Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6208 in DVD
• Released on: 2003-05-05
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, French, Italian, Dutch, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Romanian, Bulgarian
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 98 minutes

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

Synopsis
Set in both contemporary and Victorian England, POSSESSION, directed by Neil LaBute, is based on the novel by A.S. Byatt. The tale begins with Roland Michell (Aaron Eckhart), a laid-back American studying the renowned Victorian poet Randolph Henry Ash (Jeremy Northam) on a fellowship. When Roland discovers what may be a love letter from Ash, a supposedly devoted husband, to the reclusive poet Christabel LaMotte (Jennifer Ehle), he recognizes that he's on to a big literary discovery. Enlisting the help of skeptical British academic Maud Bailey (Gwyneth Paltrow), Roland embarks on journey to discover more about the link between the two revered poets. As Roland and Maud track Ash and LaMotte's elusive romance across the British countryside, the two scholars begin a relationship of their own.
Although this film presents a kinder, gentler LaBute--who is known for emotionally caustic movies such as IN THE COMPANY OF MEN and YOUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS--POSSESSION still focuses on the relationships between men and women with skillful attention. Paltrow reprises her convincing British accent from films such as SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE and SLIDING DOORS, while Northam and Ehle lend gravity to their Victorian characters. However, it's Eckhart, a longtime LaBute collaborator, who proves to be the film's heart and soul; his relaxed yet complex personality grounds both the movie and its two intertwined stories. As the two tales progress, the relationships between the characters wax and wane, leading to an ending with a surprising twist.

Customer Reviews

A Must See
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.

Glossy, still vaguely intellectual, and well worth watching
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.

A Joy to Watch
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.