Born in the shadow of marital turmoil and political rupture, it is almost inevitable that Andrzej Żuławski’s Possession (1981) would be caught between two worlds. In Cannes, the film premiered in competition for the illustrious Palme d’Or; in the UK it was put on trial for charges of obscenity as part of the infamous ‘video nasties’ campaign. Beginning with a marital breakdown and ending with an apocalypse, Possession is a fascinating and confounding artefact skirting the boundaries between art and exploitation, visceral horror and cerebral reverie. Shot against the Berlin Wall at the height o ... More

Born in the shadow of marital turmoil and political rupture, it is almost inevitable that Andrzej Żuławski’s Possession (1981) would be caught between two worlds. In Cannes, the film premiered in competition for the illustrious Palme d’Or; in the UK it was put on trial for charges of obscenity as part of the infamous ‘video nasties’ campaign. Beginning with a marital breakdown and ending with an apocalypse, Possession is a fascinating and confounding artefact skirting the boundaries between art and exploitation, visceral horror and cerebral reverie. Shot against the Berlin Wall at the height of the Cold War and replete with tales of a disappearing producer, drunken stunt doubles, and Haitian voodoo trances, the film’s production history is almost as bizarre as the finished product. Possession’s mystique has not dissipated over time; its transgressive imagery, histrionic performances, and spiral staircase logic continue to mesmerise audiences 40 years after its original release. Including new interview material from Sam Neill, extracts from the original shooting script and the BBFC’s archival reports, this book takes a deep dive into Possession’s history, stylistic achievement, and legacy as an enduring and unique work of horror cinema.