Thursday 23 June 2016

Ava's Possessions

"Ava's Possessions" (2015, Jordan Galland, ODD NY, Off Hollywood Pictures, Ravenous Films, Traction Media, Momentum Pictures) is a horror comedy about a support and rehabilitation group for people who have been possessed.

Ava (Louisa Krause) was possessed by a demon called Naphula for 28 days, and during that time she did some bad stuff. Now demon-free (but not demon-proof) Ava has to attend a therapy group to avoid jail time. Her friends and family are having a hard time forgiving her for the demon's behaviour, despite knowing that she was not in control of her faculties during that period. Ava tries to remember her missing 28 days and avoid the demon which is still lurking around her trying to find a way back in, but she might not like what she finds out and her attempts to help a friend may cause more trouble.

It's an interesting concept; the post-possession movie. What happens after the exorcism? Very creative. Whilst amusing, I'm not convinced by the 'comedy' description of the film, however. as I didn't find it particularly funny, but I'll admit it's satirical and it touches on some dark stuff. The strong parallels drawn with the demons of alcoholism or substance abuse are really quite clever.

The premise is good, but the plot gets bogged down too much in other sidelines and loses its track. Low budget and cheesy, but not gory, the film is very different to what I had anticipated. It's ok, but it could have been more of a game-changer, had the story had more clarity.

[Image: Momentum Pictures, et al]
Hani

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