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Possession [DVD] [2002]

DVD ~ Gwyneth Paltrow

4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)

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Product details

Actors: Gwyneth Paltrow, Aaron Eckhart, Jeremy Northam, Jennifer Ehle, Lena Headey
Directors: Neil LaBute
Writers: Neil LaBute, A.S. Byatt, David Henry Hwang, Laura Jones
Producers: Barry Levinson, David Barron, Guy Tannahill
Format: Anamorphic, PAL, Widescreen
Language English, French
Subtitles: English, French, Italian, Dutch, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Romanian, Bulgarian
Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Number of discs: 1
Classification: 12
Studio: Warner Home Video
DVD Release Date: 5 May 2003
Run Time: 98 minutes

Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)

ASIN: B00006LA7S
Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 4,867 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

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Reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review

With its complex twists and turns, AS Byatt's doorstopper of a novel Possession is hardly the kind of tale that translates easily to film, even though its switches in time across more than a century are intrinsically filmic. In this adaptation the basic story revolves around two modern-day academics, Maud Bailey (Gwyneth Paltrow, a class act, all ice and severe hair) and the young American Roland Michell (the charmingly diffident Aaron Eckhart). They find themselves thrown together as they track a secret love affair between two fictional Victorian poets, Randolph Henry Ash and Christable LaMotte (Jeremy Northam and Jennifer Ehle, both of them eminently convincing costume-drama veterans). As our two modern-day sleuths uncover the truth they (surprise, surprise) find themselves falling for one another.

Director Neil LaBute may have strayed from familiar territory (Nurse Betty) but he's managed to translate book to screen with compelling directness, and much credit should go not only to the four leads, but also to Lena Headey, who plays the tragic Blanche Glover, LaMotte's rejected lover. Overall it's a very lyrical movie, visually a treat for the eye, with the period detail beautifully caught and much beautiful scenery to be had. And the score itself, by Gabriel Yared, seems to encapsulate England in its pastoral beauty. Yes, of course the intricacies of the novel are much simplified, with some characters written out altogether, but its central spirit is retained and it makes for an ultimately compelling experience.

On the DVD: Possession has a pleasingly sharp and well-defined picture quality that makes the most of the fabulous visuals. However, extras are limited. As well as a list of cast and crew and the usual scene selections and theatrical trailer there's the option of watching the film accompanied by LaBute's commentary, which is enlightening first time around but probably not for repeated viewing. --Harriet Smith

DVD Description

Scene selections, cast list, director commentary, theatrical trailer
Feature length: 98 mins approx
Subtitles: English, French, Italian, Dutch, Arabic, Spanish Spoken
Languages: English, French, Italian Sound Format: Dolby Digital 5.1
Region Code: 2 Picture Format: PAL Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic 2.35:1

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Customer Reviews

15 Reviews

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (15 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must See, 4 Sep 2003

By	Kevin Hart (Telford, Shropshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

You will not be disappointed with either the book by A S Byatt (over 500 pages) or the DVD/Video. Although the film adaptation differs in several places from the book, which should be read first, you will be moved by both. The cinematography and the acting are both excellent: a look at the cast list will confirm the depth of acting ability. The changes in time in the film from 1859 to the present day, and back again, are simple and magnificent. The direction of this film is first class. The use of real UK locations, particularly Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, will appeal to the well-travelled viewer. You cannot fail to be moved by this historical and romantic drama.

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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Glossy, still vaguely intellectual, and well worth watching, 14 May 2003

By	Julia Hawkins - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I can't understand why this didn't do better on its cinematic release. True, I'd read the book and contrary to all expectation (having found previous Byatts pretentious and turgid) greatly enjoyed it, so I may have been biased. But even making allowances for a natural partiality I still think this is an excellent adaptation and an eminently watchable film with a stellar cast. Moving, at times tragic, ultimately redemptive, all of that... Maybe the problem is that no-one turns into a half-naked blue superhero at any point...

The adaptation really is splended, and the cast act their socks off. True, they are all infinitely better-looking than any academic I've ever met (I would have pursued English Lit beyond postgrad level if it had been populated by lecturers, even caddish and sneaky lecturers, who resembled Toby Stephens), and I can only imagine that the reason underlying Aaron Eckhardt's poor career progress is that he must have been spending so much time in the gym, rather than the library. They also live in beautiful houses, and cinematographically the film is a delight. But above all the story - which still, despite its compression from a huge doorstop of a discursive narrative to a fairly short film, manages to retain at least vestiges of the debate about, as Maud Bailey puts it, the awful things that men and women do to each other - remains a glorious detective story through the windings of love, literature and some very unethical antics in libraries.

Loved it.

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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Joy to Watch, 28 Jul 2003

By	Terence Hebberd "cerddymynydd" (Calpe, Alicante Spain) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Possession [VHS] [2002] (VHS Tape)

For me this is one of those magical films that make one bless the invention of the cinema and its present day era of complete artistic achievement and competence. Beautifully photographed using enchanting settings (Lincoln has never looked more lovely) and with a music soundtrack that perfectly underlines the romantic story within a story and the growing attraction to each other by the present day principals, an English professor played by Gwyneth Paltrow (with a beautifully modulated English accent) and an American research student in London winningly played by Aaron Eckhart. Paltrow and Eckhart who are trying to discover whether a 19th Century Poet Laureate had an illicit affair with a female poet when all the historic evidence points otherwise. The way the mystery unravels is heartrendingly romantic and as the poets, Jeremy Northam and Jennifer Ehle are perfectly cast. Captivated, I didn't want the film to end but at least was compensated by the beautifully sung tenor aria that floated out over the final credits. English or Anglo-American cinema at its very very best. A film of the highest quality and one I am grateful to own and be able to play over and over again.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Possession
Beautifully filmed mini version of the book. Gwyneth plays the part of Maud very well.

Very far from the original but an enjoyable watch nonetheless.

Published 4 months ago by Malia Bi

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointment
I was on a deadline to watch this dvd. You sent me French Kiss?????????
with Meg Ryan instead of Possession with Gwyneth Paltrow. Very disappointing. Read more

Published 7 months ago by Julia Davies

5.0 out of 5 stars Do read the book first
If you are the kind of person who will enjoy this film then you are, by definition, the kind who will enjoy the book, which is a sumptuous literary feast. Read more

Published 10 months ago by John Ferngrove

2.0 out of 5 stars What possessed them?
What is it about films like this? They're based on good source material and attract a good cast but when it finally makes it to the screen it seems as if the furniture is putting... Read more

Published 21 months ago by S.M. Gidley

4.0 out of 5 stars A sum less than its greatest part
I recently saw Jennifer Ehle's splendid performance as Elizabeth Bennet in the 1996 A&E production of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, and therefore anticipated another such appearance in... Read more

Published on 22 Jul 2006 by Joseph Haschka

5.0 out of 5 stars Victorianism has to be revisited urgently
Delicate and precious, the film deals with a very embarrassing victorian reality about the poet Ash and his female lover Lamotte. Read more

Published on 28 May 2006 by Jacques COULARDEAU

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating
I think the film is a wonderful and clever adaptation of the book Posession merging past&present perfectly together. Read more

Published on 25 Aug 2005 by Lili_K

4.0 out of 5 stars Would have been better if it weren't for the book...
...being so good itself.
This film, which I (guiltly) watched before I read Byatt's brilliant tome, is extremely good in its direction, literary viewpoint and, above all,... Read more

Published on 16 Jan 2004 by Simon Thomas

4.0 out of 5 stars Poetic and mellow with a spot-on look
The film foregrounds the current-day relationship, offering just the ocasional glimpse of the parallels between the rearchers and the researched. Read more

Published on 21 Jul 2003 by Steve

5.0 out of 5 stars A love affair transcending through the ages.
The story begins with American researcher Roland Michell (played by Aaron Eckhart) stumbling on two unfinished love letters to a mystery lady by the Victorian poet Randolph Henry... Read more

Published on 27 May 2003

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