Possessor

Possessor is currently streaming in Australia on Shudder and AMC+, and in the US on Kanopy, and it earns its premise rather than just borrowing genre trappings. The runtime earns every minute, with nothing here that feels like padding. With 1,068 viewer ratings on TMDB, this is not a title flying under the radar. Watch it for Andrea Riseborough — the performance elevates material that could easily tip into self-seriousness. There is no real reason to keep putting it off — it is right there on Shudder.

Part of the current wave of titles people are actually watching, Possessor earns its spot. Possessor uses its genre premise as cover for asking bigger questions. Tasya Vos, an elite corporate assassin, uses brain-implant technology to take control of other people’s bodies to terminate high profile targets. As she sinks deeper into her latest assignment, Vos becomes trapped inside a mind that threatens to obliterate her. Andrea Riseborough and Christopher Abbott lead a cast that keeps the bigger ideas grounded in something human. It was released in 2020. Possessor resists the temptation to explain everything, trusting the audience to sit with ambiguity. It delivers reliably on what it promises, which is more than most of its competition manages.

Possessor is satisfying on multiple levels — something to watch and something to think about after. It does not lean on comparisons to make its case. The complete film is available and best experienced without too much prior knowledge of where it goes. Andrea Riseborough grounds the bigger ideas in something human. Once you are in, you will want to talk about it.