Possessor: Uncut [Blu-Ray]

Director: Brandon Cronenberg

Cast: Christopher Abbott, Andrea Riseborough, Rossif Sutherland

Release Date: December 8, 2020

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Film Rating: 9/10
Disc Rating: 8/10

Synopsis:

From the visionary mind of writer/director Brandon Cronenberg, POSSESSOR UNCUT is an arresting sci-fi thriller about elite corporate assassin Tasya Vos. Using brain-implant technology, Vos takes control of other people’s bodies to execute high-profile targets. As she sinks deeper into her latest assignment, Vos becomes trapped inside a mind that threatens to obliterate her.

Please Note: Well GO USA Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Post. The opinions I share are my own.

From filmmaker Brandon Cronenberg comes ‘Possessor: Uncut’ which tells the story of an assassin named Tasya Vos, an experienced killer who infiltrates the minds of individuals with access to her targets for optimal efficiency and no loose ends or evidence. Struggling after her last mission, she perhaps unwisely opts for heading out on another job with her mind anything but perfect and jumps into the mind of a man with ties to the familiar individual she’s tasked with killing this time around. But when her control slips and the man becomes aware enough to start fighting to reclaim control of his body it results in a graphic chain of events that could shatter both of their lives.

Written and directed by Brandon Cronenberg (Antiviral) who does a fantastic job at the helm of ‘Possessor: Uncut’ delivering a phenomenal sophomore outing as filmmaker filled with smart ideas, stunning visuals and no shortage of unforgettable practical effects that should have genre fans drooling. The film also benefits significantly from the talented and well selected cast which includes Christopher Abbott (It Comes At Night), Andrea Riseborough (Mandy), Rossif Sutherland (Edge of Winter), Tuppence Middleton (Mank), Sean Bean (The Lord of the Rings) and Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight) along with more and nearly all offering solid if not notable performances for the most part in each of their respective roles.

‘Possessor: Uncut’ is a gorgeous, wildly brutal and mind twisting ride from Brandon Cronenberg that follows an assassin who infiltrates her targets by taking over the minds of those closest to them but finds herself in a dangerous clash when her latest takeover doesn’t go quite as planned and the mind of the man she’s possessing begins trying to fight back and reclaim control. It utilizes a fittingly calm pace with spurts of aggression and carnage that slowly builds the tension within as the clash between these two people reaches a crescendo. The clever use of almost psychedelic visuals that showcase the interior fight for control between the two perfectly captures what we’d imagine the internal fight for control and clarity to represent. While the beautiful pacing and uncompromising bloodshed paired with the unique visuals form something stunning in their own right, it also never wastes any time trying to fill in the audience on every detail which only works to its benefit in keeping the viewer on their toes and trying to decipher some of the minor curiosities within even as things become increasingly more chaotic onscreen. It’s by no means an overly complex film and most of it is surprisingly straight forward once everything starts moving, but it still leaves enough tidbits of uncertainty cleverly sprinkled throughout that it will leave you pondering it for some time after.

Overall, ‘Possessor: Uncut’ is a smart, twisted and visually stunning sci-fi horror tale that hits all of the right  marks and is almost surely one of the best film’s I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing this year. Uncompromisingly graphic at times, it’s a mind-warping masterpiece that should have you glued to the screen all the way until its brutal and unforgettable conclusion. ‘Possessor: Uncut’ easily earns one of my highest possible recommendations. It’s a brilliantly twisted and unique piece of cinema that fans of Brandon Cronenberg’s previous film ‘Antiviral’ as well as fans of his father’s work and genre fans in general all won’t even want to consider overlooking. At the absolute least this one should be well worth a couple hours of your time and the price of a rental, and don’t be terribly shocked if you find yourself wanting to purchase a copy after watching either.

VIDEO:

The Blu-ray release of ‘Possessor: Uncut’ features a full 1080p High Definition presentation with the film’s original 1.78:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks magnificent as a whole and provides a clean, colorful and richly detailed presentation from start to finish with no notable faults or problems to be uncovered throughout. It holds up beautifully even during the various darkly lit and fast moving moments, never causing anything occurring onscreen to become negatively affected, let alone rendered indiscernible. Overall, this is a wonderful high definition video presentation that shouldn’t have any trouble whatsoever pleasing both first time viewers and fans.

AUDIO:

The Blu-ray release features a 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. This multichannel soundtrack serves up a clean, sharp and frequently hard hitting audio presentation throughout. It repeatedly takes full advantage of all five available channels in order to send the film’s score, along with action and nature effects, bits of dialogue and a whole lot more regularly whipping throughout the various speakers at every fitting opportunity, while never conflicting with any dialogue or other audio elements that might be occurring simultaneously. Overall, this is a great 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtrack that never disappoints and perfectly complements the onscreen tension and craziness.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The Blu-ray release of ‘Possessor: Uncut’ includes some notable extras that fans of the film should enjoy. Included on the release are a few ‘Deleted Scenes’ from the movie (running approximately 8 minutes in length altogether), in addition to some Behind the Scenes Featurettes that explore what went into bringing the film to life and include interviews/comments with the cast and crew, plus behind the scenes footage and more. The included Featurettes are: ‘A Heightened World: The Look of Possessor’ (running approximately 10 minutes), ‘Identity Crisis: Bringing Possessor to Life’ (approximately 15 minutes) and ‘The Joy of Practical: The Effects of Possessor’ (12 minutes). The release also includes ‘3 Trailers’ for the film: a ‘Green Band Teaser’ (1 minute), ‘Red Band Teaser’ (1 minute) and ‘Uncut Trailer’ (2 minutes).

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Blu-Ray and resized. They will additionally suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on this Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

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Film Rating: 9/10
Disc Rating: 8/10

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Brandon Cronenberg’s ‘Possessor: Uncut’ is Now Available to Own on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray & Digital from NEON & Well GO USA Entertainment

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