Possessor Uncut
Neon | Release Date: October 2, 2020 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
72
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 28 Critic Reviews
Positive:
24
Mixed:
4
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
78
Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovOct 1, 2020
Possessor is queasy-smart near-masterpiece of psychotronic slippage. Like its protagonist’s risky psychogenic recollections, it’ll stick with you whether you’d like it to or not. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsOct 2, 2020
The final third of this grim, accomplished film felt sluggish to me; just when he might’ve profitably gone crazier with the scenario, and the storytelling rhythm, Cronenberg putters and lets the audience get out ahead of the developments. Read full review
80
CineVueChristopher MachellNov 29, 2020
An uneasy and messy union of genre and arthouse, Possessor disturbs, thrills and eludes us in equal measure. Read full review
67
ConsequenceClint WorthingtonJan 26, 2020
It doesn’t always work, and the results are more than a little misanthropic (especially given the cruelty of its opening and closing moments). But if that’s your jam, and the prospect of body-swapping assassins coated in guts, gore, and neon appeals to you, Possessor‘s Argento-soaked atmosphere ought to fill that need. Read full review
80
EmpireChris Hewitt (1)Dec 17, 2020
Cronenberg by name, Cronenberg by nature. Possessor sees Brandon wading into territory often explored by his father, but there’s more than enough originality here, visually and thematically, to prevent this from being a mere cover version. Read full review
90
Film ThreatNorman GidneyFeb 1, 2020
Cronenberg has created a mind-bending trip of a movie with more to say than your average actioner and is supported by spectacular performances and make-up and practical effects that seal the deal. Brace yourself. Possessor is brilliant. Read full review
67
IndieWireDavid EhrlichJan 26, 2020
Possessor never manages to wrest control of your mind, but it’s unnervingly good at getting under your skin. Read full review
75
LarsenOnFilmJosh LarsenNov 18, 2020
Possessor cranks up the aesthetic volume on two familiar subgenres—the hired killer psychodrama and the sci-fi body-snatcher—until they meld into a destabilizing case of extreme cinema. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesNoel MurrayOct 1, 2020
Cronenberg has a lot of high-minded ideas, but he grounds them in human behavior and has found the right humans to tell his story. Read full review
80
New York Magazine (Vulture)Alison WillmoreOct 5, 2020
If Possessor ultimately feels more like a testament to its director’s excellent taste in influences than a film that entirely gels in itself, it’s still a thoroughly troubling watch. Read full review
75
Original-CinJim SlotekOct 1, 2020
There may be a lot of questions unanswered in Possessor, but there’s feverish imagination at work. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliSep 30, 2020
Brandon has apparently inherited a great deal from his father both in terms of his filmmaking techniques and his taste in material. As science fiction, Possessor is a little disappointing – it does too little with a pregnant premise crying out for deeper inspection. As horror, however, it’s a rousing success – a shocking and disturbing gem that doesn’t betray itself by softening things during the final act. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comSheila O'MalleyOct 2, 2020
Possessor is humorless, start to finish. Its energy is ponderous and glum, and the provocative ideas are not given a chance to really take on a life of their own. Still, there's much here that is imaginative and fresh. Read full review
70
Rolling StoneK. Austin CollinsOct 8, 2020
The out-of-bodiness you feel from the filmmaking is almost more unsettling than the actual story. It’s pure cinematic dysmorphia: to watch this movie carefully is to feel completely out of place, right alongside the people onscreen. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleOct 2, 2020
Long before the finish, Possessor descends into ugliness, with grotesque scenes of violence and lots of blood. You may feel creeped out, like you want to take a bath. But no, not in a good way. Read full review
60
Screen DailyWendy IdeJan 26, 2020
Possessor is ultra stylish and uber violent, but, despite a top tier cast, it’s not always entirely clear what is going on and who is in control of the finger on the trigger. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineChuck BowenSep 28, 2020
Though Possessor favors nihilist spectacle to existentialism, Brandon Cronenberg is more interested in exploring emotional dislocation than Christopher Nolan. Read full review
100
SlashfilmChris EvangelistaJan 26, 2020
It is a singular work – one so ghastly, so unique, and so brutal that it will awe some and disgust others. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Oct 1, 2020
In the end, Possessor privileges the visceral over the cerebral. Which is not to deny that it lands somewhere rather provocative as a character study. Read full review
70
The AtlanticDavid SimsOct 5, 2020
The film deploys its extreme imagery for a reason, interrogating notions of selfhood and agency through a plot where nefarious agents can tap directly into someone’s brain. Read full review
58
The Film StageOrla SmithDec 3, 2020
Possessor Uncut indeed looks beautiful––in a fucked up kind of way––but despite my visceral enjoyment of its visuals I couldn’t help but wonder what purpose they served. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzSep 29, 2020
But like Tasya, Possessor succeeds in getting under your skin. If this is just a taste of what Brandon Cronenberg has in store for cinema, then long live the new flesh. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeJan 26, 2020
There's an emotional logic to the action and imagery, carrying viewers along even if they're not quite sure if they're rooting for the innocent man or his troubled attacker. Read full review
90
The New York TimesGlenn KennyOct 1, 2020
Possessor is a shocking work that moves from disquieting to stressful with ruthless dispatch. Read full review
80
The Observer (UK)Mark KermodeNov 30, 2020
Scenes of faces melting and bodies merging have a satisfyingly tactile feel, harking back to the experimental cinematic trickery of Georges Méliès, albeit with added 21st-century oomph. There’s a real physical depth to Possessor that helps keep the story grounded even during its most outlandish flights of fantasy. Read full review
75
The PlaylistRobert DanielsJan 26, 2020
Possessor is a bloody existential fever dream that, at its best, is unnerving and thrilling, and, at its worst, is tiring and misbegotten. Read full review
40
TheWrapElizabeth WeitzmanJan 26, 2020
As both writer and director, Cronenberg focuses so intently on the surface that he neglects to include enough substance. Read full review
80
VarietyPeter DebrugeOct 2, 2020
On a technical level, the film is just astonishing, especially as regards the two lead actors’ performances. Read full review
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