After 92 minutes in a cold theater I am now weary of two things: antique boxes and abnormally large moths.
Based on a true story, “The Possession,” directed by Danish filmmaker, Ole Bornedal, left me with a similar feeling as “The Grudge,” “The Ring,” and basically any other scary movie that has come out in the last 10 years.
It seems that in my group of friends, I am always the one pushing everybody to see the latest and greatest scary blockbuster. Most of the time, however, we leave the theater disappointed in the fact that the movie was just like the last one we spent $10 to see.
Another movie about a demonic little girl? Really? The story line was predictable and all too familiar. A demonic child, a family coming together to help, and of course the demonic child crawling on the walls, ceilings and down the stairs. Where have I seen that before?
Though I would be lying if I said I didn’t watch most of the movie through the skinny spaces of my fingers which were clenched tightly over my eyes.
“The Possession” had its moments of terror, mostly the jump-out parts paired with some incredibly loud music. But take away the suspenseful music, and you’d have a 10-year-old girl with some pale skin, blank stares and heavy eye makeup.
Oh, and don’t forget the moths that served no purpose other than to fly out of the young girl’s mouth at random points during the film. No, it was never explained why, and actually, that really bothered me. But hey, I guess it’s a scary movie, right? And oftentimes they don’t have to be explained.
I couldn’t help but compare “The Possession” to the 2005 film “The Exorcism of Emily Rose.” It was all too familiar. I mean, the demonic child’s name was even Emily! How about some creativity, Bornedal?
Overall, though I hate to admit it,”The Possession” was almost everything I expected it to be—terrible, due to it’s lack of originality, and lack-luster presentation. Though it grossed more than $9 million in theaters, I’m going to give credit to the fact that on a Friday night it’s either go see a scary movie, or go see the re-release of “Charly.”
While cliché and predictable, “The Possession” did leave a few haunting images floating in my head for a few nights, enough so to make me turn of the lights and do the running pole vault onto my bed and under the covers.
Don’t pretend like you haven’t done the same thing.
And I’ll tell you what: I won’t be picking up any antique boxes that could possibly be housing an ancient demon spirit anxious to get out, at any estate sales in the near future. And if I see a giant moth inexplicably fly out of somebody’s mouth, we are going to have issues.
