Possessor is an Original Body Horror Film That Uses the Human Body Like an Actual Puppet

Possessor is one of the best horror films I watched last year. I was so surprised to learn that the iconic David Cronenberg’s own son, Brandon Cronenberg, was the one behind the creation of this film!

His insane horror imagery and ideas are blended together into a beautiful, horrible tale about the possession of the human body. I’m not talking about supernatural possession, but something much worse.

What if you were a innocent victim with a life, that is forcibly possessed by a random person that is hired to kill someone?

What if this person frames you for the murder, leaving you to take the blame for something you didn’t do?

How horrific is that?

Possessor follows the story of an assassin that takes over the body of a young man to plot the murder of his girlfriend’s father.

Doesn’t this plot already sound insane? Does it make any sense?

If you’re confused, trust me, I was too!

In the best way.

The story focuses on a woman named Tasya Vos, who is an assassin. She works for a company that uses her mind to take over other human bodies.

Her job has already damaged so much of her mind, and it leads to her own personal struggles to maintain her humanity, trying to stay sane while wishing to go back to her family.

It was so interesting and sad to watch Vos attempt pretend to show emotions. Before she greets her family, she is trying to attempt human like conversation.

Then she walks back into the life of her family, acting like nothing is wrong. It’s obvious that in the beginning of the film, Brandon Cronenberg is trying to show the state of her character to the audience.

She is already experiencing out of body moments, insinuating that a form of possession is within her. It’s tragic, and heartbreaking to learn that her choice of body will be someone that is just like her!

What follows is an insane battle of domination over the human body.

Tasya Vos takes over the body of Colin Tate, that leads to a ruthless battle to win over the other. Colin and Tasya even go as far to cause more damage, killing any innocent people that they are aware the other is close to.

It’s a tough battle, and no matter how many times Tasya attempts to take down Colin, he always finds a way to beat her.

It appears that this is the first time that Tasya has met her match, making Colin a worthy adversary. This is one of the few times where I felt so broken for a character in a horror film.

Colin wasn’t a bad guy, he was just a guy that was in the same shoes like Tasya. He didn’t know his purpose in life. Yet, he had good things going for him. He had a fiancé, and was getting married into a rich family, only to lose everything in the end by a complete stranger.

I was in absolute shock with the ending when Colin decided to go after the Tasya's own family, killing both of them as an act of revenge for the life she had taken from him. Tasya is saved last minute by the leader of the assassin company she works for, possessing the body of her own son.

Tasya's son dies, killing Colin, and their blood mixes together, creating a butterfly. It was a beautiful and grotesque visual, and I wasn't sure how to feel about it afterwards. The film was just way too depressing at this point.

The film ends with Tasya getting ready to undergo another mission, and while she is talking about her past life with her boss, the viewer realizes she is too far gone. Now nothing is holding her back, because Colin took away her family.

Possessor is a great horror film, and even though it is a tragic one, it’s one of the best horror concepts in body horror!

Thank you for reading!

Emy Quinn