Possession, an international co-production between France and West Germany, was filmed in West Berlin in 1980. Żuławski's only English-language film Andrzej Żuławski’s film isn’t just horror. It’s a psychic detonation disguised as a marital drama—a raw, shrieking portrait of love’s collapse that feels less like cinema and more like exorcism by camera.

Isabelle Adjani doesn’t act in this film—she unravels. Her performance is a masterclass in controlled hysteria, culminating in that now-legendary subway scene: a physical and emotional meltdown so visceral it redefined what horror could be. Opposite her, Sam Neill matches her descent with a portrayal of masculine fragility that’s equally devastating.

Set against the Cold War chill of divided Berlin, Possession uses doppelgängers, espionage, and body horror not for cheap thrills, but as metaphors for the terror of intimacy—of loving someone who becomes a stranger, and realizing you might be one too.

Yes, it’s punishing. Yes, it’s chaotic. The third act spirals into surrealism so intense it risks narrative coherence. But that’s the point. This isn’t a puzzle to solve. It’s a wound to witness.

My full 4/5 star analysis is now live, breaking down why Possession remains one of the most harrowing, operatic, and emotionally honest horror films ever made.

Happy birthday, bright and charming man! May each new day bring you joy, tenderness and peace. I wish you good health, sunny smiles, inspiration in everything and warmth from those who love you. You give the world the beauty of your soul - may the world respond to you with boundless love and kindness.

SAM NEILL

14 September 1947

            Sam Neill is a New Zealand actor. He has appeared in Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981, as Damien Thorn), Evil Angels (1988, Michael Chamberlain), Dead Calm (1989), The Piano (1993), Jurassic Park, 1993), Sirens (1993, Norman Lindsay), Restoration (1995, Charles II), The Dish (2000), The Magic Pudding (2000), Little Fish (2005), Peter Rabbit (2018), Ride Like a Girl (2019), The Sullivans (1979-1980), Kane & Abel (1985), The Simpsons (1994), In Cold Blood (1996), Jessica (2004), The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant (2005, Arthur Philip), The Tudors (2007, Thomas Wolsey), Alcatraz (2012), and House of Hancock (2014, Lang Hancock).

Neill was born in Omagh, County Tyrone, Ireland. He moved to Christchurch, New Zealand with his family in 1954. There he studied English literature at university where he was exposed to drama. He has four children and lives in Alexandra New Zealand, South Island and owns the Two Paddocks Winery and owns a farm. He posts his farm animals on Instagram. In 2022, he had chemotherapy after diagnosed with a type of blood cancer. He published his memoir, Did I ever Tell You This? In 2023.