“Possessor Uncut” Movie Review – This was R-rated?! Ha!

Possessor Uncut is full of gruesome gory scenes that can be jarring, especially the climax of the movie where it goes somewhere I did not think it would go. Which is where my questioning of the R-rating, in my review title, comes from.

It gets really brutal at times and is not for the squeamish.

The opening scene is a testament to that statement and sets the audience up for the grisly ride Possessor Uncut turns out to be.

Brandon Cronenberg directs this bloody Sci-Fi Horror movie (yes, the son of David Cronenberg director of epic movies like The Fly, Videodrome, Scanners, Dead Zone 1983 – go check out The Bloody Reel's Episode #8 Reel 86, where we talk about The Fly). After seeing Possessor Uncut, I feel like Brandon has not followed his father’s footsteps; he has created his own path. You can certainly see that he’s learned from his father’s experience and legendary works but is making his own personal mark on the Horror genre.

Possessor Uncut takes place in an unidentified time period. It is definitely not our reality, but a gritty Dystopian setting, a society that is dehumanizing and disheartening. Yet, the backdrop is still very relatable. The science fiction is shown through technology, but not in the glamorous clean way certain movies portray this. The tech is advanced but the visible aspect and method of using the tech appears more aged. Yeah…there’s nothing “clean” about this movie.

We see this technology in use through the work performed by the main character, Tasya Vos (Andrea Riseborough). She works for a corporation whose sole purpose is to get rid of people when paid to do so.

Tasya is an assassin, but not in a conventional fashion. Using a machine, and assistance from co-workers, she can enter another person’s body and mind, and gains control of them. Wearing the skin of another person, any dirty deed can be completed without suspicion toward Tasya or the company. Her employer receives kill hits from rich clients, and Tasya fulfills them by slaying the target, as she possesses a chosen host.

During the opening scene we are shown such an assignment being executed by a host Tasya is possessing. Let the blood fly and bodies lie!

Once Tasya is pulled out of her host, we see that she is struggling with her identity. Which could be the result of entering another person’s mind and living their lives through to a violent end. Her superior, Girder (wonderfully played by Jennifer Jason Leigh), performs a re-acclimation process to prove that Tasya remembers her true self and personal reality. Having been in the mind of another human being for a substantial period of time could have an effect on that I would imagine.

At this time Tasya asks for time away from her job. A break. But when she returns to her husband and child at home (of course they’re unaware of her true profession as assassin) she discovers that it’s difficult to relate to the normalcy of a regular life. She seems distant and a bit unstable.

After a brief attempt to be the mom/wife she is supposed to be, she quickly leaves and returns to duty. It’s clear that she prefers to operate in her role as assassin and doesn’t quite fit in her own traditional life. From this, comes her next assignment.

Colin Tate (Christopher Abbott).

He is the next host and has been picked for the murder of several people that are close in proximity to him. At least that is the plan. From here the main plot of the story plays out before us in gloriously colorful, tense, and bloody fashion. There’s a battle of control over Colin’s mind and body, which turns into a violent fatal run of events. All leading up to the shocking climax, which ends where the movie begins, in a bloody heap of a mess. What an ending…!

The story arc for the Tasya is part of the main plot in Possessor Uncut. Her transition through the movie is one of internal turmoil and a feeling of lost and confused identity. But by the end, Tasya has surpassed a specific milestone in her life that has made her complete. It is not a rosy happy landing spot. There’s an eradication of morals and compassion in her newly refined skin. The true mindless killer. But for Tasya, she is no longer struggling with who she is.

Although there are a lot of Horror Sci-Fi aspects in Possessor Uncut that are not new (control over someone’s mind and body, the color schemes throughout to provide the futuristic feel, the graphic violence), I was really pleased and impressed with Brandon Cronenberg’s second full-length film. I hope he continues with this success to give me more horror joy!

The color palette is a visually stunning reward. The brightened color of blood in the gory scenes heavily contrast with the grayer darker tones of the movie. Also, with the transition Tasya makes overtaking the host, we are assaulted with a trippy visual attack. But it is done with a great depiction of how she takes control over the unsuspecting mind.

The acting is superb by all parties. Andrea Riseborough was great as the conflicted murderous Tasya Vos. It’s always great to see Jennifer Jason Leigh. She did a great job as Tasya’s handler and a cold heartless individual. However, the star of Possessor Uncut was Christopher Abbott. As Colin Tate, he had to play a character that is battling for his own mind and body while that possessor’s personality and existence overrides Colin’s existence at times. He did an amazing job!

Possessor Uncut is Horror Sci-Fi done very well.

I hope you enjoy this one as much as I did. I gave it a 4.5 out of 5.0 Bloody Reels.

Possessor Uncut

Released: 10/2/2020

Rating: R

Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Running Time: 1 hour 43 minutes

Director: Brandon Cronenberg – Son of David Cronenberg (Antiviral)

Writer: Brandon Cronenberg (Antiviral Screenplay)

Stars:

Andrea Riseborough as Tasya Vos (Oblivion, The Grudge 2020, Mandy)

Christopher Abbott as Colin Tate (It Comes at Night, Whiskey Tango Fox)