One of the Best Horror Movies Ever Currently Streaming for Free

After initially being banned in the UK as a “video nasty” and being heavily censored in the US, Andrzej Żuławski’s 1981 horror movie Possession is now streaming for free!

Widely regarded as one of the best horror movies ever made, Possession recently joined Kanopy’s streaming catalog, meaning the film is available to stream for free with a library card.

Serving as a meditation on marriage, and written as a reaction to Żuławski’s own crumbling marital life, Possession is set in West Berlin and stars Sam Neill as Mark, an international spy and the husband of Isabelle Adjani’s Anna. After asking her husband for a divorce, Anna descends into madness and begins exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior, and it soon becomes clear that she is hiding a much bigger secret – one that is both inexplicable and shocking.

Possession was a bit of a fumble upon release. The film, which received little box office acclaim, was originally banned in the UK as a “video nasty,” and although it was released in the US, it was heavily censored, cutting its runtime down to just 80-minutes.

Decades later, Possession is now lauded as one of the best horror movies ever made, with film scholar Bartłomiej Paszylk dubbing it “one of the most enigmatic and uncompromising horror movies in the history of cinema.” Shudder said of the movie, “With its pulsating score, visceral imagery, and some of the most haunting performances ever captured on screen, Possession is cinematic delirium at its most intoxicating.”

“The disintegration of a marriage disguises a complicated film loaded with cultural commentary, spectacular framing and two incredibly physical performances by Adjani and Neill,” Horror Queers Podcast’s Joe Lipsett said. “A spectacular, confounding cosmic horror drama; it’s sheer perfection.”

The film currently holds an 85% critics score and 77% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, where a critics consensus reads, “Blending genres as effectively as it subverts expectations, Possession uses powerful acting and disquieting imagery to grapple with complex themes.”

After achieving cult status, plans are currently in the works to expand Possession upon the original film. The Hollywood Reporter reported last summer that Robert Pattinson has teamed with Smile filmmaker Parker Finn to remake Possession. Discussing the planned remake with Entertainment Weekly, Finn described it as “a viciously sharp, crazy, insane film” that will “have all the teeth and ferocity that the original had.”

You can watch Possession on Kanopy now by clicking here.