sequence was actually surprisingly well done. You go in knowing this will be low budget. And after reading the ACTUAL budget they accomplished a lot with what they had. After the first scene the rest looks like it was shot on a cell phone and I couldn't tell if the voices were out of sync on purpose or just my TV. It was slow to the horror after the first scene but the few deaths towards the end were really good. A few things I am very confused/concerned about though: 1) he and his roommate have bunk beds? And his roommate has sex with a drunk girl on his bed? 2) he basically raped the med student but we never see that have repercussions. 3) Why was the house completely empty except the occult stuff and a piano? (Budget cuts I assume). I probably wouldn't RECOMMEND this movie to anyone but it wasn't a heap of trash.

Decent and worth a watch

[hstaunton · 5/10 · 27 June 2021]

Yes more of a b movie but nowhere near as bad as the low reviews score suggest and definitely worth a watch.

Pretty Bad Movie But Could Have Been Worse.

[wandernn1-81-683274 · 3/10 · 28 August 2020]

We begin here in a 2 story House where a woman is brushing her teeth with a kitchen knife and crawling across the floor and up stairs like a little baby. A Priest, unpacks the ceremonial equipment for performing an exorcism, and a man sets up a camera to record the process. The Possessee, she seems very upset. Ruh Roh, the bonds that were holding her to the gurney magically come loose and the woman levitates, then starts killing people in the room. The Priest he doesn't get up and run!! No he crawls into the corner so the woman can get to him and stab him to death with his own Cross.

Cut to a college classroom. Where dude is learning about torture devices. Dude wants to do his final project on Exorcisms and asks teacher for books on the subject. Dude, is doing research and watching videos and heavily into the subject. Dude goes to his buddy's House who I guess is going to be a partner in the project.

+1 Star for The Jim Morrison poster on the wall along with the huge bong on the table

Next the 2 guys start recording their 'video blog' on their project. The mention this massacre they are going to be investigating, which I guess is what we witnessed in the opening scene. Brendon, the main dude, he goes inside the police station for some evidence on the closed case. He's borrowing the file on the 'massacre.' And then Brendon and CLAY, his buddy, they go to the actual House, the site where the 'massacre' occurred. It's time for some breaking and entering!!!!

The House is completely devoid of furniture. The boys are looking through every room in the House. Then they go to the basement, where bad things happen!! Of course there is still furniture in the basement. Symbols scrawled on walls. And Ballsy Brendon, he crawls into a space and finds a dusty wrapped up item I'm not sure what it is yet.

In his video Blog, Brendon says that he's set up a fund.me online, to fund his project to summon a demon and have it possess him. This should be interesting. Oh waht he found wrapped up is an old school Ouija board. Brendon then meets with his teacher, who tells him not to do it! Don't mess with these forces!!! So they need to recruit assistants. Clay finds a hottie to join the team. Every team needs a hottie. And she's already got a plan for what she's going to do as her role. That's weird.

So,...they setup the area, lots of candles. Creepy! And oh they are going to live broadcast this ritual from the basement where the 'massacre' took place. This is where Brendon is going to summon a demon with this ouija board he found down there. So they have a medium named Julie they are paying to 'lead' the ceremony

When they start playing with the board, they get a name and an answer of 'waiting' when they ask 'what happened to you?' . Then strange winds start blowing in the room and Julie the medium now says 'we shouldn't be here'. LOL none of these questions came to mind while they are setting this up??

-1 Star for the lack of questioning before this 'conjuring'

Well that was it. Brendon records in his vlog that he didn't get possessed even tho he offered up his body to the Demons!! But hey he raised 10,000$ on his fundme!!! Oh and he got the attention of the hottie, whose name is Leda I guess. And now he's just a popular guy!! Except with his mother who now hates him for playing with evil demons.

So now Brendon meets with his Father. His 'father' tells him he's not his real father. He's the camera man that was missing from the massacre. And that the woman in the massacre is his actual birth mother. What? Then Brendon falls asleep is his car? And has a vision of his mother attacking him?? And then he shows up at Leda's place, and suddenly he seems like he's entitled to where he can just start taking off his clothes and her clothes. But Leda tells him to STOP!..

Oh nice, Brendon is summoned and finds out his mother is dead. Apparently she ripped her own face off. Brendon runs from the cops! He runs into the forest!!!

Somehow he's back at his dorm. He kills his roommate with some sort of Freddy Kruger like claws on his hand??? What? This while his roommates girlfriend was watching via webcam, and then Brendon by looking at her gets her to smash her face into her computer repeatedly LOL...what??

And then Brendon is out on the campus with this Freddy Kruger hand stabbing people randomly. LOL Clay clocks Brandon with a Mag Light.

-1 Star here this is getting really really stupid.

So they snatch up Brandon and put him in a straight jacket. Still, he levitates off the bed he's being held on. So Leda and Clay, track down a 'spiritualist' who will attempt to exorcise whatever has possessed Brendon. But they have to take Brendon back to the massacre House, the site of the possession. They also decide they are giong to film everything and stream it live, as Brendon wanted with his ritual. Well Brendon breaks free, that was totally unexpected. And he kills the spiritualist, kills his dad, kills Clay, and is about to kill Leda when the Police arrive. LOL, He mind controls cop to shoot himself, and telekinetically launches an axe into anothers head. But he hesitates to kill Leda, why? Until Cop shoots him finally.

-1 Star Cops would have just shot fool for not complying.

So it ends with what appears mother and son, Brendon, as ghosts or apparitions still lingering in the massacre House, awaiting whatever comes next. Really not a good movie at all. Pretty silly. But could have been slightly worse. 3/10

LOL there's an epilogue as well. Leda is Pregnant!!! And bad things are happening in her room !!!

Was it dubbed?

[takato0524 · 1/10 · 8 November 2021]

For majority of the movie, the lip sync was slightly off. It wasn't earth shattering but very noticeable. Especially when the way these people talked was like English was their third language. I'm joking asking was this dubbed, but seriously the dialogue was wooden and forced. The other issue was the set. It was clear this was filmed in pieces, but you really notice it near the beginning. When Brandon goes to his professors office to tell him clay was going to be his partner, the professor is opening a door with Windows and the wall is a window. When we go inside the office, it's a completely different place!

Outside of that, the movie itself is boring and annoying at the same time. You have the jock roommate who's an ass yet wants to get him laid? The stoner boy who does 0 work yet suddenly near the end he acts like he's known Brandon his whole life and they're best friends. The girl who wanted to watch, gets raped, but forgets about it when her rapist is in trouble. And the random girl who watches her bf get killed on video chat, but instead of calling the police just watches, then gets killed herself. And let's not forget about the random shots of people watching the stream. Why is a little girl watching this?! Where are the parents?

Unsure

[ryky-23078 · 10/10 · 18 December 2021]

Ok so hear me out im not sure if this is the best worse movie or the worse best movie. I feel like I'm watching a troma movie. The acting is deliciously bad and contrive but if you're looking for an entertaining movie give this one a try.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice

[jordirozsa · 6/10 · 16 November 2023]

If ever one of the few I consider my friends were to rope me into a project akin to that of our film's protagonist, the irresistibly handsome, blue-eyed, and charmingly smiling actor and singer Chris Minor, I'd be utterly lost for words. Faced with such folly, I'd likely propose one of these options: A) If single, suggest finding a partner; B) refer them to a colleague in psychology or psychiatry; C) tell them to wait until I had completed an exorcism and liberation course at the Vatican, D) driven by the conscience of not leaving my bewildered companion in the lurch, I'd join them in the venture, but only after securing insurance that covers possessions, and packing several clean pairs of underwear.

Jokes aside, any director like Scott B. Hansen, whose only prior directorial experience was an 8-minute short featuring Danny Trejo, not only dares to delve into horror, but also dives headfirst into the complex realm of possessions. Among the plethora of films on the subject, none, to my knowledge, can yet stand toe-to-toe with Friedkin. Thus, Hansen's courage and humility in avoiding overambition cannot be denied. In the vast sea of variants, tropes, and clichés that have been explored in possession films, Hansen skillfully imparts, or at least makes us believe, a touch of originality in his approach.

An unconventional yet dedicated theology student named Brandon (Chris Minor), more invested in his thesis on the existence of demons and the debate over good and evil than even I am, decides against the advice of his social ecosystem (professors, family, etc.) to demonstrate the reality of possession firsthand. This decision alone creates an unhealthy intrigue, piquing the viewer's curiosity. The audience may find some semblance of grounding reality through the eyes of Brandon's companions, who, despite maintaining a safe operational distance, accompany him to the very end. Take, for instance, the medical student acting as the medical assistant in the experiment (Leda), or Clay (portrayed by Jake Brinn), who handles the camera. These individuals are not just purportedly paid collaborators - embarking on a crowdfunding venture on social media to not only finance the experiment but also make it viral, needing to gather the necessary $10,000 - but also evolve into, or present themselves as, loyal friends who would go to great lengths for Brandon should things go awry.

This initial approach, seemingly innovative and appealing, is fundamentally flawed and inconsistent for two main reasons. First, who in their right mind, assuming it were actually feasible and truthful, would willingly subject themselves to possession by one or several particularly malevolent demons, just to prove a thesis? If only my high school students were that committed to their research projects.

The second fundamental flaw is the notion that matters involving God or the devil are subject to laboratory experimentation. As far as I am aware, theology, a branch of philosophy, does not employ the scientific method in its hermeneutics nor in its approach to reality as a subject of study.

Another oversight by Hansen, considering the delicate nature of possessions, was his attempt to demonstrate multitasking prowess at all costs: dabbling in directing, cinematography, scriptwriting (shared with Mary J. Dixon), and even venturing into editing. There's a saying, "Jack of all trades, master of none." Hansen might as well have played the demon himself.

Unsurprisingly, juggling so many roles led to some aspects getting burned: the editing, actor direction, and a script that spirals out of control, not to mention dialogues that, despite the golden opportunity presented by a theological college setting and a failed exorcism from two decades ago, miss the crucial need for a more profound and interesting debate on religious aspects, which would have greatly enhanced the film's quality.

I'm ambivalent about subscribing to the low-budget thesis; there are signs that support and oppose it. On one hand, Hansen's multitasking and lesser-known actors suggest a tight budget. Yet, the brief presence of renowned actor Bill Moseley, a high-quality and well-crafted soundtrack by Dirk Ehlert with the orchestra, and the involvement of multiple producers, don't quite align with a shoestring budget scenario.

The crowdfunding within the film might metaphorically and diegetically mirror Hansen's own production process. A curious parallel between the movie's narrative and the real-world challenges of funding an independent feature film, where resources are often scarce and creators must be ingenious and multifaceted. However, if that were the case, the shortcomings cannot be solely attributed to financial constraints. Failures often result from a multifactorial combination of budgetary restrictions and creative and artistic decisions.

Despite blatant and glaring errors, the final product is more worthy and useful than other recent productions like "The Pope's Exorcist" (2022) or "The Believer Exorcist" (2023), which fall into pretension and sensationalism. Despite their evident higher investments, even to the point of extravagance, they are not as terrifying as Hansen's work and his team.

Hansen gives the impression of "experimenting" with the clapperboard in his first feature-length foray. In his quest for success, he tries to be involved in everything and overmanages to the extent that the result is a work that is irregular, inconsistent, and at times, incoherent, getting lost in the shadows of digressions. This is most noticeable in the script development. The progress is sometimes ponderous and erratic, and at other times rash and precipitated, leaving us no time to process or digest what is happening.

The basic elements of the plot are well-conceived, but both its introduction and progression are executed haphazardly, with gaps in some parts and crammed in others, like a chaotic ending involving SWAT, resulting in a loss of control, leading to a forced landing where half of the narrative and cargo is lost. On the other hand, it has well-executed points, albeit somewhat unbelievable, yet acceptable in the spirit of creative freedom. One such point is our protagonist, a fairly typical theology student characterized as a scruffy rebel fond of leather jackets, who challenges the demon, defies his professor, and tests himself, achieving what he set out to do but leaving a trail of deaths, including his own.

In a final runaway display, both in staging and in some makeup effects that are ludicrously poor when representing Brandon's complete infestation, the story ends with a bleak future for Leda, who was Brandon's girlfriend and now carries his child. To top off the folly, it seems to herald a sequel.

Brandon could be seen as the hollow echo of the experiment, considered by some as just one among many and cinematically valueless. Both Hansen and Brandon, like the sorcerer's apprentice Ravel so beautifully depicts in his musical piece, lose control after uttering a spell, unable to reverse the situation. But what slips through their fingers is not exactly a broom; a laboratory is no place for a demon.

Among the film's shining points is the introductory scene of the failed exorcism, with thrilling action and a terrifyingly well-crafted basement setting, a dramatic episode that ends in a massacre. This is just the prelude that remains until the end of the film, allowing the audience to link all the elements that appear in the development and close the circle at the end with the final events. Thus, the plot design is also accurate, and what fails, therefore, is the staging and execution. Another interesting point is the victim of the possession, unlike other films where it is usually a woman or a child, is a young man or a man, which is less common and reminiscent of "The Possession of Michael King" (2014) directed by David Jung. It's also an independent, low-budget production that details the possession process more extensively and deeply over its 83-minute duration. We have a man who, contrary to what Brandon in "The Possession Experiment" seeks, aims to demonstrate the opposite. While "The Possession of Michael King" has a balanced development and follows a clear line, Hansen's is irregular and to a certain extent chaotic and unpredictable. However, this unpredictability that emerges from chaos can even be an attractive point for the curious viewer without prejudices who wants to give Hansen's film a chance.