Exclusives
*SPOILERS*: ‘Possessor’ Featurette Celebrates the Incredible In-Camera Practical Effects [Exclusive]
Massive spoiler warning.
Antiviral director Brandon Cronenberg‘s latest mind fuck, Possessor, is now in limited theaters everywhere and NEON is hyping up the film’s astounding effects in this brand new featurette, exclusive to Bloody Disgusting.
NEON describes the film as “An arresting sci-fi thriller about elite, corporate assassin Tasya Vos (Andrea Riseborough). Using brain-implant technology, Vos takes control of other people’s bodies to execute high profile targets. As she sinks deeper into her latest assignment, Vos becomes trapped inside a mind that threatens to obliterate her.”
Meagan Navarro wrote in her 4.5 star review for BD, “For those that love cerebral thrillers with practical gore, wrapped up in a stimulating sci-fi package, this is a must.”
Speaking of “practical gore”, Possessor fully delivers on its promise.
“There are two things I really like about practical effects,” Brandon Cronenberg begins to explain in the following featurette that’s better than most bonus features included on home video releases. “The first is that I think they have a particular weight to them on-screen – I’m not anti-CGI, but I think often if you lean too heavily on it, and it’s not rooted in something practical, it kinda feels floaty and unsatisfying in a way.”
He adds: “Also, there’s a kind of tangible process to them…working with practical effects you’re involved in a hands-on way and you discover things by accident and through process you wouldn’t get to otherwise.”
Just how much of Possessor‘s mayhem is executed with practical effects? “Basically, every effect is in-camera,” exclaims Karim Hussasin, the film’s cinematographer.
Another mega-spoiler warning before you hit “play”, but this truly is a spectacular featurette that demands a viewing whether it’s now or after you’ve seen Possessor. Bookmark this page.
Exclusives
Katharine Isabelle Battles Cosmic Horror in Exclusive ‘Junction Row’ Teaser Trailer [Fantasia 2026]
Among Fantasia 2026‘s massive final wave of programming this morning is Raven Banner’s Lovecraftian creature feature Junction Row, starring Canadian horror icon Katharine Isabelle, and we’re exclusively unveiling the teaser trailer.
Junction Row will celebrate its World Premiere at Fantasia on July 28.
Watch a housing compound fall under siege from Lovecraftian creatures more dangerous than drug dealers in the trailer below.
Junction Row follows “Juno, a recovering addict who leaves a fringe housing compound for a better life, leaving her beloved Ruby behind. When she learns that Ruby has gone missing, Juno returns, only to find Junction Row has become a hotbed of criminal activity, but she encounters much more than menacing drug dealers on her mission to find Ruby.”
Isabelle stars as Juno, with Natalie Brown (FX’s The Strain) as Ruby.
The creature feature marks the feature debut by director Ashlea Wessel, who has directed festival-favorite shorts like 2018’s “Tick” and 2020’s “Weirdo”.
Wessel co-writes Junction Row with Clown in a Cornfield author Adam Cesare and Matt Serafini.
Katharine Isabelle is coming off a brief appearance in Kane Parsons’ Backrooms, and more recently appeared in holiday horror It’s a Wonderful Knife. The horror icon is arguably best known for her turn as the eponymous werewolf in Ginger Snaps and for her roles in American Mary and Freddy vs Jason.
Fantasia teases that Junction Row tells “a story where the fear of the unknown isn’t confined to what lies above, but what waits beneath.”
Stay tuned for more from Fantasia as the festival gets underway later this month.