I enjoyed the different take on possessions and what happens after its over. Pam Grier reflects on her most iconic roles, from. Sounds as fresh as it is with humor that isn't trying to be funny, but definitely is. But Avas recovery efforts get bogged down by Hazel (Annabelle Dexter-Jones), a fellow Spirit Possessions Anonymous attendee whos developed an obsession with her former possessor and enlists Avas help to invite him back. IMDb . Ava's family is of little help, as Ava gets the impression they are hiding something. Dont want to miss anything on the site? Late in the show, writers Shahar Magen and Valrie Zenatti introduce the cause of Natalies man troubles. But grisly visions continue to plague her . 2015 She is initially flippant towards her actions during this time, but soon discovers that she caused serious emotional and physical damage, resulting in her losing her job, friends, and boyfriend, as well as potential jail time. Finally someone made a movie, that is so obvious, you really wonder, how no one came up with that simple yet brilliant concept yet. Shes soon justified in her apprehensions. Yes, a visual treat as well. It becomes so much more relatable, and that makes the comedy work. The ritual also leaves a tattoo on her neck, which Tony discovers. For me if they just stuck more to the world that a demon possession could offer would have been much much better. This is one of the most original movies i have seen recently. Ava's life was hijacked by a demon, now it's time to get it back. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of serviceapply. However, Avas Possessions does manage to get away with it thanks to the appealing core concept, Krauses charm and writer-director Jordan Gallandsfirm handle on the material. He went into Sophie's cell and gave her a written confession of her betrayal for her to attest, but Sophie chose not to sign it. There's quite the idea here, comically displays the aftereffect of the unfortunate event, but it becomes too busy with overload of subplots, colors and eventually too plodding for its own good. With her biological father falling miserably short in his parental duties, Duke filled that void for her. Just when you think filmmakers had all but exhausted the demonic possession subgenre, giving us all that could possibly be wrung from it, along comes writer/director Jordan Galland and Avas Possessions. and they got a cameo from the god carol kane!!! It is neither scary nor humorous. Avas quest for the truth makes the film feel like more of a detective yarn than a straight-up horror flick, and Galland elevates the noirish tone with a heavy use of atmospheric neon. In fact, I actually think I might be able to enjoy upcoming possession movies more now that Avas has opened the door to considering what happens to a person post-exorcism. Accused Episode 2 Recap. . When Ava is in her apartment with Ben she gets a phone call. Ava's possession opens with a exorcism sequence (which is as original as it can be) which lasted for 28days but soon ava discovers that she has caused serious emotional and physical damage, resulting in her losing her job, friends, and boyfriend, as well as potential jail time. The problem is it tries to be so many things at once than its mostly none of them. A little heavy on plot and the horror lacks a bit of a bite, but the demons are quite cute and it's creative and colorful enough to keep the attention. I mean "entity." This is where Wass Stevens steps in as Tony, the head of Spirit Possessions Anonymous. Jordan Galland's sharp satire Ava's Possessions, on the other hand . Its again not something you see every day in the genre. But the ending was a bit confusing. It's a question not many movies have asked, so I sat down and took it in. Letterboxd Limited. Facing multiple criminal offenses, Ava opts to go into "Spirit Possession Anonymous" where she meets Hazel who liked being possessed and wants to embrace her demon. I could have spent hours exploring SPA, the cases Tony is dealing with and how having been possessed changes a persons everyday life, but eventually, the film shifts its focus to a mystery of sorts and thats where Avas Possessions loses a little momentum. Bill and Teds Bogus Journey: 30th Anniversary Death Statue from Incendium Now Available for Pre-Order! [1] Entertainment Weekly wrote a mostly favorable review, criticizing it for having too many plot threads in one movie but stating that "Krauses deadpan wit, coupled with the inspired scenes at Spirit Possessions Anoymous, make Avas Possessions a fun, fresh take on a genre staple. If you know of any, please let me know in the comments, because I would love to see them. The movie does have a great way of making what is a horror trope feel like a regularity, and with that comes the mundane and irritation of every day life. | A priest (John Ventimiglia) successfully completes an exorcism on Ava (Louisa Krause), who is stunned to find that she has spent the last 28 days possessed by the demon Naphula. Director Jordan Galland Writer Jordan Galland Stars Louisa Krause Whitney Able Deborah Rush See production, box office & company info Watch on Prime Video Ava's Possession doesn't rely on jumpscares, or even really anything to scare you other than the odd bit of strange makeup. Definitely worth a watch, any way you can find it. Theres an SPA handbook thats a bit reminiscent of the Handbook for the Recently Deceased in Beetlejuice, members are instructed to not use the D word and they also all have very different relationships with their uninvited spiritual guest. Whereas Ava is eager to get rid of her rather malicious evil entity, another group member named Hazel (Annabelle Dexter-Jones) has basically fallen in love with hers. The story is not only a different take, but is also strong, and backed by some great acting. The well developed psychological, horror thriller avoids the by now over-used blatantly scary scenes and instead uses a more Hitchcock-directed approach. Still, its a nice alternative to yet another self-serious Exorcist wannabe. Instead of the classic horror movie reactions to things like possessions and demons, we get a more muted and organic comical touch. Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter. She reveals that she is behind temporary power outages that turn off Nathan's surveillance system, and that while they. The project is described as an original standalone feature, and THR notes that Alvarez wrote the script with Rodo Sayagues (Evil Dead). David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Spike Fearn and Aileen Wu have signed on, THR reports. Normally, a possession movie ends with the victim baths in sunlight or in some cases wanders into the dark. Where precisely does it go off the rails? Directed by Jordan Galland. There have been sequels to exorcism movies of course and they show a sort of aftermath, but this is an "original", without any background as to what happened before. In spite of some great stuff in the story and performances, Avas Possessions does have some slips. Production companies: Ravenous Films, Traction Media, Cast: Louisa Krause, Whitney Able, Deborah Rush, William Sadler, Carol Kane, Lou Taylor Pucci, Wass Stevens, Zachary Booth, Producers: Jordan Galland, Maren Olson, Carlos Velazquez, Douglas Weiser, Executive producers: Mike Landry, Mark L. Pederson, Aldey Sanchez, Gregory P. Schockro, Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day. The prostitute is murdered before she can tell Ava anything. It took the bold choice of not really showing much of the exorcism at all, you catch a glimpse right at the very beginning, starting things off where most films of this genre normally ends, but from. Having no memory of the past month, she agrees to sign on with a support group for people like herself in hopes of undoing the damage done in her life (as well as having the charges against her dropped). Practically the entire cast gets whats needed to make this film work. See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs. A supernatural comedy that kicks off after the exorcism. Possession (1981) Ending Explained. Its a garishly happy affair, already marked with a portent of doom. It's really a disappointment when the end of a decent and likely unique and new look at post-Exorcist horror has a tacked on ending in the tradition of most clichd horror B movies. I try not to be boring. Relatively well acted with a unique spin on the possession genre. With no memory of the past month, she must attend a Spirit Possessions Anonymous support group to figure out what happened. Pam Grier reflects on her most iconic roles, from Coffy to Jackie Brown. I'm generally skeptical of anything Hollywood calls "multicultural." It's usually a cover phrase for "objectively without value except for raising your social . More at I wont give too much away, but just know that it is rooted in tradition, strange and alarmingly ableist, Orientalist and so far as I can tell given the search terms that seemed apt invented for the show or at least obscure and troubling. Beginning where most, if not all, exorcism-related horror movies end, "Ava's Possessions" travels the path less taken, chronicling its titular character's recovery from a brutal bout with a demon name Naphula. As someone whos seen quite a few possession movies recently, Avas Possessions is wildly refreshing. But though shes eager to protect herself from her uninvited spirit guest, another member of the group wants hers back. She believed that she should value death over having Jonah take her status and possessions and let her live like a prisoner. Metacritic Reviews. Horror is in trouble if this doesn't become a cult classic someday. This is a film that I've notice on Netflix a number of times, but for some reason or another I kept on passing it by. Aside from that, the movie does a great job of juxtaposing regular daily scenes with night scenes that are bathed in neon aesthetics. Film: Ava's Possessions (2015) So what do we have here? As Ava struggles to reconnect with her friends, get her job back, and figure out where the huge blood stain in her apartment came from, she is plagued by nightmarish visions - the demon is trying to come back. Click here for Culture Crypt's interview with filmmaker Jordan Galland and star Louisa Krause. Nadia Tereszkiewicz as Natalie in HBO Maxs Possessions. Courtesy of HBO Max. So what do we have here? A semicomic mystery imagining what happens after the credits roll on a demonic-possession fright flick, Jordan Galland 's Ava's Possessions realizes the obvious it ain't easy to reenter. The results land on the dismissible side. The halo cures Ava's paralysis and gives her superpowers, but also burdens her with the mantle of the Warrior Nun. Its not just Rosa who resorts to ritual in the wake of the tragedy. "[2] Bloody Disgusting shared a similar opinion and noted that while the film was flawed, it had good acting and was "still a unique film that deserves a watch to see that not every possession film has to be told the same way. Instead of focusing on her possession, this movie asks the question, what is life like AFTER your demon has been exorcised? The acting and story are very well done. The film takes the notion that society believes that possession is a real thing, and as such comes up with situations (such as the stereotype of being that type of person who gets possessed) that are kind of fun to explore. That's shown with her name on the records in the office and a flashback to her telling Ava that she knows exactly what being possessed was like. So what is this movie really? Privacy Policy. Ava (Louisa Kraus) is recovering from a demonic possession, after committing a string of crimes while under possession she is forced to attend a spirits anonymous group to avoid doing jail time and with little memory of the incident she has to piece together the details leading up to the possession to find out who put the curse on her. With no memory of the past month, she must attend a Spirit Possessions Anonymous support group to figure out what happened. The film begins during the tail end of her . Furious, Ava begins screaming and the office door swings open, showing the shadow of Ava's demon. Were happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. 2023 Oscars predictions: See who will win at the 95th Academy Awards. Im reasonably confident you wont be quick to solve the murder mystery at the heart of Possessions. If you do work out the exact whys and wherefores before, say, episode four of six Im more than a bit worried about you. PJ Grisar is a Forward culture reporter. It's basically jail, or join a group a lot like AA but for possession victims: Spirit Possession Anonymous. This is the one. With no memory of the past month, she is forced to attend a Spirit Possessions Anonymous support group. There are subplots (such as Avas romance with Lou Taylor Puccis character) that feel underdeveloped and are subsequently left by the wayside in order to focus on the main story. Like open a new tab and stream this movie, watch it, then tell everyone you know. Other reviews already mention the unnecesary subplots. Props to cinematographer Adrian Correia for presenting the films bright colour palette. Another movie that thankfully dispenses with the exorcism cliches and deals more with the after effects, in a comedic matter-of-fact way, with a splash of noirish mystery to it.