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The Possession (I) (2012) 5.8
Ratings:
5.8/10 from 21,586 users
Metascore: 45/100
Reviews: 133 user | 222 critic | 26 from Metacritic.com A young girl buys an antique box at a yard sale, unaware that inside the collectible lives a malicious ancient spirit. The girl's father teams with his ex-wife to find a way to end the curse upon their child. Director:Ole Bornedal |
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Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Jeffrey Dean Morgan | ... |
Clyde
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| Kyra Sedgwick | ... |
Stephanie
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| Natasha Calis | ... |
Em
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| Madison Davenport | ... |
Hannah
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| Matisyahu | ... |
Tzadok
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| Grant Show | ... |
Brett
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| Rob LaBelle | ... |
Russell
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| Nana Gbewonyo | ... |
Darius
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| Anna Hagan | ... |
Eleanor
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| Brenda Crichlow | ... |
Miss Shandy
(as Brenda M. Crichlow)
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| Jay Brazeau | ... |
Professor McMannis
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| Iris Quinn | ... |
Doctor
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Graeme Duffy | ... |
Lab Tech
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| David Hovan | ... |
Adan
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Chris Shields | ... |
Assistant Coach
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Plot Summary
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Plot Synopsis
Storyline
The basketball coach Clyde and his wife Stephanie divorced a couple of months ago and their teenage daughter Hannah and the girl Emily 'Em' live with their mother and spend the weekends with their father. One day, Clyde stops his car in a yard sale and Em buys an antique carved box and becomes obsessed with it. Em finds the hidden lock and releases an evil spirit that possesses her. Soon Clyde discovers that Em has a problem, but his annoying ex-wife and her boyfriend Brett do not pay attention to him and get a restraining order against Clyde. Clyde seeks out Professor McMannis and when he sees the box, he explains that it is a Dibbuk Box, where a fiend is trapped inside. He also explains that the box should not be open; otherwise the person will be possessed by the spirit. Now Clyde travels to a Jewish community in New York and the rabbi's son Tzadok returns with him expecting to exorcise Em to save the girl. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Taglines:
Fear The Demon That Doesn't Fear GodMotion Picture Rating (MPAA)
Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material involving violence and disturbing sequences | See all certifications »Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
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See more »
See full technical specs »
Details
Language:
EnglishRelease Date:
31 August 2012 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Dibbuk Box See more »Filming Locations:
Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaBox Office
Budget:
$14,000,000 (estimated)Opening Weekend:
$17,732,480 (USA) (31 August 2012)Gross:
$49,122,319 (USA) (16 November 2012)Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Color:
ColorAspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1
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Fake headline says "People Flock to 'The Possession' Because They Wish They Had Possessions" See more »
Written by Jack Little (as Little Jack Little) and Joe Young
Performed by Mel Tormé
Courtesy of Capitol Records
Under license from EMI Film & Television Music
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
In the final scenes Em takes hiding in the hospital's morgue. A hospital's morgue plays a crucial part in Ole Bornedal's breakthrough movie Nightwatch (1997). See more »Goofs
When Clyde is shown lying on his couch throwing a basketball up in the air, a band-aid is seen on the back of his hand, before his hand gets stabbed. See more »Connections
Referenced in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Episode #20.202 (2012)Fake headline says "People Flock to 'The Possession' Because They Wish They Had Possessions" See more »
Soundtracks
"You're a Heavenly Thing"Written by Jack Little (as Little Jack Little) and Joe Young
Performed by Mel Tormé
Courtesy of Capitol Records
Under license from EMI Film & Television Music
See more »
Let me start of by saying that The Possession is far from a horrible film. It's well put together, reasonably well acted, etc., but there's nothing to really recommend rushing out to see it.
Any true horror fan will tell you that 2012 has been slim pickings for theatrical horror films. The ones we've gotten have ranged from decent (The Woman in Black) to extremely divisive (The Cabin in the Woods). Sadly, The Possession is not going to be our saving grace this year.
I will give The Possession props for attempting to give its characters some sort of backstory and dramatic through line, especially since that's something horror filmmakers have been forgetting to put in for years. It seems they forget that it helps if we get to know the people who are about to be terrorized if they expect us to feel any sympathy for them. The family unit is quite likable thanks to some game performances, but something about it feels manufactured and unrealistic as if the writers are trying too hard.
Once the real action of the film starts and little Emily starts acting strange, the film pulls a lot of punches and never does anything interesting or original with the material. It's Exorcist-lite. It would be as if the Disney Channel tried turning The Exorcist into a TV movie for their network. It takes a lot of the dread and danger out of the last act of the film.
Also, forget about scares. No one in my audience even jumped at the film's many attempts at "boo" scares. There's a good effort to build up the dread for the first 30/45 minutes of the film, but it plateaus there and never pays off.
Like I said, The Possession is not a terrible film (nowhere near as abysmal as this year's The Devil Inside), just a dull one with nothing new to offer and no surprises to make it worth seeing. I really don't even think it's rental material. Skip it!