Possession (1981) [Special Edition]
DEEP-CUTTING CINEMA THAT REACHES THE SOUL
A spiral staircase movie, a never-ending metaphysical game of cat-and-mouse, a moral aspiration to the Heavens, a “spotlight” on God, a scornful detective movie, a horror movie and frightful, high-octane baroque work – Possession is all of that at once. It is a film that provokes, but it provokes intelligence above all – not just the merry continuation of our little social mechanisms.
Possession is a visionary, scathing attack on what could be called an “alien” from within. It is a movie that deliberately goes against the new “dominant ideology”, and takes huge risks. This deep-cutting, biological cinema, delves into the guts to reach the soul. Through its fire, it revives something that a lot of contemporary movies have lost: emotion, and the prospect of the audience reacting, perhaps even throwing up (figuratively?) in front of a screen displaying their own fantasies.
AWARDS:
Cannes Film Festival (1981)
- Winner Best Actress, Isabelle Adjani
- Nominee Palme D'or
César Awards, France (1982)
- Winner Best Actress, Isabelle Adjani
São Paulo International Film Festival (1981)
- Winner Critics Award
Fantasporto International Film Festival (1983)
- Winner Audience Jury Award - Special Mention
- Winner Best Actress, Isabelle Adjani
- Nominee Best Film
BLU-RAY DISC CONTENTS:
MONDO VISION presents the first ever North American Blu-ray release of Andrzej Zulawski's POSSESSION (1981) in an all new 2K Digital Transfer supervised and approved by the director. UNCUT & Fully Uncensored, this edition also marks the first ever release of the film in North America in its original Director's Cut.* The film is presented in the original aspect ratio of 1.66:1 along with an uncompressed mono audio soundtrack. This Dual Layer disc has been transferred and encoded using a high-frequency process which preserves as much of the detail and texture from the original film as is possible on the Blu-ray format.
DISC 1 : THE FEATURE FILM
- Digitally Restored HD Transfer Approved by Director Andrzej Zulawski [124min]
EXTRAS: [4Hr. 8 Mins.] [All extras except commentary come with Optional English Subtitles in White or Yellow]
- The Other Side of The Wall: The Making of POSSESSION [52min]
- Audio Commentary with Director Andrzej Zulawski [124min]
- Video Interview with Director Andrzej Zulawski [36min]
- Video Interview with Translator Eric Veaux [22min]
- Theatrical Trailer [3min]
- More from Mondo Vision [11min] [collection of 4 trailers from Andrzej Zulawski films]
1) La Femme Publique
2) L'important C'est Da'imer
3) La'mour Braque
4) Szamanka
PLUS :
- 24pg Booklet - Featuring an Essay by Daniel Bird
PACKAGING:
This edition of POSSESSION features a fully illustrated matte laminated 6pp foldout Digipak with heavy-duty 400gsm Hardcover Slipcase with wrap-around Belt and a pull-out ribbon. It comes with a shipping weight of 1 pound (0.45kg) and the following dimensions:
In Inches: 7.6" (H) x 5.6" (W) x 0.7" (D)
In Millimeters: 194 (H) x 143 (W) x 18 (D)
H= Height W= Width D=Depth
Technical Details:
Run Time: 2 Hr. 4 Mins.
Audio Tracks:
1. Original English Mono [dts-HD Master Audio]
2. Audio Commentary
3. Unauthorized Alternate Audio *
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish (optional, in White or Yellow)
Image Format: 1.66:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Disc Type: Dual Layer BD-50
UPC: 091037398659
Catalog#: MVSE005
* This audio track features alternative music. It is not the director's approved version, and is included for completeness. Most notable is the addition of the piano theme during the subway miscarriage scene, and the removal of music during a pivotal scene. A handful of releases, including POSSESSION’s first U.S. DVD release (ironically billed as the “Director’s Cut”) were issued only with this audio track. This additional music although composed by Andrzej Korzyñski was never used by the director in the final cut of the film. It is strongly recommended to watch the film with the original director's approved audio.