Possession
Dir: Neil LaBute
2002
*
They say possession is nine-tenths of the law, so let's hope the kids see The original Wicker Man before they see Neil LaBute's horrible version because unfortunately the later one is first in most search engine results. In fact, read the books and watch the originals before approaching any of LaBrute's offerings and then maybe you'll not feel the need to and will end up saving yourself valuable time. In short, Possession is tiresome. It's a film of two halves, half is alright, half is bloody awful. The alright half is set in the 1850s, the casting of Jennifer Ehle and Jeremy Northam (period drama veterans) is a bit lazy in that respect but they both survive the film reasonably unscathed, but to be honest it's only the fact that the modern day part of the film is so awful that it seems better than it really is. I like Aaron Eckhart and I'm willing to forgive him, I'm not a huge Gwyneth Paltrow fan but I'll forgive her too, I hold Neil LaBute accountable for the deluge of insulting stereotyping and the pathetic script, this film would be completely forgettable if it weren't for the fact it was so horrible. Avoid.