It has all the elements that today would make it a objectionable film, even “cancellable” in the transformative era of social networks. Nasty, gory and overwhelmingly sexual. Possession (Possession) It was released in 1981 and is still considered one of those must-see cult titles that offer a different look at horror. Own Sam Neill (jurassic park)—through his memoir Did I Ever Tell You This?— considered that it could not be done today, although he is grateful to have been part of the cast.
“Not many people have seen it and, of those who have seen it, it is true that many hate it. Myself I consider it a masterpiece, although very imperfect.. And I’m not the only one,” the New Zealand actor admitted, adding that “today I doubt you would get away with it.” The 21st century industry is increasingly less permissive with abuse and exploitation of actors on sets, however, these problems have not been completely overcome. Proof of this are the complaints that are exposed every year.
The story of Possessionalso known as A possessed womanfocuses on Mark (Sam Neill), an internationally renowned spy, whose life takes a dark and complicated turn when his wife, Anna/Helen (Isabelle Adjani), asks for a divorce. From this moment, the woman begins to display disturbing and alarming behavior, as a way of showing that she is possessed by a demonic entity.
The film was directed Andrzej Zulawski, a Polish director who sought to capture the experiences of couples through his controversial feature films. His stance against the authoritarianism and censorship of the socialist Poland of that time (under the control of the Soviet Union) offers a greater understanding of his very peculiar cinema and, especially, of this film, which was released in the context of the Cold War.
“It was a fucking surreal time, we were in Berlin in the middle of the Cold War. “It was bizarre,” Neill recalled in an interview with The Independent. And, although he described Andrzej as “genius, but crazed” and “a true cinephile”, he also admitted that He didn’t like him at all because of his “bravado.” as a way to guide his stars: “There were times when he screamed, I yelled at him [a Isabelle Adjani] in the face. He was distressing to watch.”.
Before his death in 2016, Żuławski addressed the suicide attempt by Adjani. In a dialogue collected by Sight and Sound Magazine, the filmmaker asks to understand that, in principle, Europe is a different world in cinematographic terms and that Isabelle, as a French star, was “a diva.” Then he said that she “He went to the bathroom and cut his wrists.” with a G2 machine [maquinilla de afeitar] that cuts half a millimeter of skin and not much more.”
According to the English magazine ID, Isabelle Adjani conceptualized Possession as “psychological porn” and a type of project that an artist could only carry out in his youth, because it is about working with a director who “makes you immerse yourself in his world of darkness and his demons.” The experience was exciting for her, but this does not eliminate the trauma it left her with for life.
“I came out bruised, inside and out. It was exciting to do it. I didn’t break any bones, but I wondered how or why I had done it.. I don’t think any other actress has done two films with him,” she expressed sincerely.
“With Żuławski, you would do what he wanted“, he narrated Sam Neill in his autobiographical publication. Although his intention is not to make himself look like “the classic victim of abuse,” she recognizes that in a certain way, both he and Isabelle Adjani, if they were. They wanted to give everything to turn the film into a remarkable creation, because they believed in their director as an artist: “We really wanted to be in this thing. “We were doing something bigger than ourselves.”
However, the reality check came when Andrzej Zulawski He took everything very far, because he always “asked for much more than you could give.” Coincidentally, she told Sam who had to slap his co-star and he immediately refused. “I can not do it. You can’t ask me to do it,” he pleaded with the filmmaker and continued, “I have never raised my hand to another human being and I have to say no.” Please don’t ask me. IM not going to do it”.
Suddenly, Adjani approached him and urged him to hit her so they could continue filming. Again, the actor, completely frustrated, asked him not to force him to do it; but in the end he relented. “I have to say that she was the most nerve-wracking thing I’ve ever had to do in a movie”, he asserted.
By mid-2023, Adèle Exarchopoulos shared a conversation with Isabelle Adjani for a special number of Interview Magazine. Both French actresses experienced situations of violence carried out by male directors in their careers. In the case of Exarchopoulos, for The life of Adele (2013), due to the extensive and exhausting sexual scenes he recorded for the filmmaker Abdellatif Kechichewhom she described as a “torturer” and “manipulator.”
At 68 years old, Adjani continues to question whether an actress “is capable of overcoming everything that is inflicted on her.” For this interview, she proposed as an example her own career and what she experienced with Andrzej Zulawski, from whom he accepted this type of abuse. “Over the years I have realized that It’s something I couldn’t accept again., and it is part of everything that my subconscious has been swallowing and incubating,” he reflected. “I wonder if acting has been a little unhealthy during certain periods of my life, right?”
Although the veteran actress does not explicitly mention the misogynistic violence she endured for the filming of Possession, explores the consequences it had on his life. “I consider myself a survivor for many reasons.“, he stated without failing to recognize how “nice” it is to make space for a character within one, but that this could get out of control. “Great actresses have been devoured inside. It’s a kind of autocannibalism”.
For Isabelle Adjaniafter all, acting is not a kind of job that “facilitates a happy state of mind, but quite the opposite.”
