The Possession Experiment

I watched this film because the plot sounded like a different twist on a worn-out sub-genre, and because it was made by a local production company (I even recognized some of the exterior shooting locations.) The concept was OK, most of the special FX were decent and the editing of the horrific visions was done well, albeit much like a music video, which is what I believe the production company is known for. However, the movie turned out to be yet another mediocre indie disappointment due to poor directing, a bad script and, as pretty much every other reviewer has mentioned, absolutely abysmal acting. I think if they'd taken their time to produce a solid short film based on the concept they would have been better off. Feature films are not their strong point.

Theology student Brandon Jensen (Chris Minor) is doing his class assignment on exorcism. He and his class partner Clay Harper (Jake Brinn) do some research. They sell passes to their possession attempt to generate internet funding. They recruit medical student Leda Morgan (Nicky Jasper) and hire a cultist to raise a demonic spirit.

This small budget indie may have an interesting idea, but this movie cannot escape its poor execution. First, the work group should be bigger than two people from the start. There is no reason to not have the girl right away. I like the crowd funding idea. They could make a bigger meal out of hiring a wacky dark magic witch. The reconnection with the father is a little abrupt. I like the idea, but the execution is wanting. A lot of this movie is flawed in that way.

Let me start off by saying that I have never seen a more uneven film in my entire life. The movie starts off fairly competent; a girl is possessed, and we witness the events that transpire during her exorcism. The director did a great job giving the scene a nice, gritty aesthetic, with some great shots in and around the house that resembled a stylish music video. Once the first scene is set up, the nose dive in quality is so abrupt, I really have no idea how they could have ruined this movie to such a drastic degree.

After the exorcism, the movie continues in a college classroom, with some of the worst acting by a professor I have ever witnessed. Gone is the music video aesthetic, as the movie now more closely resembles an amateur porn shot on an iPhone 4. There is no more stylized direction, as the movie now takes a more "found-footage" approach of poor direction, even worse acting, and some questionable dialogue that is pulled off with the skill of a community theater reject cast.

The movie jumps between the "possession house" and the school/street several times throughout its run time, and I just can't fathom how the director could be this schizophrenic with his directorial decisions. It almost seems like two people directed this movie; one was talented and did all of the shots inside the "possession house", using creative vision, talent and an understanding of basic horror filmography. The other lacked any such qualities, refusing to showcase any ability or tact, and was tasked to handle any scene not in the house. It was quite jarring when you watch the film and the quality has such disparate highs and lows, and I really wish that the director took a step back and realized that he really should have aimed to have a consistent aesthetic throughout.

Then there is the acting; these people cannot act. The protagonist appeared to constantly forget his lines, the side kick was a joke, and all of the adults had the acting chops of a porn film extra. It was bad. I have never seen a film where bad acting does not immediately ruin the overall experience, but unfortunately, this continues the trend. I really wish that nepotism and friendships took a backseat to actually hiring people who will help you realize your vision. Some people should not be allowed to act, ever. This movie proves this in spades.

Overall, this film has me at a crossroads. On one side, I liked how the film looked inside the house. The creative vision was well realized, and even with the bad acting, it made the movie at least visually appealing. But anything outside of the house was simply horrendous. This movie jumps between being a good B movie to being a horrid D movie too often to get a real, definitive score, so I'll just give it a 5 for the sole fact that I made it all the way to the end without falling asleep. It deserves at least that much.

When "The Possession Experiment" opened i was greeted with a film which appeared to have some form of production value, this was a lie, as i think most of the budget must have been spent on that one scene, that single scene gave me hope, hope that was eventually possessed by the devil himself and subsequently destroyed, the actors were wooden and their characters were two dimensional, and i felt the "twist" was underwhelming, i also don't understand what happened with the editing and cinematography as at some points i was like "wow that was shot really well" then 80-90% was poorly edited and the lighting was just awful, i am now currently in mid seance as i type out this review, conducting an experiment to be possessed myself so i can forget about what i have just watched.

My quick rating - 4,5/10. The movie begins with a strong opening scene of an exorcism. I really thought I was in luck in finding a decent unknown possession flick. The premise of a student doing a school project and attempting to possess himself was interesting enough to me. Sounds like the dumb stuff I would've tried in school (anyone who knows me is most likely agreeing) but then comes the downfall. The trio of our star, Brandon (Chris Minor) and two bit players go to the sign of an exorcism in hopes to conjure up the spirit and welcome it into himself. Thankfully Hasbro has created the key to the gates of hell and in comes the method, a Ouija board. The movie instantly lost all merit it had right there. Not only is this cliché getting so ridiculous, the movie then turns so stupid. Days pass and Brandon seems fine until his mother commits suicide (by ripping her own jaw off) and Brandons demon lies dormant no more. So far aside from the kids toy, it hasn't been too bad. In comes the shlock as Brandon puts on blades (Freddy Krueger style) and begins killing people on campus. And yes, throws in a couple one liners to complete the pointless rip off. I don't know if the makers were attempting to pay tribute to Wes Cravens classic (which they didn't) or just had no ideas. Sprinkle in the painfully obvious coincidence which leads to the far more obvious ending (no spoilers) and you are left with a solid 5 minute opening, and 80 minutes of horrible acting and pointless flashbacks/dreamscenes. Just another in the line of OK to watch but there are so many better out there I don't see why you would.