Possession (1981 film)
| Possession | |
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original film poster
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| Directed by | Andrzej Żuławski |
| Produced by | Marie-Laure Reyre |
| Written by |
Frederic Tuten Andrzej Żuławski |
| Starring |
Isabelle Adjani Sam Neill |
| Music by | Andrzej Korzyński |
| Cinematography | Bruno Nuytten |
| Edited by | Marie-Sophi Dubus Suzanne Lang-Willar |
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Release date
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Running time
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97 minutes (edited version) 124 minutes (original cut) |
| Country | France West Germany |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $1,113,538 |
Possession is a 1981 French-German horror drama directed by Andrzej Żuławski and starring Isabelle Adjani and Sam Neill. The plot obliquely follows the relationship between an international spy and his wife, who begins exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior after asking him for a divorce. Filmed in Berlin in 1980, the film debuted at the Cannes Film Festival, where Isabelle Adjani won the award for Best Actress for her performance. The film later developed a cult following.
Mark (Sam Neill) is a spy returning home from an espionage mission (the nature of this mission is vague, but it involves long trips abroad, cash stuffed into briefcases, and vials of secret liquids) to find that his wife, Anna (Isabelle Adjani), wants a divorce. She won't say why, but insists it's not because she's found someone else.
Though Mark would rather stay with Anna and work things out, he turns the apartment and custody of their young son, Bob, over to her. Living alone, he begins to obsess over her, making dozens of calls, and seemingly going mad. He pays a visit to their flat only to find Bob alone, unkempt, and neglected. When Anna returns, he refuses to leave her alone with the child but attempts to make amends. He stays at the apartment to care for Bob but Anna leaves in the middle of the night.
Mark receives a phone call from Anna’s lover, Heinrich (Heinz Bennent), telling him that Anna is with him. He then gets Heinrich’s phone number from Anna’s friend, Margie. The next day, Mark meets Bob’s teacher, Helen (also played by Isabelle Adjani). She looks exactly like Anna but with brilliant green eyes and is calm and kind where Anna is hysterical.
Mark pays a visit to Heinrich who swears he didn’t call telling Mark that Anna needed space; he has not seen her, having been away on a business trip himself. Mark attacks Heinrich but is beaten bloody by Heinrich.
Mark returns home to find Anna who is vague on her whereabouts when confronted. He beats her and she storms out but he follows, apologizing, attempting reconciliation. She leaves him alone on the street. On his way back to the flat, he encounters Margie, whose left leg is in a cast, and he tells her, "I loathe you" when she offers to look after Bob. Mark has a meeting with a private investigator, then returns to the flat where he and Margie embrace in the bedroom.
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