The second feature by Brandon Cronenberg, who as in his first (2012’s ANTIVIRAL), created a film that’s heavily informed by the work of his father David. The science fiction themed POSSESSOR, completed in 2019 and shown at the Sundance Film Festival in 2020, is as bloody and stylish as anyone could desire, with a very Cronenbergian obsession with parasitic invasion (and a direct link to Brandon’s father in the form of Jennifer Jason Leigh, from eXistenZ). It never reaches the heights attained by the elder Cronenberg, but is nonetheless a definite step in the right direction.
Tasya Vos is an assassin employed by an organization using specialized brain implants. Under the control of a female functionary named Girder, Tasya is charged with carrying out assassinations by possessing the bodies of others. Her most recent hit was a bit messy, involving a bloody stabbing (when a gunshot would have sufficed), and has left her traumatized. This doesn’t bode well for her newest assignment, which involves inhabiting Colin Tate, a recently deceased himbo in whose body Tasya is set to kill a wealthy scumbag named John Parse.
Sure enough, the assignment is quite rocky, with Tasya/Tate assailed by memories and hallucinations, and having a hard time fitting in with Tate’s high society acquaintances. The killing, when it finally occurs, is even bloodier and more traumatic than the previous one. It causes Tasya to become trapped inside Tate’s body, in which guise s/he becomes increasingly unstable, forcing Girder to directly intervene.
Cinematically Brandon Cronenberg demonstrates a fair amount of flair, even if his methodology tends to annoy more often than it appeases. The actors were evidently encouraged to speak their lines in incomprehensible monotones, and Cronenberg often has music play over (not under) the dialogue. His apparent goals, at least, appear to have been achieved: the look and atmosphere are staunchly naturalistic yet also quite stylized (the quirky science fiction dramas of Shane Carruth, which are similarly oriented, appear to have been as influential to Brandon Cronenberg as his father’s output).
From a conceptual standpoint, alas, the film is unsatisfying. Like Brandon Cronenberg’s earlier ANTIVIRAL, POSSESSOR is marked by interesting ideas that aren’t paid off, leaving us with a promising but unsatisfying viewing experience marked by a great beginning and a wholly underwhelming ending.
Vital Statistics
POSSESSOR
Rhombus Media/Rook Films/Particular Crowd
Director: Brandon Cronenberg
Producers: Niv Fichman, Andrew Starke, Kevin Krikst, Fraser Ash
Screenplay: Brandon Cronenberg
Cinematography: Karim Hussain
Editing: Matthew Hannam
Cast: Andrea Riseborough, Christopher Abbott, Rossif Sutherland, Tuppence Middleton, Sean Bean, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gabrielle Graham, Hanneke Talbot, Matthew Garlick, Daniel Park, Hrant Alianak, Rachael Crawford, Gage Graham-Arbuthnot, Megan Vincent, Danny Waugh