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The Possession

  • 2012
  • PG-13
  • 1h 32m
IMDb RATING
5.9/10
65K
YOUR RATING
The Possession (2012)
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.
Play trailer1:01
14 Videos
51 Photos
Body HorrorSupernatural HorrorHorrorMysteryThriller

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... Read allA 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.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
  • Writers
    • Juliet Snowden
    • Stiles White
    • Leslie Gornstein
  • Stars
    • Natasha Calis
    • Jeffrey Dean Morgan
    • Kyra Sedgwick
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.9/10
    65K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Ole Bornedal
    • Writers
      • Juliet Snowden
      • Stiles White
      • Leslie Gornstein
    • Stars
      • Natasha Calis
      • Jeffrey Dean Morgan
      • Kyra Sedgwick
    • 269User reviews
    • 247Critic reviews
    • 45Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 6 nominations total

    Videos14

    No. 2
    Trailer 1:01
    No. 2
    No. 1
    Trailer 2:31
    No. 1
    No. 1
    Trailer 2:31
    No. 1
    The Possession
    Trailer 2:24
    The Possession
    No. 1
    Clip 0:36
    No. 1
    The Possession: Where's My Box
    Clip 0:47
    The Possession: Where's My Box
    The Possession: Mouth Fingers
    Clip 0:36
    The Possession: Mouth Fingers

    Photos51

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    + 45
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    Top cast46

    Edit
    Natasha Calis
    Natasha Calis
    • Em
    Jeffrey Dean Morgan
    Jeffrey Dean Morgan
    • Clyde
    Kyra Sedgwick
    Kyra Sedgwick
    • Stephanie
    Madison Davenport
    Madison Davenport
    • Hannah
    Matisyahu
    Matisyahu
    • Tzadok
    Grant Show
    Grant Show
    • Brett
    Rob LaBelle
    Rob LaBelle
    • Russell
    Nana Gbewonyo
    Nana Gbewonyo
    • Darius
    Anna Hagan
    Anna Hagan
    • Eleanor
    Brenda Crichlow
    Brenda Crichlow
    • Miss Shandy
    • (as Brenda M. Crichlow)
    Jay Brazeau
    Jay Brazeau
    • Professor McMannis
    Iris Quinn
    Iris Quinn
    • Doctor
    Graeme Duffy
    Graeme Duffy
    • Lab Tech
    David Hovan
    David Hovan
    • Adan
    Chris Shields
    Chris Shields
    • Assistant Coach
    Adam Young
    • Preston
    Jim Thorburn
    Jim Thorburn
    • First Responder
    Quinn Lord
    Quinn Lord
    • Student
    • Director
      • Ole Bornedal
    • Writers
      • Juliet Snowden
      • Stiles White
      • Leslie Gornstein
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews269

    5.965.1K
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    Featured reviews

    9deadly_twilight

    Do not let the slow pace fool you.

    So this movie was not for everyone, I personally thought this movie was great.

    An exorcism movie that does not involve the devil is refreshing to see, and the experience of the movie is played out quite well in the pacing and how events unfold. The fact it features the Jewish religion over Christianity is a very nice touch, one you rarely see in a movie of this style as most people hear exorcism and assume the Catholic church. While many may complain it is too slow, and other such things let me ask you this question.

    What were you expecting from a movie that was purely plot driven?

    Personally the acting was also great, I could empathize with the characters and understand them. The father was just worried about his daughter, who hid her signs of the problem well until things got bad. I mean when it really showed and she was hitting the kid at school, that looked like something that night happen in school over even something small like a favorite pencil or item. There was in my opinion no weak performances in the acting, coupled with a solid and strong story makes for quite a good movie.

    Lastly the execution was some of the best I had seen this far, it flowed and was not jumpy like say the bourne movies. Nothing was out of place and the movie felt creepy and eerie throughout with all of the silence that you could almost hear in many parts of it. If your looking for a truly good movie that will have you walking away satisfied this is one of them.

    It is a well written, acted, and executed movie that while it may seem slow moving is well worth the watch. Think of it what you will, but I recommend this movie as one of my top ten movies of 2012.
    8mcclaresteven

    Well worth the watching

    Hello readers. This is my first review of a movie on here and I was inspired to do it after reading petit76 negative view on the film. I am also an avid horror fan pretty much seen them all and I thought this film was excellent! Acting was very good and the storyline is as good as you will get with horror films nowadays which is such hard genre to be original with.

    Thats the problem with IMDb nowadays almost every film gets a negative review. This was a most enjoyable horror with some nice fright scenes and I would recommend it to anyone with a spare 90 Min's. A solid 8/10 from me folks enjoy!!
    8abdelgulabkhan

    Great Horror film

    This movie is very good for a horror film

    It starts off well and you have very good characters, the father in the film is a very good actor.

    Overall the directing of the movie is excellent, all the pieces fit together well and you understand the story. A lot of horror films fail in the directing as things are mismatched and no one knows what is is going on.

    It is a very well told story that develops into lots of thrills and scares

    It is not a gory film which is very good but it keeps you entertained all the way through

    The characters are excellent and interesting, the acting is good so this keeps you gripped all the way through

    Overall an enjoyable film and does the job of a good horror film
    6IheartCali5882

    The cream puff version of The Exorcist

    The parallels between this film and The Exorcist are obvious even from the trailers, so I won't go too far into that. Just suffice it to say that The Possession contains none of the impact or shock value that The Exorcist has. In short, it's just not as good of a film.

    However, in its own right, it's a pretty competent horror movie. The story of the central characters is kind of cliché. Husband and wife have divorced, they share custody of the children, there's a new boyfriend/girlfriend in the picture, etc. This type of set up is always convenient when dealing with a "messed up kid" film. That way whatever is wrong with the child can inevitably be blamed on the fact that the child is just not dealing well with the break up of his or her parents. And that's exactly what happens in The Possession; except there is actually something VERY wrong with the youngest daughter and it has absolutely nothing to do with her parents. Without giving away too much, the plot centers around an ancient wooden box the youngest daughter finds at a yard sale. Of course she wants it, and so she gets it. And there begins to occur some rather strange phenomena; most of them downright spooky, a couple kind of hokey.

    All in all, I was pleased. This film has got good pacing, decent acting, and exceptional cinematography. There's not much I can find as a fault here. If I had to name my major complaint about this and similar movies it would be this: I'm not thrilled about the influx of PG-13 horror films. I've a suspicion this is due to a need to bring in a wider audience (younger viewers/teenagers), and make more money on ticket sales. Because of this the final product tends to be a little too watered down for my tastes. The Possession shows a lot of promise, but I can't help but wish the writers/director would have pushed the envelope a bit more; fleshed out the story. Then it would have been great. As it stands now, I'll just say it's a "good" little horror film. Nothing that will be talked about this time next year, but I consider my money well spent.

    My rating: 6.5/10
    8sarahxxlou

    It's not your average 'lets walk down the stairs backwards and puke over a priest' possession movie!

    I was on holiday visiting my friend in Sacramento, California, and we decided to go to the movies. Our choice was between this movie and another called 'The Apparition'. We opted for this one as creepy kids always seem to make a horror movie much more appealing. Usually, I avoid possession films. I can't even force myself to consider 'the exorcist' a horror classic. I just think possession and exorcism films are always poorly done and are slightly altered versions of each other. However, seeing the trailer of this film beforehand made me want to see this movie and again, the little girl Emily 'Natasha Calis' drew me in. I thought this film had an interesting storyline which kept me gripped throughout and superb performances by the cast, especially Natasha Calis who portrays the little girl Emily who is possessed throughout the film. Without giving away any spoilers, I felt the ending was well done and made me leave the theatre thanking the screenplay writer for a non-stereotypical ending - well done! This film is definitely worth a watch. I may even buy it on DVD when it's released. It's not your average 'lets walk down the stairs backwards and puke over a priest' possession movie. It's well acted, well written and well worth a see. It has some jumpy moments for those who aren't desensitised to the ways of a horror movie but mainly it's gripping and you want to find out what's in that box.. GO SEE IT! I hope to see the young cast in some more films in the future! Loved it!

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    Related interests

    Jeff Goldblum in The Fly (1986)
    Body Horror
    Daveigh Chase in The Ring (2002)
    Supernatural Horror
    Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby (1968)
    Horror
    Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)
    Mystery
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The demon in the box speaks Polish.
    • Goofs
      (at around 20 mins) 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.
    • Quotes

      Tzadok: I hate hospitals... people die here.

    • Connections
      Featured in Cinemassacre's Monster Madness: Insidious (2014)
    • 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

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    FAQ21

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    • What are the differences between the Theatrical Version and the Unrated Version?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 31, 2012 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • Canada
    • Official sites
      • Official Facebook
      • Official site
    • Languages
      • English
      • Polish
      • Yiddish
    • Also known as
      • Posesión satánica
    • Filming locations
      • Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    • Production companies
      • Ghost House Pictures
      • North Box Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $14,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $49,130,154
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $17,732,480
      • Sep 2, 2012
    • Gross worldwide
      • $85,446,075
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 32m(92 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Datasat
      • Dolby Digital
      • SDDS
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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