All language subtitles for The.Last.Drive-In.With.Joe.Bob.Briggs.S20E10.Possession.720p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-BFM_track3_[eng]

[Static crackles]

-Welcome back to part two
of Dysfunctional Family Night.

I think I just discovered
our our theme, Darcy.

Dysfunctional Family Night,

Because "The Mutilator"
is all about a crazy father

deciding to kill
not only his son,

but everyone
who knows his son.

And this next movie
goes beyond mere murder.

This movie is about
the brutality of marriage,

divorce, child custody,
and slime monsters.

But the slime monster
is not nearly

as frightening
as the other three.

So you know what
I'm talking about.

I'm talking about
Andrzej Zulawski's "Possession",

which gives us an insight
into what horror

was like in communist Poland.

And we need that, right?

-I guess, yeah.

-This movie is an examination
of all the ways

you can feel really,
really bad.

This is hardcore
relationship horror.

Andrzej Zulawski decided
to make this movie

after watching Ingmar Bergman's
"Scenes From a Marriage",

which may be the second most
depressing movie about marriage.

And at the end of that movie,
he said,

"Okay, that was a good
description

of what a bad marriage
looks like from the outside,

but it needs to go deeper,
it needs a monster."

So proving that Andrzej Zulawski
is our kind of guy.

Because this movie
really gets you --

it gets to you
at a basic level.

You know how people say,
"The movie took my breath away"?

Well, this movie
takes your breath away

because you think you can't
breathe and you're about to die.

-And you love that.

-Well, and you don't.
I know.

-No, I do not have that thing

where I want to cry
or get sad watching a movie.

-And yet you watch the most
brutally violent movies.

-Yeah, because it's fun
and that's not real.

-Well, this one is not real.

-But it feels real.
-Well, and it does.

And partly that's because
Zulawski wrote it

during his own divorce.

And some of the situations
in the movie

actually happened in his life.

But we wouldn't be
watching the movie today

if it was just a docudrama
of his divorce,

even though almost everyone
in the cast of this movie

would be classified
as batshit crazy.

We have all been at some batshit
crazy place in our lives, right?

I mean, the moments in our lives
that we do not record

and put in the family album.

Anyway, before we all go to
a really frighteningly

depressing place together --

this is train wreck art.

You're in the train wreck,
but you decide to continue

to ride on the train
instead of jumping off.

But before we go there, I just
want to talk about one thing,

and you're going to think
this is silly,

but it increasingly
gets on my nerves.

-Uh-oh.
-Well, all right.

Why do you say "uh-oh"?
I haven't even started yet.

-It's a rant. It's coming.

-All right, well,
it's just this.

I don't want to know
what time it is.

-Okay.

-No, seriously, I would like
to go through a whole day

without knowing
what time it is,

because I think
I'm becoming neurotic

from constantly being told
what the time is.

-Becoming?

-Well, I know.
I obsess over everything.

But why does your phone
always have the precise time

from the Greenwich Water Tower

or whatever that thing
is in London?

You know, why is that on your
computer screen all the time?

Why is it out
in front of the bank?

I can understand why
it's in the train station.

Because if the train
leaves at 5:03,

you need to know
it's 5:01, right?

But 99% of our
pitiful existences,

we don't need to know
what time it is.

And not knowing what time it is
makes your day better.

But that's actually a larger
topic than the specific point

that I want to make
about the movie,

which is, why in the world
is it on the bottom of the movie

when you're watching the movie
on any screen

outside of a cinema,

you know, not just
the actual time of day,

plus the time elapsed
in the movie,

but the time left in the movie
is on your screen.

You're not supposed
to know that!

-Why not?
-Because it's a spoiler!

-I don't see it that way.

-Well, I mean, I could go
deep into the classical

three act structure
of screenwriting,

which nobody wants me to do.

-Right.

-But if you're in the thrall
of a great story,

you should be in the third act
of the story

before you realize that you're
in the third act of the story.

And the stakes get
to this monumental level.

But you don't know that yet

unless you happen to be glancing
at the little timer thingy

and you see there's only
six minutes left in the movie.

-Got it.
-Okay.

You know, it's especially
relevant for movies

like this one, the one we're
going to watch right now,

because you don't know
where it's going

and you don't know
how it's going to resolve.

But more importantly, every time
you think it's about to resolve,

it hasn't resolved yet,

which makes you dizzy
if you're in a theater.

But if you're watching it
on Shudder, you go,

"Hum, you know, this can't be
quite life or death situation

because we still have
25 minutes left," you know?

Or if you're watching
a crime show, you know,

"Hmm, this guy who looks
really guilty right now

can't possibly be guilty

because they're introducing him
at the 18 minute mark."

Plus, how does knowing
the Greenwich what is it,

Greenwich Water Tower --

How does how does knowing
the Greenwich Water Tower time

improve our lives?

-You're talking about
two different things.

-Well, true,
but it's this idea of knowing

the precise digital number
to the minute all the time.

You can't say to somebody,
"See you in the afternoon."

You have to say,
"I'll see you at 2:45."

And then if you show up
at 3:04, you're a jerk.

And all the minutes between
2:45 and 3:04

are stressful
because you're going,

"Oh, she's obsessive compulsive.
She's looking at her phone.

She's noticing
every late minute."

-Okay, but I do like to know

the length of the movie
before I start.

-Knowing the length
of the movie,

that is sort of okay,

but the length of "Possession"
would turn you off

because it's long
for a horror movie,

and it shouldn't turn you off
because it does not

drag in the slightest.

-Well, I really
disagree with that.

But what is the runtime?

-I'm not going to say
the running time.

Are you listening to me, Darcy?

I'm not going to say the running
time because that's a spoiler.

-Okay. All right.

-What genre? All right.
Let's start with this.

What genre would you
say "Possession" is?

-An art film?

-It is an art film.
That's not really a genre.

But I'll accept that.

The genre is really horror,
Lifetime movie, domestic drama,

psychological thriller,
with a queer subtext,

madwoman narrative,
monster movie,

doppelganger story,
crime story, political allegory,

mystery sitcom, action film.

-Okay. I see where
you're going with that.

But sitcom?

-Sitcom, yeah.

The smothering mother character,
the nosy friend character.

You know, all the tropes
of the sitcom

are actually in the movie.

-Do you like it?
-Do I like it?

You know how you feel
when you when you finish

"The Revenge of the Mummy"
ride at Universal Studios.

-Ooh, yeah. Orgasmic.

-Yeah, because
you got terrified,

and then the terror
was relieved.

-Yeah.
-Okay, so you

ride it again, right?

All right, same thing here.

When this movie is over,
you feel exhausted.

And you want to watch it again.

-I do not totally agree
with that.

But we will talk after.
-Okay.

This this is the best Polish
film that we've ever shown.

And I mean,
the film is in English.

Don't get don't get excited,
no subtitles. It's in English.

But the filmmaker
is very Polish.

-What does very Polish mean?
Be careful.

-I only mean very European.

He grabs us by the throat,
never lets go.

You know, there's never
a take a break scene.

Like, you know, in America,

the guy fights off 17 ninjas,
and then in the next scene,

he's having pancakes at IHOP.

You know, they always do that.

You know, that's the way an
American action film would work

or an emotional drama like

"Kramer vs. Kramer"
or something.

If Andrzej Zulawski
had a scene with a guy

fighting off 17 ninjas,
he'd want to have to fight off

19 Thai kickboxers
in the next scene,

and then the scene after that
would have to involve bazookas.

-I'm liking it more
the more you talk about it.

-Well, let's stop
talking about it.

Let's put our watches away
and our little digital timers,

wherever they are,
and let's get intense.

You know what "Possession"
has in common with

"The Mutilator", Darcy?

-They were both shot
with a camera.

[Laughter]

-Exactly. Yeah, that's true.
That's all they have in common.

"Possession" is the sensitive
story of a German spy

who comes back from communist
Eastern Europe

to find his wife cold, remote,

ready to leave him, along with
their confused 10-year-old son,

for what is apparently a highly
sexually charged relationship

with a beefcake New Age guru.

And yes, that's what I said.

But the guru
has a domineering mother.

But just when you think any of
the three people in the triangle

could kill each other
at any moment,

a fourth more powerful lover is
introduced in a slum apartment

next to the creepy
Berlin Wall.

And pretty soon, we've got sex
so far beyond the word "kinky"

that we're going to have
to call it something else.

You know, maybe, you know,

hypersonic, fetishistic,
animalistic fornication.

And the result
is several dead bodies,

as our two leads struggle

to figure out
what true love really is.

And both of the lead actors,
by the way,

say they were psychically
scarred for life

by doing this movie.

And you'll see why,
as the entire cast

goes collectively insane.

Sure, we've seen it before.

Actually, no.
We've never seen this before.

We've never seen any scene
in this movie before.

So let's just look at those
Drive In totals and get started.

We have 10 dead bodies,
five breasts, one whangdoodle,

one fistfight
with two beatdowns,

one motor vehicle chase
with explosions and crashes.

One cataclysmic freak out
in the subway station

with gooey blood, raving
restaurant destruction,

electric carving knife
to the neck,

electric carving knife
arm slicing, rib stabbing,

jagged wine bottle
to the jugular.

Multiple gunshot wounds,
homicidal toilet head dunking,

exploding apartment building,
with fire,

exploding Berlin,
multiple aardvarking,

car trunk body stuffing,
bitch slapping,

bastard slapping.

Animalistic screaming.
Random child abuse.

Wino banana theft,
ballet class torture,

head rolls,
gratuitous pink socks.

Gratuitous Crucifix. Kung Fu.
Berlin Wall Fu.

Domestic violence fu,
angst fu, self-mutilation fu,

Taj Mahal postcard Fu.

Drive-In Academy Award
Nominations for

Isabelle Adjani as the brutally
honest, hyperventilating,

psychotic spouse who says,

"Don't you understand?
You disgust me."

Sam Neill as the psychotically
jealous husband who says,

"Fuck your needs!"

Heinz Bennett as the supremely
annoying kung fu lover

who says, "We don't have
to be brutal to each other."

And Andrzej Zulawski,
the writer/director,

for doing things
the Polish drive-in way.

Four stars.
Joe Bob says check it out.

Wow.

You know, normally
they don't trust us at Shudder

with the so called
"serious movie."

You know, this movie
was in competition

at the fucking
Cannes Film Festival.

It's definitely different
from what we normally show.

-Yeah, I mean, in my opinion,
it's pure drive-in, though.

This is an exploitation
movie to the max.

-You don't think
it's pretentious?

-Well, I do think
it's pretentious, actually,

in two places.

And I'm going to point
those places out.

But for the most part,
I think Zulawski is a mutant.

I mean, one thing he said
that I really agree with,

and most exploitation directors
would agree with this.

He said, "Beginnings
are useless,"

meaning most opening scenes
in movies.

And you get exactly
what he means

when you see the kickoff scene
in this movie.

-True.
It's a really weird scene.

-It's almost like
a giant sign on the scene,

"Enter this movie
at your own peril."

You know, like
the deep end of the pool.

"No lifeguard on duty here."

You know, the apartment where
they filmed most of this movie

is just a few blocks from --
this was during communist times.

So there was still
a West Berlin and East Berlin.

It was a few blocks from
Checkpoint Charlie.

And Checkpoint Charlie
was the main crossing point

between East Berlin
and West Berlin.

And therefore, that's where
all the major confrontations

took place with people trying
to escape East Germany,

and the brutal guards, you know,
on the wall would gun them down.

You know, so an apt symbol
of what this movie is about,

meaning a family divided
and weaponized.

[Static crackles]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Heels clacking on pavement]

[Trunk slams]

-You can't just
say you don't know,

that's what you
said on the phone.

When will you know?

-I don't know!

-Do you want me to spend
the night somewhere else?

In a hotel or something?

Do you want us
to meet later on?

We can talk more calmly.

Do you need more time?

What do you need?

What has happened?

-Bob knows that you
are coming back today.

-Well, I can pick
him up after school

and take him to
the zoo or something.

[Bob imitating siren]

-Come and admire him.

-Nee-na, nee-na,
nee-na, nee-na, nee-na!

[Anna chuckles]

-Maybe all
couples go through this.

-Yeah?

-One mustn't be afraid.

-No.

-One must speak honestly.

-Is it difficult?

-Is it difficult?

-I haven't been much help,

but I finished that
job now, it's over.

-Maybe I was asking
for too much.

-I was the one who
had the right to ask.

-I know.

-No, you don't!

Who was I doing it for,
after all?

-Were you unfaithful to me?

-The truth is not really.

Were you?

-No.
-There's always someone else

-when these things happen.
-Not in this case.

-All right, well...

what's happening to
us is just natural.

Feelings change.

But without you, I wouldn't
feel anything at all.

-What do you feel now?

-Are you really interested?

-No.

-There you are, you see.
It's the same with me.

I don't even want you now.

-What time did you meet him?

-8:30.
-Where?

-In the park.

-Was he willing?

-Yes, verbally.

-Did you sense or
detect weariness in him?

-No.

A correct appraisal
of the realities.

-Is it making him bitter?

-No, greedy.

-But you felt his power?

-You mean, did I feel fear?

No, because that
would've prevented me

answering all your questions.

-How many vials
did he take with him?

-Two.

-What procedure
have you devised

for contacting him again?

-It's all in my report.

I suggest it's more economical
to fill in my successor.

-We don't feel there's
a need for a successor.

-I've completed my job.

-Brilliant.

That's why we want to
re-hire you.

-It's out of the question.

-And what would be
the reason for your refusal?

-Family.
-Oh.

Couldn't we be of
some help there?

-No.

-Wouldn't it be advisable
for you to reconsider?

-I'm unable to do that.

-Would you be unable
for a long time?

-I hope not.

-Aren't you allowing
feelings to prevent you

from answering
your own questions?

-Exactly why I'd advise
you to hire my successor.

-Good.

Any questions?

-Does our subject
still wear pink socks?

[Briefcase opens]

[Papers crunching]

[Footsteps stomping]

-Anna?

[Telephone rings]

-It's me.

-It's Anna?

-I am downtown.

Why downtown?
I've been waiting all day.

-I need some time to think.

-What do you mean to think?

Think about what?

-To think about me.

-Well, where are you?
When would...

[Anna hangs up phone]

[Phone slams]

[Objects clanging]

[Phone buttons clicking]

[Phone beeps]

-Hello?
-Margit, this is Mark.

Now, I know there's no
sympathy between us,

and it's hard for me
to ask you for help,

but you're her only friend.

Now, just tell me the truth.

She has somebody?

-She wished
you'd say or do something.

Something to reinstall you,

you know, a magic
wave of the wand.

You arrived sooner
than expected, Mark.

-Yeah, sure, this
is all my fault.

Now, how long has
this been going on?

-Quite long.

-Who is he?

-Oh, Mark.

I don't...

Your wife keeps her own secrets.

-Margit.

I don't have a magic wand,
I don't intend to hang on.

But make her talk to me.

It'll be the way she she wants.

But this is not...

...proper.

Please.

[Phone clangs]

[Phone rings]

Yes?

-We're over, Mark.

-You have someone?

-Yes.

-For a long time?

-Does it matter?

-Yes.

-Yes.

-Do you sleep with him?

-Yes.

-Do you like it?

-Yes.

-More than with me?

-Yes.

-I see.

How do you intend to live now?

-We have to discuss it.

-Now.

-As you want.

-Half an hour at
the Cafe Einstein.

-I'm too far
for half an hour.

-Are you calling from there?

-Yes.

-Is he listening?

-No.

-But he is there.

-Yes.

[Phone slams]

-Will $800 a month
for Bob be enough?

-I suppose.

-Will you move in with
him or keep the apartment?

-I'll keep it if
you allow me to.

-I've decided not to see Bob.

-At all?
-At all.

-How can you say that?

-He's gonna be fucked
up enough as it is,

and I don't want to
fuck him up even more

by playing Sunday Daddy.

-What were you to him anyway?

-Precisely.

-But he knows you,
he's yours, he needs a --

-A real father, full time?

Well, I thought I could be,

coming home from
the war, so to speak.

You say it's better
with him than with me.

-I get bored of it.

-Tell me...

-I think what you want
to do to Bob is...

-Inhuman?

So what you're doing
must be human.

How long is it gonna last?

-I don't know.

-One week? Two weeks?

And how do you dispose of
ideas like honesty and loyalty?

If I could only believe that

it happened cleanly
at first sight.

-Okay.

If it makes things easier,

I was in his bed
the first night I met him,

if you have to know.

-What do you expect of me?

Look what you're doing!

[Glasses shattering]

-No one is good or bad.

But if you want,
I'm the bad one,

and if I knew he
existed in this world,

I would've never
had Bob with you!

-Get out, get out!

[Furniture crashing]

Get out, get out!

[Mark screams]

[Anna shrieks]

[Chairs tumbling]

[Rotary dial spins]

[Phone rings]

[Tense drum music]

[Woman speaks faintly]

-Um, um...

-Hello?

Hello? Hello?

[Mark grunts]

-Ma, ma, ma.

[Mark grunts]

[Bed squeaks]

[Heavy breathing]

[Grunting]

How long have I...

Have long have I been here?

-Three weeks, sir.

-What happened? It's Daddy.

-Mommy said she
would be right back,

but she never came.

Then Margit called and
told me to be brave.

Because she had broke her leg

and she had to have
the cast put on.

-You've been alone
for a long time?

-Look, I've got a new boat.

-Did you get it from Mommy?

-No.

From Uncle Heinrich.

-Long ago?

-Yes.

-Yesterday?

-No, before you've
come back from far away.

-Okay, little piggy.

Come on, let's get
out of this mess.

How did you make such a mess?

[Key jingles]

-This is not always
like this, Mark.

Usually I'm on time.

-I'm not interested.

I came to tell you that
I can't live without you

and I'm ready to understand
whatever there is,

but it doesn't look like
it makes much sense.

-You can't take Bob
away from me!

-I'm not trying!

You can continue to
visit whenever you want,

but I'm taking over here.

Anna, is there
anything I can do?

-You could just --

-Yes?

-I must --
-Yes?

-I must --

-You must restore order,
you must leave him.

You will call him,
you will say it is over.

Now, I don't care if you
tell him you love him,

but he's not your family.

Your family is here.

You must call him now.

-But I can't on the phone!

-I don't trust you.

-I have to tell
him face to face.

-I don't trust you.

On the phone!

-Oh, Jesus!

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus!

-If you want to stay,
make that call.

It's still quite warm.

I don't think you'll need
a winter coat with a sweater.

[Anna exhales]

I can't stand to
see you like this.

It could be the way you want.
Just don't cry anymore.

[Anna breathes heavily]

-I am very sleepy.

[Phone rings]

-Anna is with
me, and she'll stay with me.

[Phone slams]

-He phoned me, he said
she won't be coming back.

Now, I have to talk
to her right now.

Now, please give me that number.

-542-6261.

-Where is it?

-I don't know, Mark.

-542-6261.

[Buttons clicking]

[Phone rings]

Hello?
-Yes?

-I want to speak to Heinrich.

-My son is not in town.
Who's calling?

-Anna's husband.

-Anna's not here.
I haven't seen her for weeks.

I miss her so much.

Hello? Hello?

Hello?

[Pages flipping]

-542-6261.

[Mark gasps]

What happened?

-Wee-wee.

-Shall I take you?

-Where's Mommy?

-She went to see Margit.

-Are you going too?

-I'm staying with you.

♪♪

Hello. I'm Bob's father.

I'll be bringing him
to school from now on.

-I'm glad.

You're the father
who went far away

and met the polar bears.

Hello.

-What is this, a joke?

-What are you talking about?

-I mean your wig!

-What?

[Laughs]

-I'm so sorry, it's impossible.

Have you ever seen my wife?

-Naturally.

Every day of the school year.

[Laughs]

[Static crackles]

-Wow.

A master study of
just how bad people can feel

and make all the people
around them feel worse.

It's like a Lifetime movie
written so that everybody says

the cruelest thing they
can think of in the meanest way.

Anna is obviously miserable.
We don't know why.

Mark is miserable
for obvious reasons.

He's still in love,
but she isn't.

Their son, Bob,

the living, breathing product
of this apparent mismatch,

is feeling lonely and abandoned,
but mostly just confused.

And who buys a post card
at the Taj Mahal and writes,

"I've seen half of God's face.
The other half is you."

Heinrich does.

So I already hate Heinrich,
and I hadn't even seen him yet.

Sam Neill, as Mark, does a great
job drawing us into his pain.

So you almost want to go,

"Mark, not a good thing
to say right now.

Go in a different direction."

I think the audience
becomes scared for Mark,

afraid of what
he might do to himself.

Usually if you're going
a deep dive

into somebody's angst
ridden family life,

you do it in the theater,
not film.

That's what they specialize in
in the theater.

"A Long Day's
Journey Into Night."

"Death of a Salesman",
"A Doll's House."

All the great classic stories

are about how families
fall apart.

They're plays.

And the only reason
I mention that is

that Zulawski was a theater
director and a novelist,

so he could have done this story
in a medium

better suited
to a story like this.

But instead, he did
a very interesting thing here.

He told his cinematographer,

"We're going to use wide angle
lenses in every scene."

So what does that do?

It resembles theater because
you're not sure where to look.

You have two people talking
about very intimate things,

but you're not doing
close ups on them.

You're not doing
over-the-shoulder shots.

You're making them small figures
in a large space.

So you can see that restaurant,

you can see that
cluttered apartment.

You can see that massive
apartment building

in the street and what is
apparently the Berlin Wall

in that great opening scene

where the married couple is
reunited, but they never touch.

And Mark never gets rid
of those suitcases.

Zulawski is not showing us
where to look.

He's not cutting.
He's not zooming.

He's not doing close ups.

He's making us search
for what we're supposed to see,

just like you do
at the theater.

And when you do that, the scenes
have to be so carefully blocked

and the set has to be
so perfectly designed

that every object is
in its proper place

and every movement
is very precise.

And I mean, not for the actors.

The actors are not
hitting their marks

or anything, like they do
in soap operas.

The actors are obviously --
they're almost out of body

in the way they've
inhabited these characters,

but they're pinballing
over this vast landscape,

indicating that they're
kind of lost and helpless,

which they are.

So grim.

But it gets grimmer.

Back to the movie.

You know, Zulawski said --

He said a couple of things
that are interesting to me.

He said acting
is a female occupation.

And I think, by that, he meant

that men are too much
in their head.

You know, women are closer
to the emotional core of a scene

if they let themselves go there.

And the other thing
he said was,

"I make films about things
that torture me,

and my medium is a woman."

So Isabelle Adjani didn't
particularly enjoy

being his medium for torture,

but at the time
he made this movie,

she was not very popular.

She was popular with audiences,
but not with filmmakers.

She had burned all her bridges
in both Europe and America.

She was known as being a diva.

She was known for being
impossible to work with.

Trouble on the set,
hard to control, spoiled brat.

So Zulawski had a limited
budget, and he saw all of

Isabelle Adjani troubles
as an opportunity

to get a great actress
at a bargain price.

So he offered her the part.

She was also married
to one of the greatest

French cinematographers,
Bruno Nuytten.

So Zulawski got a package deal
for the couple.

Zulawski was actually
trying to hire both of them

at the same time without knowing
that they were a couple.

And Adjani refused at first

because she didn't want
to play a mother.

She was very concerned
about seeming old

or not being beautiful
in every scene.

And in fact,
one day when they were shooting,

she told him
she was not going to shoot

because her eyes were
red and puffy

and the makeup man had told her
she didn't look good.

So Zulawski went to her trailer
and and said,

"Okay, so you think you're ugly

and you think your
eyes are puffed up?"

And she said, "Yeah."
And he says, "Well, if you don't

calm down and unpuff yourself

and be yourself in 15 minutes,
I will kill you."

So 15 minutes later,
she came out of the trailer

and she was ready to work.

Now, is that abuse?

Some people,
including the Actors Guild,

would probably say so.

But the real abuse, if you
really want to get down to it,

is asking her to go to these
various dark, emotional places

in the course of this movie,
as you will see here directly.

I'll do the background later

because I don't like
interrupting this right here.

[Static crackles]

[Doorbell rings]

-You're Heinrich?

-Yes.

-I've come for Anna.

-Anna's not here.

-You want me to break
down the bloody door?

-You don't have to, it's open.

We don't have to be
brutal to each other

or even impolite.

Our situation is
like a mountain lake

we are trying to swim in,

starting from different shores.

I'm not astonished you're here.

I was thinking about you
just before you came,

so now that you're here,

let's be open to each other.

You can hate me
as much as you like,

but it's you who wants
to know things from me,

so please make it possible.

I'm suffering as much
as you are.

The fact that Anna did not
inform you

was harmful to everyone.

But I always accept Anna's ways,

as I think no one has the right
to impose his will on anyone.

-So that's how you've
changed her so much.

-Possibly.

But is it changing her or
making her open to herself?

-So open she's
inarticulate at night

and you have to speak for her?

-What are you
talking about?

-We spoke on the phone last
night, you and I, didn't we?

-Stop it.
I just arrived from Hamburg.

You weren't listening to me.

I was just trying to make her
comprehend that I love her.

I left the day you arrived

to give her a chance
to decide for herself.

I allowed you your chance.

-Bullshit!

-I'm not obliged to listen
to you speaking that way,

it's offensive.

-How long have you
been fucking me over?

-A year.

[Hand slams]

-All my visits home,
all that time.

-Yes.

-And this is what you mean
by accepting Anna's ways?

-Precisely.

[Sink drips]

The key being the
infinitive, to accept.

I have been honest with you.

Would you permit me to
inquire on a specific point?

On your last visit home,
were you content with your wife?

I mean, sexually.

-Why?

-Because in that period,

we reached a state
of perfect harmony.

-Yeah.

-My mother.

-Is she here all the time?

-Yes.

-Even when you're fucking Anna?

-Of course.

[Mark grunts]

[Men grunting]

[Heinrich yells]

[Mark groans]

[Bob chatters]

-Where do you
think he put the skins?

Down his new pajamas!

[Anna laughs]

-Yes?

Yes.

-♪ Baa, baa, black sheep,
have you any wool ♪

♪ Yes, sir, yes, sir

♪ Three bags full

♪ One for the master

♪ One of the dame

♪ And one for the little boy

♪ That lives down the lane

Can I go out into the backyard?

-Yes, you may.

But you take your
sandwich with you.

[Anna chuckles]

-Where were you?

-I wrote you,
I was at Margit's.

-That's not true.
I spoke to her!

-I was with him!

-That's not true either.

I saw him,
I made steak from him,

but he's not lying.

-I was with friends!

-Who?

-New friends!
-I'll check.

-Yes, check.
Check, check, check, check!

-Why did you leave last night?

-To be alone!

-But you said you
went to friends.

-Why are you nagging me?
Can't you just leave me be?

-I could have perfect peace
if you never came back!

-It's Bob! I have Bob!
He is my son, too!

-Don't try to tell
me that you care

about him all that much.

He didn't stop you
from breaking us up.

If you really thought about him,

you'd give a thought to
us, for Christ's sake!

-I do, I do!

-No, you don't!

You think about buying
him a pair of shoes,

about making him a snack,

about telling him
a bedtime story.

But if you really
thought about him,

you'd think about us!

-Right, right, right!

You're always right!

But it's difficult,
don't you understand?

It is difficult!

I didn't want it to happen,
but it happened and now...

Don't come any closer!

-Anna, it's me!

-But don't you understand?

You disgust me.

I can't stand you touching
me, you make me...

[Anna screams]

-You know, love isn't
something you could just switch

from channel to channel.

I have your letters, "My love,
trust me," you wrote,

and all the time you were
fucking your ass off!

You want me to
believe you're a --

-A whore, yes!

A monster, a whore.

I fuck around with everybody.

Whenever you turn around,
I fuck around with everybody

on every corner!

You will let me go!

-Please don't make me force you.

-You can't stop me!

I'll open the window and jump!

-You need him that much?

-Oh, yes.

Oh, yes!

-Fuck your needs!

[Anna yells]

Do it again.

[Anna exhales]

[Anna chuckles]

[Anna wailing]

[Hand slaps]

[Anna grunts]

You know what this is for?

The lies.

-Then you'll have
to add much more.

-Bitch, bitch.

[Door slams]

[Footsteps echoing]

Bitch, you bitch!

[Footsteps stomping]

What's gonna happen to us?

-It's up to you!

-Then stop coming!

-I have to go!

-I'll follow you!

-Don't even try!

[Truck speeds]

[Tires screeching]

[Cars tumbling]

♪♪

♪♪

[Kids cheering]

-Oh, it's Aunt Margit,

the angel of the extinct heart,

limping to the rescue.

And nothing can stop me.

Oh.

I know you can't wait to run off

and make a fool of yourself,

and I'm here to help you.

I'll look after Bob.

Give me your sweater.

[Margit chuckles]

-I loathe you, Marge.

[Margit moans]

-You're still full
of belief, Mark.

I love seeing you miserable.

It's so reassuring!

-Shit, Marge.

-Yes, sir.

Mr. Zimmermann will be
with you in a minute.

Second door on the right.

-Yes?

Sir.

How can we help you?

Please.

-I...

[Mark clears throat]

I would like you to follow
my wife for a few days.

-Of course.

Wives, wives, wives, wives.

Are there any reasons you
would like to give us?

You don't have to answer,

but often it is
enormously helpful

in the investigation.

-My wife doesn't live with
me anymore, but she visits,

or at least she has been
visiting up 'til now, my son.

-I see.

-I have a photo
of my wife here.

-Are there any other leads?

Family?

Does your wife have a job?

-She quit about a year ago.

-Friends?

-Her best friend is
Mrs. Margit Gluckmeister.

She's in the directory.

Margit visits our place
occasionally to...

to help out with Bob.

-All right, sir.

Now we must get
down to practicalities.

[Mark grunts]

-Go to bed, tired boy.

Let's get you in bed.

Yes.

[Dogs barking in distance]

Oh, look at this.

Tired boy.

Let's get you to bed.

That's it.

On with the covers.

[Margit murmurs]

[Door slams]

-Excuse me.

[Plates clanging]

-How long is this gonna last?

-Excuse me!

[Plates clanging]

-I'm talking to you.

-Excuse me!

-You don't have the
right to behave this way!

What have I done that
you hate me so much, huh?

-Nothing.

-Do I deserve this?

-No.

Get off it.

[Mark yells]

Get off, get off, get off!

-This is...

Disgusting.

-Yes.

[Carving knife buzzes]

-Look what we've become.

-Yes.

-Talk to me!

[Carving knife buzzes]

I don't want you
to be like this.

You know, when
I'm away from you,

I think of you as an animal
or a woman possessed,

and then I see you again,
and all this disappears.

[Mincer buzzes]

You must try and help me.

Tell me.

Maybe it will help.

Are you happy?

Do you love him?

Does he love you?

Do you want to live
together and have a family?

Am I in your way and Bob, too?

[Mincer buzzes]

And there's something
else you must tell me.

What are you afraid to tell me?

Are you afraid of me?

Are you afraid I'll get
mad again and beat you?

[Mincer buzzes]

Are you afraid I won't like you?

-Yes.

[Mincer buzzes]

-Anna, help me.

Help me!

[Mincer buzzes]

[Anna screams]

-No, no!

No, no!

No, no, no, no!

-Anna, there's Bob!

There's Bob, remember?

Good Christ, remember!

[Anna shrieks]

It'll be the way you want it.

It'll be the way you want it.

Hold it.

You don't have to say
anything you don't want to.

[Anna mumbling]

You're my whole family.

[Kids faintly yelling]

[Carving knife buzzes]

-I have to go now.

-Would you wait for Bob?

-I can't now.

-Maybe we can both go
and pick him up at school.

-I can't.

It doesn't hurt.

-No.

[Footsteps echoing]

[Bells tolling]

[Train screeches]

[Train screeches]

♪♪

[Footsteps echoing]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Footsteps stomping]

-I got your wife's address.
It's in Kritzberg.

Sebastien Strasse 87, 1st floor.

She seems to be alone.

Do you want me to check
this now?

Danke.

[Meat sizzles]

[Doorbell rings]

[Bells tolling]

[Doorbell rings]

[Pounding on door]

I'm sorry to bother you, miss.

I'm from the building
manager's office.

We had a complaint about
some broken windows somewhere

and the glass falling
down on the sidewalk.

-Is that what it is?

-I'm afraid I have to
check your windows.

-But I can assure you
they're all right.

-How can you be so sure?

I just saw you come in.

It'll only take a moment.

-But I don't want
you to be here!

-I quite understand, miss,
but it's me or the police.

A lady got hurt on the
sidewalk, a Turkish woman.

Now, you might say she shouldn't
be here in the first place,

but she lodged a complaint,
so what can I do about it?

-Nothing.

Please.

[Tapping on glass]

[Blinds opening]

Is it okay?

-Moment.

[Blinds opening]

-So?

-Excuse me, the bathroom.

-The bathroom doesn't
have a window.

-Are you sure?
-Absolutely.

-Some bathrooms have windows
this side of the house.

-Not in this one.

-I'm afraid I still have to
check it.

Of course, I --

-Would you care
for a glass of wine?

-Wine?
-Yes.

-No, I'm afraid I...

[Anna laughs]

-Yes, wine.

-I'm afraid you --

-Oh, come on,
don't be so formal.

-Miss, it doesn't make
any sense, I've got kids.

I only came for the windows.

I'm sorry, miss,
but I still need to look.

[Anna chuckles]

-[Wine bottle breaks]
-Oh, it broke.

[Sink drips]

-Was ist...

[Anna chuckles sadly]

[Ominous music]

[Anna screams]

[Anna screams]

[Static crackles]

-Worst private detective
in history, right?

That was the most obvious
and inept tale

that I have ever seen.

Okay, it's one thing to come
back from a business trip

and find out your wife
is sleeping with

some pompous ass new age guru
who lives with his mother.

It's another thing to find out
your wife has a secret apartment

in the slummy part
of West Berlin,

the place where
the angry unemployed

Turkish immigrants live.

And there's something in
the bathroom of that apartment

that's so sacred and secret

that she will commit murder
to protect it.

It looks like a slimy mollusk.

I mean, did she become
a malacologist

while you were away?

Does she have endangered species
of snails and slugs and clams

hidden away in the secret
warrens of her filthy,

unfinished apartment?

Unfortunately, the detective
doesn't have time

to explain any of this to Mark,

who is still recovering from the
thrashing he took from Heinrich.

So this is where the movie
asks the question,

"Who is Anna,
and what does she want?"

Which is a way of saying,
"What do women want?"

And I would add to that,
"And do we men

really want to know
what women really want?"

The shocking part
of the movie here

is not so much that
Anna is a murderer,

but that Mark is light years

away from understanding
what motivates her.

Okay, background on
Andrzej Zulawski.

I'm now going to give you
a complete history

of the Polish film school
movement between the years

1956 and 1963,

especially its relationship
to the Italian neorealists.

And I'm going to start
with the famous

Polish October uprising of 1956,
better known as

"Gomulka's thaw",

leading to a period
of liberalization

that inspired
the Hungarian Revolution.

Only kidding!

If you want to know
about any of that,

go over to the IFC Channel.

You know, use
the search term

"So bored you'll become
narcoleptic and watch 17 films

made by guys whose names you
can't pronounce or remember."

Let me just tell you
the part that you need to know

from all that.

Andrzej Zulawski was Polish,

and Poland was like
every other communist country

in the '60s, '70s, and '80s.

They had a censorship committee

that had to approve
every project.

But what makes Poland different
from just about

all the other Eastern Bloc
countries is that --

A -- the censorship
was not as strict

because the country got

a lot of international
attention for their movies.

They won a lot
of film festival prizes.

B -- the Poles hated the Soviets
just as much as they hated

the Nazis because they had been
abused from both directions

during World War II.

So they were not so enslaved
by the Russian attitudes.

And -- C -- the Polish
filmmakers had learned to use

allegory and symbolism
to fool the censors.

And then even if your film
was considered

too hot for the censors
and it got banned,

you could still smuggle it
out of the country,

get it entered
at the Cannes Film Festival

or somewhere else in the west,

and you could even get the film
distributed in other countries.

So there were all these
Polish filmmakers

who were famous
in Western Europe

in the '60s,
like Roman Polanski,

Andrzej Munk,
Jerzy Kawalerowicz.

Can never say his name.

Kawalerowicz.

and Jerzy Skolimowski.

Write those names down.

We're going to have
a spelling test later.

And then Andrzej Zulawski.

He was the baby of the group.

He comes along
in the '70s and says,

"You know what? I'm going
to dial things up to 11.

I'm going to test
these fucking censors."

He was the bad boy
who felt entitled

because both his father and
his grandfather were prominent

Polish writers,
so he was able to get a visa

to study film in France

at a time when
most Poles couldn't travel.

And by the time he started
directing his own films,

he had a "fuck you" attitude
toward government interference.

And at first,
he got away with it.

His first film was called
"The Third Part of the Night."

Kind of an avant garde
surrealist body horror film

about a guy who joins
the resistance after the Gestapo

execute his whole family.

And that passes
with no censorship.

Probably because it was based
on his father's novel.

Miroslaw Zulawski
was his father.

So the censors
felt comfortable with it.

Novel's already out there.

What could possibly be wrong
with the movie?

Then he makes a wild film called

"The Devil", a horror film
set in the 18th century.

And this time,
the Catholic Church complains

about it, and it gets
totally banned.

So Zulawski leaves the country.

He moves to Paris.

He makes a French film
called

"The Most Important Thing:
Love."

And that's both popular
and a critical success.

And so the Polish
Ministry of Culture

feels embarrassed now
that this artist

in exile is being
supported by the west.

And so they invite him
to come back to Poland,

and they promise him that
they will fund his next film.

And that film is
a science fiction epic called

"On the Silver Globe", based on
his grandfather's novel,

"The Lunar Trilogy."

And Zulawski spends two years

shooting this story at locations
all over Europe.

And then the Polish Culture
Minister suddenly says,

"Oh, wow,
I didn't see this before.

I see what you're doing.

This is an allegory.
It's about totalitarianism.

It's an allegory
about us, our government.

It's me!"

And so the minister
shuts down production

when the film is 80% complete,
and they not only shut him down,

they confiscate
all his existing footage.

They order the standing sets
to be burned.

They just go ape
on this project.

And it's a miracle
that Zulawski was able

to smuggle a workprint
out of the country

so he could come back years
later and finish the film.

But at that point,
he was done with Poland.

He went back to France, and at
the lowest point in his life,

unable to get work,
going through a divorce,

caring for a small son
that his ex-wife

didn't want to care for,
he wrote "Possession."

And he originally wanted --
he wanted

either Detroit or Berlin
for the setting of "Possession"

because he wanted it
to portray, quote,

"People surrounded by evil."

And in his view, the automobile
factory workers of Detroit

were similar to the fenced in
people of Berlin,

you know,
trapped by their circumstances.

He wanted to partner with an
English speaking writer, though,

because he intended
to shoot the film in English

and he didn't want it
to sound stilted

or out of sync with the times,
which were issues he had had

when his own novels
were translated.

And so he went to New York,
and he met with, of all people,

Charlie Bluhdorn, the chairman
of Gulf and Western,

which was the parent company
of Paramount Pictures.

Bluhdorn was
an Austrian-American,

so he had heard of Zulawski.

So when they met,
Bluhdorn says,

"What kind of picture
do you want to make, Andrzej?"

And Zulawski says,
"It's a story about a woman

who fucks an octopus.

And Bluhdorn said,

"Well, I don't think we would
make that one, Andrzej,

but let me put you in touch
with some indie film people."

And he did put him in touch
with some indie film people,

including the French producer
Christian Ferry,

and that led him to the
American avant garde novelist

Frederic Tuten.

This is complicated, I realize.

So the two of them,
Frederic Tuten and Zulawski,

they hit it off right away,
and Zulawski showed

Tuten this 12-page treatment.

And then they holed up
in the Gramercy Park Hotel

in New York City
back when that place

was a kind of a ramshackle,
run down kind of homey place.

I used to stay there myself
after I read

SJ Perelman lived there.

Anyway, these two twisted
geniuses came up with a script

for "Possession", and they had
several false starts.

They had a company that wanted
to shoot the film in Dallas,

which I think -- I don't know
why they would want to do that.

Zulawski finally hooked up

with a French producer
named Marie-Laure Reyre,

who secured funding
from the Berlin Senate.

The actual legislative body
that ran Berlin.

So forget Detroit,
forget Dallas.

The film was destined for Berlin
as a French-German

co-production in English.

[Laughter]

Okay.

That's the story
behind the film.

All right. Roll the film.
All right.

I didn't hear any gasps
from you guys

when I used
the term "malacologist."

A professional authority
on the mollusk.

You know, you can say
many things about me,

but you can't say that
I don't know my mollusks.

You know, I'm no carcinologist.
I'll admit.

That would be an expert on
crustaceans, you know?

But give me a malacology
equation, I'll nail it.

You know, no offense to the
arthropod people, you know?

But come on, people.

There's only 42,000 species
of crustaceans in the world.

Mollusks -- 200,000.

So we win.

[Laughter]

[Static crackles]

[Water splashes]

-How long?

-Uh, ages and ages.

Much longer than I could.

[Door buzzes]

-Nee-na, nee-na, nee-na, nee-na.

-Hi. I'm sorry to
bother you so late.

May I see your wife?

-No, she went out.

-Nee-na, nee-na,
nee-na, nee-na.

-That's not entirely true.

-She, uh...

She doesn't live
with us any longer.

-Oh.

It's about Bob.

-Ah, Bob.

Bob is fine.

He's just beaten the world
record in tub diving.

[Water splashes]

-Oh!

[Laughs]

-Hello.

-Come on, cut it out, Bob.

-[Laughs]

[Door buzzes]

Oh, look.
Would you be so kind?

He's actually been in the bath
for about an hour now.

-Yes, of course.

-I've called many times.

I wanted to discuss with you
the redistribution of our parts

in this fundamentally
vulgar structure.

The triangle.

In other words, where is she?

I've been giving
a great deal of thought

to the illogical aspects
of your rendering of the events.

Is Anna with you?

-And if?

-I'd only ask to
have a talk with her.

-What if I said no?

-I'm sorry I used
violence with you.

Now I'd only apply
my psychic functions

to make her come to me.

-Oh, I'm so sorry,
she's not here.

-Did I tell you I had
a wife and a daughter?

-No!
-They live in Cincinnati.

-And what does that do for you?

-They will always
remain my first family.

Anna could be the second, and
you, and Bob in some sense.

Do you have a dog?

-Would that I had.

-You misuse me.

It's stiff and blocked
men like you that

lead us to
the concentration camp.

Who are the crusaders of
every blind principle,

so-called ideology humanity
invents to strangle me.

Why don't you like me?

Why don't you draw in
the platitude of my love

and pull me all the way
you'd like to...

-Okay, I like you.

And I can tell you
where Anna lives.

-Lives?

-Only, I don't know
the guy's name.

-That's impossible.
It doesn't make sense.

-Why not?

Because you think you've given
her the supreme pleasure?

You with your yin-yang balls

dangling from your zen brain?

Okay, maybe it does boil
down to a sexual contest,

in which case, I'm sure
you win, hands down.

But is that all?

-Nee-na, nee-na, nee-na,

nee-na, nee-na, nee-na.

Nee-na, nee-na, nee-na...

-I used to be afraid of you.

But I don't think I am anymore.

-There's nothing
to fear except God.

Whatever that means to you.

-For me, God is a disease.

-That's why through the
disease, we can reach God.

-"Tracking something,"
said Winnie The Pooh,

very mysteriously.

"Tracking what?" said
Piglet, coming closer.

"That's just what I ask myself.

I ask myself, 'What?'"

What do you think
you'll answer?"

He wants to say
good night to you.

-Thank you.

You smell clean.

-Do you like Helen?

-I think so.

-Are you not sure?

-Well, I don't know her yet.

Do you like her?

-Yes, and who don't you like?

-Well, I don't like Heinrich,

and I don't like that sailboat.

-Why? He's funny.

-I don't like...

I don't like Mommy to
like him more than us.

-Who's prettier?
Mommy or Helen?

-Who do you think is prettier?

-You tell me.

-Our Mommy.

Good night, son.

Thank you.

-Do you have anyone
to help you with him?

-Oh it's...

It's not a problem.

I have plenty of time.

-Bob won't say anything to me.

He keeps his words for himself.

He knows everything,
senses everything.

Children are amazing.

-Yeah.

-After lunch,
we have an hour's rest.

Bob very often falls sleep.

When he does,
he cries or shouts.

Does he do it at home?

-No.

-Oh.

He screams.

It is very difficult
to calm him down.

When he wakes up, he pretends
that nothing happened.

-What can I say?

I'm at war against women.

They have no foresight.

There's nothing about
them that is stable,

there's nothing to trust.

They're dangerous.

-There is nothing in
common among women

except menstruation.

Excuse me.

I come from a place where
evil seems easier to pinpoint

because you can see
it in the flesh.

It becomes people
so you know exactly

the danger of being
deformed by it.

Which doesn't mean
I admire your world.

But I find pathetic
these stories of women

contaminating the universe.

-I'm...

I'm one of the contaminated.

-Because you never
feel free, do you?

So sad that, for you,
freedom seems to mean evil.

And what about lack of freedom?

-It's extraordinary.

♪♪

-All right.

Together, we can listen
if Bob cries out.

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

You don't have to
make love to me.

-I'm not trying.

[Both giggling]

[Bob screams]

What happened?

-I want Mommy! My Mommy!

Mommy! Mommy! My Mommy!
Mommy!

-It's okay, it's all right.

-Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!

-It's all right.
-Mommy!

-Mommy!
-It's all right.

-Mommy!
-It's all right.

It's all right, it's all
right, it's all right.

It's all right.

-I'm sorry.
It wasn't very wise of me.

This makes you think you've
been right all along.

Hello, Bob.

-I'm the big boss here.

-You're the little boss!

-Good morning.

I phoned you at home,

then I thought
I might catch you here.

-I didn't tell you
where Bob goes to school.

-It wasn't difficult.
We have a minor problem here.

-Yes?

-The detective who was
in charge of tracing your wife

didn't come home last night.

-So?
-He wasn't at home this morning,

and he hasn't reported
to the office.

Before we start to get
worried...

When was he going to check it?
Yesterday or today?

-I don't know.

-Please don't misunderstand me.

That detective
could've gotten drunk

and spent the night with whores,

although that's not much likely.

He could have died
of a heart attack.

If our detective
doesn't show up by noon,

I'll have to notify the police.

The police will start
digging into your problem.

That's how it is.

You and I can claim
professional secrecy,

but you have to give me the
address the detective gave you.

-Sebastien Strasse 87, floor 1.

-Have you been to that
address yourself or telephoned?

-No.
-Very sensible of you.

But may I ask why not?

I had the impression
that you were

tremendously interested
in finding your wife.

-Yes, I was.

I suppose I still am.

But that was out of
pure, blind ambition.

And you know something?

I don't feel like
there's anything

much ambitious left in me.

-I see.

So I don't even have to
ask you as a personal favor

not to come to the office
until I contact you.

-Why?

-Precisely because of the
delicacy of your feelings,

you might be able
to understand that...

my interest in the case
comes from the fact that I...

...live with that detective.

I'll be calling.

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Scrubbing floor]

I have to talk to you.

-That's what I guessed.

[Water splashes]

-Have you ever seen this man?

-Do I have to answer you?

-Well, you have to answer
to someone eventually.

-That's too easy.

But it's you...

Or the police, right?

-Right.

-Why?

-You're scaring me.

-Am I not scared?

-Oh, yes.

I see.

Darkness is easeful.

And the temptation to let go...

...promises so much
comfort after the pain.

-He's in there.

[Blood drips]

[Organs squelching]

-My God!

-He is very tired.

He made love to me all night.

-Emanuelle.

-He is still unfinished,
you know?

-Emanuelle!

[Gun fires]

[Man groaning]

[Anna gasps]

[Man groans]

[Gun fires three times]

[Static crackles]

-Correct me if I'm wrong, but
I think the second detective,

the one who goes homicidal,
once he sees his partner

dead on the floor, gets beaten
senseless with a can of milk,

you know, before she grabs a gun
and finishes him off.

I talked a lot
about Isabelle Adjani

when we showed Werner Herzog's
"Nosferatu the Vampyre."

And if you'll recall,

Herzog complained that
she took up a lot of his time

because she had to be
constantly reassured

that she was beautiful.

On this picture,
she took up a lot of time

because Zulawski was asking her

to go places emotionally
that she didn't care to go.

She was still not quite
25 years old when this movie

was made, and I think she was
having trouble

deciding what she wanted
to do with her life

because she was winning
all the acting awards,

she was an A-list
celebrity in Europe,

but it was not
registering with her.

It was actually this movie
that caused people to say,

"Oh, wait, she's not
just a model.

She's not just being
hired for her looks.

She can actually act."

And she got the Cesar Award
for this performance.

But more importantly,
she got Best Actress

at the Cannes Film Festival.

But when she saw "Possession"
for the first time,

she wanted to kill herself.

She thought she looked ugly.
She thought she looked foolish.

And some say she actually
did try to kill herself.

It was only after the film
received international acclaim

that she started to think
about doing more roles,

and by that time, she was
being offered roles again.

But she also said she would
never let another director

do to her what Zulawski did,

meaning he forced her
into dark, emotional places

that she says
still affect her today.

Sam Neill, as Mark, said
something similar about

this film,
but he didn't blame Zulawski

for trying to get what he wanted
any way he could get it.

Neill is Irish, but he had
grown up in New Zealand.

Boarding school kid.
Theater nerd.

Probably never would have left
the comfortable life

he had in New Zealand.

He worked for
the National Film Commission,

directing, editing, writing.

Were it not for the Australian
movie "My Brilliant Career"

in 1979.

Sam Neill plays that
handsome suitor

who keeps getting rejected
by Judy Davis.

Anyway, that movie was seen
around the world --

festivals, art houses,
and Zulawski was one of the guys

who noticed Sam Neill.

As we all know, he would go on
to be a mainstream

Hollywood actor
in the movies like

"Dead Calm"
and "The Hunt for Red October",

and, of course,
he's best known for being

in every "Jurassic Park" movie
as the paleontologist Dr. Grant.

The horror audience would
know him for

"Omen III: The Final Conflict",

which came -- it actually it

came out the same year as
"Possession."

And also two
John Carpenter movies,

"Memoirs of an Invisible Man"
and "In the Mouth of Madness."

Also "Event Horizon."

Oh and the "Merlin" miniseries.
He has made a lot of horror.

What made "Possession" hard
is that Zulawski movies

are always about the female,

but Zulawski needs
a male character

to witness
what the female is doing,

so Neill had to make himself
into the weakest man

in the world, totally enthralled
to Anna's power.

And he had to be believable from
moment to moment as he went

to the bottom
and then he rose

back up to get to the point
where no matter how horrible

Anna is, he accepts it
and he enables it.

He's sort of the battered
spouse in the relationship.

It's like the detective
always says on the crime show,

"He's the spouse
who loses his identity

and is swallowed up
by the other person."

Okay.

We are coming up on the most
famous sequence in the movie.

[Sighs] It was filmed
at 5:00 a.m.

in the Berlin subway,
which was cold and empty,

and Zulawski knew they could
only shoot this one time.

And not for any
technical reason.

For an emotional reason.

And Isabelle Adjani knew they
could only shoot at one time,

and Zulawski made the decision

not to give her
any direction at all.

Actually, he said
three words to her,

which I'm not going to
tell you in advance.

I'll tell you those
at the next break.

But if you're going to study
scenes where a film tries to do

what you normally
only try to do in a novel,

that is to describe
someone's inner being,

this is about as close
as anybody has ever come,

because the place the monster
lives is always inside us,

isn't it?

Roll the film.

You know, Sam Neill --

Sam Neill was also
in that weird beard movie

"The Piano."

Remember that movie?

It was one of those movies
that everybody acclaims.

It wins all the awards,
and five years later,

nobody remembers it
or talks about it anymore.

Anyway, Sam Neill was the horror
element in "The Piano."

Remember he hacks off
Holly Hunter's finger

with an ax?

Remember that?

[Laughs]

That'll teach you to play
the piano for Harvey Keitel.

You know?

-[Laughter]
-Strange movie.

Not as strange as this movie.

[Laughter]

[Static crackles]

[Paper crumples]

[Anna speaks in French]

-Tighten your stomach.

[Anna speaks in French]

Up! Your knee!

Your foot.

Look at your hand.

Tighter stomach.

Your back, up your leg.

Up your knee.

Up your knee.

Look at your hands.

Tighten your stomach.

Your back.

Your foot.

[Dancer breathing heavily]

Do it.

Hold it.

Hold it.

-[Dancer whimpers]
-Up.

Your knee.

Hold it. Hold it.

[Dancer gasping]

Your shoulders down.

Hold it.

Hold.

Hold it.

Hold it. Hold it.

Hold it.

[Dancer screams]

Your back.

More. More.

That's very good!

Very, very good.

Very good.

That's very good.

Good girl.

[Dancer screams]

[Door slams]

From now on, she'll know
how much right to sing

and sheer will she's
got in her to say,

"I can do as well.

I can be better.
I'm the best."

Only in this case can
she become a success.

Nobody told me that.

That's why I'm with you.

Because you say "I" for me.

Because you say "I" for me.

[Projector whirs]

[Chair creaks]

Yes, I'm thinking about him,
but I recognize the self

who has just done
something horrible

like the sister I've
casually met on the street.

"Hello, sister."

It's like those two
sisters of faith of chance.

It's like those two sisters
of faith and chance.

Well, my faith can exclude
chance, but chance...

Oh, sh...

Well, it's like those two
sisters of faith and chance.

My faith can't exclude chance,
but my chance can explain faith.

My faith didn't allow
me to wait for chance,

and chance didn't
give me enough faith.

Well...

And then I read that
private life is a stage,

only I'm playing in many parts

that are smaller than me,
and yet I still play them.

I suffer, I believe, I am.

But at the same time I know

there's a third
possibility, you know,

like cancer or madness,

but cancer and madness
contort reality.

The possibility I'm talking
about pierces reality.

Well, I'm unable to say it.

Maybe, maybe
it's impossible to say,

maybe I'm too stupid.

You're looking at me
as if you...

You're looking at
me as if to tell me

that I need you to fill me up,
as if I'm an empty space.

Well, I love you, too,
but what makes me go on

is to know he'll return
and that I'll make him suffer

and I'll hurt him
and I'm betraying him,

but this brings me
small rewards.

Yet, I can't exist by myself

because I'm afraid of myself,

because I'm the
maker of my own evil.

Because...

Because I'm...

Goodness is only some kind
of reflection upon evil.

That's all it is.

Ah!

[Sighs]

-What are you doing?

-I'm sorting out his things
to take to the laundry.

[Objects clattering]

-I could do it myself.

-But it's my job.

I'm better at it.

-Maybe you could do
it when Bob is at home.

[Sink runs]

It's getting...

so difficult for you, isn't it?

You're not as...

You're not as strong
or as sure of yourself

as you thought you were,
so you keep coming back.

You must be...

You must be...

torn apart.

I can...

I can think more clearly now.

I guess...

I guess when you're there...

you want to be home,
and when you're home,

you want to be there.

If what you have there
is so strong for you.

If it's what you never
had, stick to it, keep it.

[Anna yelps]

It's very quiet here
when you're out.

-It was very quiet
when you weren't here.

-Come over here.

Let's just see if we can sit
together peacefully still.

-[Gasping]

-Is it the same there?

[Anna screams]

Can you tell me now?

-I messed everything up.

Even Bob.

I've been a cheat, a liar,

completely alone, wounded.

And you think I'm immoral shit.

I think so, too, but not
for the same reasons.

♪♪

I feel nothing for no one!

It's as if the two sisters

were too exhausted
to fight any more.

You know these women
wrestling in an arena of mud

with their hands locked
at each other's throats,

each waiting to see
who will die first.

And both staring at me.

[Anna whimpers]

[Anna repeatedly whimpers]

[Church bells ringing]

[Train chugs]

[Anna laughs hysterically]

[Anna screams]

[Screaming violently]

[Anna howling]

[Anna screams]

[Screaming]

[Anna screams, gasping]

[Screaming]

♪♪

♪♪

[Shrieking]

[Screams]

What I miscarried there
was Sister Faith.

And what was left is
Sister Chance.

So I had to take care of
my faith to protect it.

-And that's what
you're doing there?

-Yes.

-You look unclear.

You've hardened.

For the first time, you look...

...vulgar to me.

You know, I remember
when I was a kid.

Have you ever seen a dying dog?

You know, one of those old dogs

that comes to die under
the porch of the house?

At the last moment,
it yelps in terror,

as if it's seen something real.

I want you to take off the ring

and the wristwatch I gave
you last time I came home.

[Anna pants]

-Don't forget to
give him his yogurt.

-No.

[Plate shatters]

-I have to go.

-If I threw myself at
your feet and yelped,

would you still walk over me?

-Yes.

[Static crackles]

-How many levels of reality
did we have

in that 15 minutes of film?

We have the film within the film

in which Anna teaches ballet
in French,

revealing herself to be
a cruel coach of children.

Kind that believes
the tougher you are,

the better they'll turn out.

Then she talks about herself.
Then she talks about Mark.

Then she speaks straight
to the audience.

But the whole thing is inside
a film directed by Heinrich.

So we're watching Mark,

watching it through
the eyes of Heinrich.

Plus, we have to wonder why
Heinrich sent the film to Mark

in the first place.

And then we get to the scene
where she's unable

to control her own body as she
attempts to be domestic.

You know, when she's
going around the house

trying to straighten things up.

And then she finally confesses,
"I feel nothing for no one."

And meanwhile, Mark is trying
to figure out

what's going on in her head,
but he does it by speaking

out loud to himself
in the bathroom mirror.

And then we have her
attempting to speak to Jesus,

but she just whimpers
underneath that spooky

Christ on the cross statue.

And then we have the scene
in the subway

where she basically
runs through every emotion

in the history
of human beings,

bounces off the walls,
goes crazy,

has a miscarriage
and gives birth.

Because it's all in flashback.

It's in the middle of a speech
about chance and faith.

Chance and Faith
in capital letters.

And the result of it is that
Mark does a very odd thing.

He asks her to return their
wedding ring and his watch,

which seems out
of character for him,

especially when he begs her
in a humiliating way

to not leave right
before she leaves.

So, okay, anybody who's ever
been in a volatile relationship

or gone through
a difficult break up

should be able to identify
with these scenes

because they make no sense.

It's pure emotional logic.

There's not a hint
of intellectual logic.

With one exception.

And this is something
that bothers me,

and I've never understood it.

Right in the middle
of this great sequence

which kind of dissects
the brain.

Whenever love is threatened,
you know,

right in the middle of it,

she makes
a philosophical speech.

I wanted to scream.

I mean, the movie
goes for 80 minutes

without explaining
anything in words.

We're just getting the meaning
from body language, from action.

Now we're going
to philosophy class.

You know, I'm going
to read this out loud

because since since Zulawski
and Tuten put it in the script,

I have to assume
they really cared about it.

So here's what she says.

Anna says, "It's like
there's two sisters,

Faith and Chance.

My faith can't exclude chance,

but my chance
can't explain faith."

"My faith didn't allow me
to wait for chance

and chance didn't give me
enough faith.

And then I read that private
life is only a stage,

only I'm playing in many parts
that are smaller than me.

And yet I still play them.
I suffer. I believe I am.

And yet, at the same time,

I know there is
a third possibility

like cancer or madness.

But cancer or madness
contorts reality.

The possibility that I am
talking about pierces reality.

I can't exist by myself
because I'm afraid of myself

because I'm the maker
of my own evil."

So, uh...

Fuck you.

I mean, after the scene in
the subway, you know,

she says, "What I miscarried
there was Sister Faith

and what was left is
Sister Chance."

And I guess this is the key
to the movie because, as usual,

if you think I'm an idiot who
doesn't understand the movie,

e-mail me and engage me on this,
but the the subway scene,

which is truly one of the most
amazing pieces of writing,

directing, acting
that I've ever seen,

that scene is sort of ruined

by this philosophical speech
that comes in.

So let's move on.
Tell me what I'm missing.

Argue with me.

But I wanted to tell you
the three words

that Zulawski
gave to Isabelle Adjani

before they said "action"
on that subway scene.

He knew that if he tried to
direct the internal part of it,

he would ruin it, so he said,

"What I want you to do
is fuck the air."

And that's what she did.
So roll the film.

The other reason I don't like
art house speeches in a movie

is that every academic critic
from Warsaw to Beijing

is going to take
those speeches and quote them

and re-quote them
and publish them and analyze

the fuck out of them
in order to tell us

what the film really means,
you know?

You know what the film
really means?

Whatever you take away from it
after you watch it, you know?

I can't stand people who say,

"Well, the reason
you don't like the film

is you don't
understand the film.

Let me explain."

Oh, thank you, Mr. Intellectual.
Now, I love the film.

You know, movies use
the right brain only.

Left brain go home.
You know what I mean?

And you don't have to like
a film or dislike a film.

It's not a binary thing.

You can just experience a film
without putting a thumbs up

or a thumbs down on it.

It's not a competition,

but don't speechify
to me in a movie.

I'm speechifying right now
about not speechifying,

but I think you know
what I mean, right?

Okay. End of rant.

Monday morning, there's going
to be a memo from Shudder.

"Don't rant in the later part
of the movie.

You know, that is
really hard on people at

1:00 or 2:00 in the morning."

You know, "Otherwise.
Great job, Joe Bob."

You know, whenever
you get that phrase.

"Otherwise, great job,"
you know, you fucked up.

[Laughter]

[Static crackles]

-Hello. This is
Anna's husband speaking.

-Anna's not here.

I don't have the slightest idea
what's happening to her.

-Do you love your son?
-Sir!

-Tell him that I love him, too.

I love everybody and everything.
I accept everything.

I have become wise
and profound and good.

-Do you want to talk to him?

We are just having coffee.

-No, I don't want to
talk to him.

I don't want your coffee
to get cold either,

I certainly love your coffee.

Just tell Heinrich
that Anna's address is

Sebastien Strasse 87, 1st floor.

-Five, six, seven, sky!

Eight, seven, six,
five, four, three...

-Madam teacher, my
apologies for being late.

-No, it's all right.

Anyway, we were waiting for you.

Thank you.

And goodbye, Bob.

-What is it?

-My name.

[Motorbike speeds by]

-I respected your
wish to be alone.

I thought you needed the time,
but now it's time enough.

Besides, what are
you doing here anyway?

Don't resist me.

You know I'm stronger than you.

I'm the only one in your
life who has rights on you

because I don't claim any.

I brought it from India.

You know, this is
what the French poet

Michaud was writing about.

I kept it for you.

With this, love opens to
absolutely unknown horizons.

-Absolutely unknown.

-Anna.

We are made to swim in
the center of the stream.

Not to wait on the dry banks.

-Yes.

Exactly.

-I showed you the door to God,

and this door is always open.

Come.

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Dripping]

This is a joke.

[Creature breathes]

What is it?

[Creature breathes]

♪♪

[Heinrich grunts]

Anna!

Anna!

-These must be old.

They are beginning to smell.

-This can't be true.

-I've got to keep this
place clean and well.

-Oh, my God!

-Are you going to help me?

Heinrich.

You are no different
from anyone else.

We are all the same
but in different words.

With different bodies,
different versions,

like insects.

Meat!

[Heinrich gasps]

[Heinrich pants]

[Knife thuds]

-[Phone rings]
-[Mark imitates engine]

-Calling all ambulances
and fire engines

to the scene of the crash.

And two trucks.

[Bob hums]

Where?

[Doorbell buzzes]

Can you answer the door, Bob?

Now, listen, Heinrich.

Just stay where you are.

-I paid a fortune for the cab.

-At the bar at the corner?

Bleed for a while.

I'll be there as soon as I can.

-My son took the car,
an automatic one.

-Can you look
after Bob 'til I get back?

-What is it?

-It's Mommy calling me.

♪♪

♪♪

[Fly buzzes]

[Mark nervously laughs]

[Mark gasping, panting]

[Mark howling]

[Mark pants]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Fly buzzes]

[Mark hums]

[Arcade game tune]

-No, not out here.

Go to the toilet.

-Need a Tampax?

-How can you joke
while I'm so hurt?

There are corpses in there,

at least two bodies.

I thought she was
pulling my leg,

but no, there's blood.

She cuts them.

A monster, a joke,
but it was alive.

-You're drunk, Heinrich.

-She cuts us to pieces, Mark.

-Maybe she just didn't
want to see you.

-Don't joke. I'm not joking.

-Alright, you're not joking.
So what do you want?

-Don't you understand?
She's killing people.

-I understand she's
killing people,

so why do you call me
and not the police?

-She is sick, Mark. Doesn't
that mean anything to you?

There are dead bodies there!

-I don't believe you.

Maybe you're stoned on
some shit you suck on.

Some mushroom you gobble?

Perhaps you did it to yourself.

Maybe you're learning
how to suffer.

Now, that would be
an achievement.

-I feel for people.

-You talk for people.

You take their wives.

-I take what I want!

And I'm at peace with myself.

Nobody saw me come in.
Nobody.

I called you because we have
to do something to help her.

-Why?
-It isn't normal.

It wasn't even human.

It was...

-Divine?

Perhaps you met God a moment ago

and you didn't even realize it.

Now, you believe in God,
don't you?

Certainly.

In that great
incomprehensible God

whom you reach
through fucking, or dope.

Am I right?

-Look, Mark,
that woman is crazy.

We have to do something.

-We?

I'm not going to do anything.

-I can't leave it this way.

It's Anna. It's murder.

You're not a man, Mark.
You're a woman.

All right, if you don't
intend to do anything

and want to keep me silent,
you will have to pay.

You have money, I know it.

You have to get me out of here,

and send me on a long trip
to restore my harmony!

I deserve it!
If you had only seen what I saw!

[Heinrich vomiting, heaving]

[Arcade tune music]

[Sink runs]

[Door slams]

[Toilet flushes]

[Heinrich coughing]

[Mark heaving]

-Heinrich, help
me out of here, I'm sick!

-I'm the one who
is wounded, not you!

-Please!

[Toilet flushes]

[Mark coughs]

[Gas hisses]

[Mark hums]

[Explosion, glass breaking]

[Woman cackling]

-God's light avenge them,

giving it out clean and
getting it back dirty.

[Woman cackles]

[Motorbike engine revs]

[Static crackles]

-Okay, in honor
of Sam Neill's part of the movie

where he apparently goes crazy
in an effort

to match Isabelle Adjani's
level of crazy,

I have here a bottle
of Two Paddocks Wine,

direct from the Sam Neill
Vineyards in

Gibbston, New Zealand,
part of the Otago region.

We've all been there, right?
Otago.

Actually none of us
have ever been there,

but that's the part of
New Zealand

where tourists never go,

the southernmost part
of the South Island,

where Sam has been
churning out the Pinot Noir

since 1993, the year
he made "Jurassic Park."

Because, yes, Sam is
one of those wine guys

like Francis Coppola,
but it gets better.

The next vineyard over
from two paddocks

is called Sleeping Dogs

because it's owned
by Roger Donaldson,

the director of Sam Neill's
first movie,

"Sleeping Dogs", from 1977.

And "Sleeping Dogs" was the
first film that had been made in

New Zealand in 17 years.

So it's pretty important
in the history

of New Zealand film.

It's actually the first
35 millimeter film

of any kind produced
entirely within the borders

of New Zealand.

And it was what launched
Sam Neill's career.

"Sleeping Dogs" was also
Warren Oates,

the late, great Warren Oates
was starred in it.

So, Darcy,
Pinot Noir or Chardonnay?

-I'll take the white one.

-All right, we'll do a toast
right now to

your favorite part of the movie.

-Yeah.

It's true.

If that movie was
only 10 minutes long,

but it still had
the scene in it,

I would be totally satisfied.

-You're not big on
the divorce/fighting part.

-Oh, no. I get total PTSD
from watching those scenes.

-Really?
-Mm-hmm.

-Because, I mean,
they're over the top.

But you go, "Yeah,
that totally happened to me.

I can identify with that."

-No, I mean, those scenes
really happened to me.

-Like physically?
-Oh, yeah.

-Like physical fighting?
-Mm-hmm.

-Oh, then you deserve
some Sleeping Dog Chardonnay...

-Yes, I do.
-...from Otago,

the region of New Zealand
settled by the Scots in 1848.

-You always have to mention
the Scots.

-Yes, I do.
The Scots are everywhere.

People just don't realize it.
They don't drink wine, though.

I'm surprised Otago
is known for its wine

because everywhere else the
Scots went, they made whiskey.

-Yes, I have seen
your redneck show.

-All right.
Anyway, to Sam Neill,

who is totally selling this part
as a guy who's so in love that

when he says,
"I'll do anything,"

he will do anything.

Arson, murder, and now
he's got a stolen motorcycle.

So back to the movie.

You think we have any actual
viewers in Otago,

in case we get all this wrong?

-Well, we do have fans
in New Zealand,

just not as many as we used to.

-Not as many as we used to.
Why?

-Remember when you wrote that
review of the Elijah Wood movie?

-"Come to Daddy"?
-Yeah.

Well, the the director
was a really big fan of yours,

and he was super hurt
that you didn't like it.

-Really?
-Mm-hmm.

-I would say that
was a mixed review.

I wouldn't say it was a pan.

-If you say so.

Everyone loves him
in New Zealand.

-Wow. Really?

Everyone loves Ant Timpson
in New Zealand?

-Yes.
-How do they watch

the show over there?

What time is it
in New Zealand?

-I think it's already
Saturday night over there.

-"Come to Daddy" was not
a terrible movie.

-Are you trying to
walk back your review?

-No.

I mean, I remember it had some

nice David Lynch
rip off moments.

-Oh, yeah,
that is really helping build

our New Zealand fan base.

And you didn't like "Housebound"
when we showed that one either.

-The Kiwis, they make
well crafted horror movies.

That aren't always that scary

because they're
a little too intellectual.

-You're not helping.
-I love "The Babadook."

-That's Australian,
but thanks. You can stop now.

-"Deathgasm." I like that.

-Okay, I'll take it.
-Even though it's derivative.

And they make wonderful wine.

-Cheers.
-After a long day of

acting and directing.

Well crafted but derivative.

-Stop.

[Laughter]

[Static crackles]

[Footsteps stomping]

[Margit gurgles]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Sink runs]

-Do you believe in God?

-In God?

-It's in me.

♪♪

♪♪

Take me.

Take me.

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

-Did Margit see it?
-Yes.

-That's why you killed her.

-She tried to take
it away from me.

-Is this faith that helpless?

-It needs to be protected.

-Like a child.
-Yes.

-You know, for me,

God is still under the
porch, where the dog died.

And on the branch of
the eucalyptus tree,

where I'd lie for hours,
and watch how the clouds changed

the color of the grass below.

-I need money.
I had to leave there.

Oh, I've cleaned all the mess.

I washed the floor,
I made the bed.

I didn't know where to go.
It became so unsafe there.

People can't stop trying
to take it away from me.

-Okay.

Now leave me the car.

Take Margit's keys
and go to her place

and wait there.

Can you drive a motorbike?

-Heinrich taught me.
-It's outside.

Now, I'll take care of
Bob and everything.

I'll go to the bank on Monday
and take the money out.

-If Bob wakes up, tell him...

-I will.

-It's only me.

Go to sleep.

-I have to go.

Please close the door.

-Because it's here with you?

-Yes.

[Zipper unzips]

[Plastic tarp stretching]

[Trunk slams]

[Dogs barking]

[Phone rings]

-I'm sorry to disturb you --
-Yes?

-You understand
that it is very late,

and Heinrich hasn't
called me yet.

He calls me every night
so I won't worry

about when he comes home.

-Maybe...

Maybe he just forgot
your number.

-No, you don't understand.

Mothers always feel it when
their sons are in trouble.

-Are you worried...

Are you worried that he's not
there having sex with my wife?

-They should come here.

I've put clean sheets on the
bed, and they could have dinner.

-Are you quite sure you
know who you are talking to?

-I am.
-Oh.

-I went there.
-Where?

-I was worried, you understand.

There isn't any apartment there
under the address you gave me.

There's only a smoking hole

that the police won't
allow anybody to come near.

So I went to a bar at the corner

to call home, to find out
if Heinrich had returned.

-Yes?

-And Heinrich was there.

Nobody could identify him.

-Yes?

-I recognized
his body, of course.

-Did you identify it
for the police?

-No, it was
only Heinrich's body.

But his soul was not there.

-Perhaps he and his soul
had parted company before.

-You don't know
what you're talking about.

-No, you're quite right.

I don't have any idea
what I'm talking about.

-He must have
seemed to you better

and more beautiful than you.

When Anna met him, she
immediately worshiped his soul.

And you sent him there.

-Now, listen to me.

I recognize Heinrich's
superiority in every way.

I was proud that
Anna accepted him.

Now Anna has gone
missing, and I'm here

all alone, you understand,
with our little son.

Now, I must find her.
Maybe it's her fault.

I'll find her, and I'll
force her to tell me

what she's done with
Heinrich's soul.

And then I'll come
to you and tell you.

[Tires screech on pavement]

-Won't you come up?
-I'm in a rush.

-Is it your wife?
-Yeah.

-Will you promise me something?

-Yes?

-Whatever it is?

-I promise.

[Anna moans]

[Anna cries out]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

-Almost.

Almost.

Almost.

Almost.

♪♪

♪♪

Almost.

-Yes.

-Almost.

Almost.

[Static crackles]

-Oh, my God. So good.

-Are you turned on by that?

-I mean, who wouldn't be?

-Well, when we finally see
what makes Anna happy,

we're looking at the work
of special effects guru

Carlo Rambaldi,
the same guy who did E.T.

But Zulawski was
very dissatisfied with his work.

He said, "I never got
the monster I wanted."

Because Zulawski
wanted the whole movie

to revolve around that monster.

So very early in the planning
for the film,

he hired this Polish painter
named Jan Lebenstein

to depict the monster
at different stages of growth.

And Lebenstein was
an excellent choice

because he described
his own painting as

"Metaphors for emotional drama,"
and Zulawski's idea

was that every time
the monster killed somebody,

it would absorb and display
the traits of that person.

But Lebenstein was a painter.

He was not going to be able
to build what he drew.

So after seeing "Alien",
Zulawski contacted H.R. Giger

and asked him if he could
build the monster,

and Giger sent him
to his friend Carlo Rambaldi.

I guess Giger didn't have time,
or he didn't want to do it.

Or it's too little money.
Sent him to Carlo Rambaldi.

Carlo Rambaldi had worked
on more than 200 films

at Cinecitta Studios in Rome,
but now he lived in Hollywood,

even though he never learned
to speak English.

And Zulawski hired him
to construct the four stages

of the monster's development.

So Rambaldi arrives in Berlin,

and he has these fabrications
made of pink latex,

very primitive movement,
no electronics.

And their conversation
went basically like this.

"Okay, Andrzej, here's my
prototype for the monster."

And Andrzej goes,
"What do you mean?

You should have
four monsters.

And they should
not be prototypes.

They should be monsters."

And he says, "Don't worry,
I'll work on the creature

while you're getting the shots."

And he says, "What do you mean?"

And he says, "Well, you know,
I remember it took us six weeks

to get the one right shot
for the ending of

'Close Encounters
of the Third Kind.'

And so I assumed
I would have --"

And he goes, "Are you crazy?!

This is a low budget movie!

We're shooting
all this in 48 hours!"

And Rambaldi goes,
"That's impossible."

And he goes,
"Carlo, you're Italian.

You've lived
in California too long.

Think like an Italian!

You have two days
to make this happen.

You will not be sleeping
at all during these two days."

And Rambaldi goes, "Okay."

And so he concentrates.
on making the one creature

that we just saw.

It took four guys to operate
that creature, and they

had to compromise on the other
three stages of development.

But also, Zulawski lost
three days of shooting,

and he lost two crucial scenes

because of Rambaldi doing that,
and he never forgave him.

Years later, he would
tell that story about

how it took six weeks
to do a shot

for "Close Encounters
of the Third Kind."

Anyway...

-More monster sex
would have been awesome.

-Zulawski wanted
a lot more monster sex.

What's interesting, though,
is the professional critics

who talk about this movie,
they don't agree on what

Anna's love for
the monster means.

-I know what it means.

-You know what Anna's
love means?

-I think so.
-Okay, go for it.

-It's sex that's unpredictable
and forbidden.

-That's true.

But I think it's also something
about, you know,

we don't ever quite know
the person that we love 100%.

And there's always this deeper
level that they have to hide.

And so the test becomes
if they eventually show you

that deeper level, do you
run away, or do you stay?

And Mark decides to stay.

Heinrich wants to kill
the monster.

Mark wants to protect
the monster, which is key to

the ending of the movie,
which is coming up now.

Once again, Zulawski
is going to dial it up to 11

for the conclusion
of "Possession."

So roll it.

And, you know, I should
probably mention

before we do that,
the other cast members.

Margit, who just had her
throat slit by Anna,

that's Margit Carstensen.

Very famous in Germany,
mostly for her theater work.

But outside Germany,
she's recognized as a star in

several films by
Rainer Werner Fassbinder

in the '70s.

Like "The Bitter Tears
of Petra von Kant."

She was the star of that.

"Martha" and "Fear of Fear"
and "Chinese Roulette."

Several others.

And then Heinrich.

That's a virtuoso performance.
Heinrich.

That's Heinz Bennent.

Also German.

Worked a lot with
Ingmar Bergman.

Was a permanent fixture at

the Bavarian State Theater
in Munich.

And this will not surprise
anybody watching this movie.

He actually served
in the Luftwaffe

during World War II.

And then the character
of Helen,

the sweet teacher at Bob's
school with a crush on Mark,

that's, of course,
Isabelle Adjani,

again doubling
as her doppelganger.

And there are actually
two doppelgangers in this movie,

but you will not realize the
second one until the very end.

And now, before we go back
to the movie,

I would like to make
a few remarks

about the history
of the Bavarian State Theater

and the Deutsches SchauSpielHaus
in Hamburg, which is

where Margit Carstensen
got her start.

And the Theater am Goetheplatz
in Bremen,

where Carstensen met Fassbinder.

-Are you kidding me right now?
-Yes.

I was just trying
to make you nervous.

-Oh, my God. You succeeded.

-Although Bremen is interesting.

-Please don't. Please don't.

-Bremen is where all
the German Americans come from.

-I don't think they
all came from one place.

-Well, no, but that's where
they all got on the boat.

-Nice.

-It must have been great
to live in Europe at that time.

You have a bad year
or something, and somebody says,

"I agree, It sucks here
right now.

There's a boat over there.
It goes to New York.

What the hell? Let's go."

Because the Germans glommed on
to that before anybody else did.

They were here in, like,
the 1700s, you know,

in Georgia.

That's where they went.

They went to Georgia
when they first came here.

Ebenezer, Georgia.

-Is that all?
-Yes.

-On the banks
of the Savannah River.

-Joe Bob!

[Laughter]

[Static crackles]

-Heinrich's dead.

Isn't he?

-Yes.

-Have you found Anna?

-Yes.

-You come like
the angel of death.

The one who kills.

-I had thought about
killing him.

-And now?

-Now I don't know.

-Did you see anything that
made you change your mind?

-I don't know what I saw,
but Heinrich saw it, too.

-And you came to tell me
that you don't know

where Heinrich's soul is.

-Yes.

-I can see it in your face.

It would be good to
think that the soul

lives separately from the body.

That the soul lives forever
and the body only for a time.

But it isn't so.

-I don't know anymore.
-I do.

I have to be
on my son's side.

Even if he has made you unhappy.

I know all there is
to know about him.

That I love him.

-Yes.

-I was wondering
which is worse.

Take away someone's wife,
hurt a child...

or to kill.

He also had a wife and a child.

I used to like her.

I liked your Anna, too.

I had to like both of them,
since they loved him.

The world is only what it is.

Murderers fair the best in it.

You don't have
to worry about me.

I don't want to be here

if Heinrich is not
around anymore.

♪♪

[Window creaks]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

-That dog didn't die of old age.

What about you, Mark?

Our man won't confide or
deal with your successor,

he wants you.

In fact, Mark,
there is no successor.

We can take care
of drowning dogs,

but please help us take
care of the drowning world.

Don't you think it's
uneconomical

to waste yourself on dogs?

Even dogs you love?

-I met a man who loved
everything.

And he died in a flood of shit.

-We know. That's just details.

-When I was a boy,

I had a dog,
and his name was Louis.

When he crawled
under the porch to die,

I stayed there with him.

-So what?

-I wanted to see what it was

that made him crawl under there.

-Nobody's a boy any more.

Must we prove it?

[Motorbike engine revs]

-This is the address
of Zimmerman's home.

-Back up, then full speed,
and crash into the police car.

-My pleasure, sir.

[Cars crashing]

-Out of the car!

Out of the car!

[Guns firing]

[Man gasps]

[Engine revs]

[Car crashes]

[Tires screeching]

[Cars exploding]

[Motorbike speeds]

[Mark yells]

[Bike skids]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Mark gasps]

[Church bells ringing]

[Tires skidding]

[Car doors slamming]

[Footsteps approaching]

-Anna?

Run away!

Go!

Go!

How could you find me?

-How could I not?

[Footsteps approaching]

♪♪

♪♪

I wanted to show it to you.

It is finished now.

-[Grunts]

-Oh, yes.

[Anna chuckles]

[Mark grunts]

[Guns firing]

[Mark and Anna gasping]

[Anna groans]

[Gun fires]

♪♪

-So hard to live with it.

Eh, brother?

♪♪

♪♪

Is there a way out?

Will you help me?

-Yes.

-Take it.

Shoot them.

[Gun fires]

How do you want to finish it?

♪♪

♪♪

[Doorbell rings]

-Would you open it please?

Why not, Bob?

It could be your father.

-Don't open.

-Well, I want to.

-Don't open.
-But I want to.

-Don't open. Don't open.

Don't open! Don't open!

Please don't open!

Don't open it. Don't open.

Don't open it.

Don't open. Don't open.

Don't open.

Don't open.

Don't open. Don't open.

Don't open.

Don't open. Don't open.

Don't open.

Don't open. Don't open.
Don't open. Don't open.

Don't open.

♪♪

[Siren wails]

[Planes flying overhead]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Bombs exploding outside]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Bombs exploding]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

[Static crackles]

-Berlin appears to be
falling into chaos

as the doppelganger of Mark

turns out to be
the perfection of the monster.

The lovers are
reunited in death

when Mark becomes the monster.

How cool is that?

And it's as though the deaths
of these two perfect lovers

bring on nuclear apocalypse
or something, you know?

Both parents
are replaced with clones.

The kid is dead,

and World War III
is starting, right?

-I wouldn't be
certain of any of that,

but there is definitely chaos
all around them.

-Is the kid dead?
Was that a suicide?

-I mean, I think so,
but I'm not sure about anything.

-Well, Sam Neill was
just getting started

when this movie was made.

He's had 200 more roles
since this movie.

I think the latest blockbuster
he was in was "Thor: Ragnarok."

Isabelle Adjani, though,
this was her breakthrough.

She would shatter
just about every record

for French actresses.

She would win five Cesar Awards,
the French Oscar.

But "Possession" was the first
Cesar Award she won.

She would be nominated
for the Oscar twice,

something that rarely happens
for foreign actresses.

One other performer
I haven't mentioned yet,

Heinrich's mother, who has
the nice suicide scene

there at the end,
that's Johanna Hofer,

legendary German actress.

Her career goes back
to the silent era.

She starred with Max Reinhardt
in Berlin theater.

She and her husband fled Germany
to escape Nazi persecution

in the '30s, and they
ended up in Hollywood,

where she had a few
supporting roles.

And then she returned
to Germany in 1948.

Did a lot of television.

Always preferred the theater.

She was with us
to the age of 92.

She passed away in 1988.

So rarely has there been a movie
that's so celebrated in Europe

and so neglected in the U.S.

"Possession", it premiered
in competition

at the Cannes Film Festival
in 1981,

just barely missed
winning the Golden Palm.

The winner was
another Polish film,

"Man of Iron", by Andrzej Wajda.

Andrzej Wajda was
the Steven Spielberg

of Polish film.

He was the most famous director
of all time in Poland.

Zulawski had actually been
Wajda's assistant in the '60s.

So "Possession" did not
win the Golden Palm.

But Isabelle Adjani
did win Best Actress.

And really this film is
what made her a superstar

for the rest of her career.

So there's all this acclaim,

but the French producers cannot,
for the life of them,

get the film released
in the U.S.

despite making the film
in English

because they wanted to get it
released in the U.S.

Finally, two and a half
years later,

they get it released
by drastically cutting it.

They add some
additional dialogue.

They give it a new score,
"Omen" type score.

They add some optical
post-production effects.

They basically
ruin the movie,

and they did a limited
theatrical release under

the title "The Night
The Screaming Stops",

and nobody was
much interested in it.

Audiences and critics both said
that they weren't sure

what was going on in the movie,
which is not surprising

because 43 minutes were missing
from the original cut.

So some of the scenes
were out of order.

I mean, this was a horrible cut.

So the real movie was never seen
in an American theater

until last year.

They screened it
at Metrograph in Brooklyn.

That was the North American
theatrical release,

six years after
Zulawski is dead.

And things were
even worse in the UK.

The cut version of "Possession"
in the UK

ended up on
the Video Nasties list,

so it was outright banned
for many years.

The first time people saw some
version of the complete movie

was 2009, when it was
released on DVD.

And the first time anybody saw
the uncut version in the U.S.

was at Fantastic Fest
in Austin, September of 2021.

Okay, Darcy, render the verdict.

-Okay, I am actually not really
sure how I feel about this one

because I can't sum it up
with my usual

"It's fun" because
it's very much not fun,

at least not until the very end.

There's so much screaming
and fighting.

And like I said before, it gave
me like past relationship PTSD.

But I do love the monster sex,

and there should have been
way more of that.

And Isabelle Adjani is amazing.

-Okay, well, let's talk
about this one just

a little bit more because
"Possession" is definitely

not one of our normal
menu items around here.

-It goes from "Kramer vs Kramer"
to "Society", you know?

It seems like four or five
different movies.

Each one increasingly insane.

And they photographed Berlin
like a totally dead place,

but it's full of crazy people
having nervous breakdowns.

-The movie itself is like
having a nervous breakdown.

-True.
That is absolutely right.

Some of the scenes
are so exaggerated

that they could end up
being silly

if you don't do them
exactly right,

but they become
terrifying instead.

And then there's all that talk
about faith and chance

and God and good and evil.

-Gross.
-Yeah, I agree.

I mean, there were a few critics
who said that the two leads

were overacting.
-I don't think so.

-I don't either.
Not even Heinrich.

Not even the sex master
and druggie

who lives with his mom,
and not even Isabelle Adjani,

who loses her mind on camera.

-That was so good.

-Zulawski said that was,
quote, "The only time

it's not my film,
it's an actress giving something

that could never be described."
-Definitely.

-I should mention
part of the credit

for revival of interest
in "Possession"

should go to Anthology Film
Archives in New York.

Because starting in
the year 2000,

they played it on
every Valentine's Day.

-Actually, a lot of people
wrote in to us

saying it would be perfect
for Valentine's Day.

-And a whole bunch of
it was based on

Zulawski's private life.

The actress who starred
in his first two movies,

"The Third Part of the Night"
and "The Devil",

he married that actress,
and they had a son together.

But remember, Zulawski
had to go to France.

He had to go
to France to make a movie

after he was banned
from employment in Poland.

He wasn't even allowed to work
as a taxi driver in Poland.

And when he returned from
France, he had that moment

in the movie where
he goes to his apartment,

and he opens the door,
and his son is covered in filth,

and his wife
is off doing her thing.

And that was something
that he never got over.

And I think that's why
the movie is so dark.

-What do you make of
the Berlin Wall references?

-I don't know.

I mean, serious critics like to
play around with that.

I think it's just gloomy
and depressing.

I mean, he said it could
be in Detroit, too.

So, I mean, they built that
huge wall in Germany

to keep people from leaving.

What?

They would shoot you if you
tried to leave the country?

And they wondered why we thought
communist countries were crazy.

You know?

-It was the only movie
he ever made in English.

I guess that's because
of the way it was handled.

-Yeah. He agreed to make
the movie in English.

He thought he would sort of
break into the American.

He didn't like Americans
in the film business.

He didn't like
the American film industry

and the way it worked,
because Dino De Laurentiis

tried to use him when he --
remember he was running

that film studio
in Wilmington, North Carolina.

He was Dino's first choice
to direct "The Dead Zone",

but the job eventually
went to David Cronenberg,

who did a great job on it.

He wrote a script for Dino,
but then he had better

opportunities in France.

So he went back to Europe,

and he was frequently asked
to make pitches in America.

But he despised
the word "pitches"

and the whole idea
of pitching your movie.

And he said, "If you can say
what your movie is about

in a few minutes, you shouldn't
bother making the movie."

-I can see how that
wouldn't fly in Hollywood.

-And then there was the fact
that some actors

were afraid of him
because Isabelle Adjani claimed

that he drove her
to attempt suicide.

-I believe it.
-And she said it was, quote,

"psychological pornography."

And she said, quote,

"You don't have the right
to do that with the camera."

You don't have the right to

expose somebody's
soul like that.

And actually, Zulawski would
almost agree with her because

he said acting was
a ritual emotional sacrifice.

That's what he called it.

Every time you do it,
you pay a price.

So it's not like he didn't know
about the psychological damage,

but he considered that part of

what he was paying for
when he hires you.

A lot of critics said the people
in his movies are hysterical.

And he hated that.

In fact, he kind of put
a damper on his own comeback.

He delayed it at least 10 years,
because Film Forum in New York

had a very successful
run of Zulawski films

in December of 2011,

and that led to
the Polish Cultural Institute

sponsoring a Zulawski
retrospective in March 2012

They had it at two places,
at Cinefamily on the West Coast.

You know that place, right?

-I used to go there a lot. Yeah.

-And the Brooklyn Academy of
Music on the East Coast.

Only the Brooklyn Academy
of Music

titled the show
"Hysterical Excess."

And Zulawski hated that title
so much that he refused

to appear at the retrospective.

His exact quote was,
"The clinical term hysteria

is very hurtful to me."

But anyway, he was never
the kind of guy who would be

making another
film just to be working.

He was also a very
successful novelist.

He had about
20 published novels.

Are you into Polish novels?

Do you read a lot
of Polish novels?

-I mean, doesn't everyone?

[Laughter]

-Actually, you should
check out a Polish

nonfiction book called

"Bardzo Spokojna Okolica:
Zbrodnia w Teksasie."

-I definitely will.

[Laughter]

-You're not even gonna ask me
what that is.

-Because I know you're
gonna tell me.

-Alright, well,
the translation of that is

"A Very Quiet Neighborhood:
True Crime Case in Texas."

-Very catchy title.

-I know, right?

Remember that true crime book
that I wrote all those years ago

with my buddy Jim Atkinson?

-They read that in Poland?

-Do you know how many languages

that book has been
translated into?

That true crime book.

-Is this a trick question?

-Jeden In Polish that's
the word for "one."

One language. Polish.

They love me in Poland.

The title in English is
"Evidence of Love,"

but they wanted something
snappy, so now it's

"A Very Quiet Neighborhood:
The Crime Case in Texas."

So I'm gonna put that
on my business card.

"Loved in Poland."

-Aw, you are loved everywhere.
And I've got mail!

-Really?
-Yeah.

-Anything from Warsaw?
-No.

It's from Cameron Lucey of
Holly Springs, North Carolina.

-You are determined to make this

Carolina Jubilee night,
aren't you?

We were just there, weren't we?

We were just in North Carolina.

-We were in Clayton.

-Clayton, Holly Springs.
This is from Holly Springs.

These are --
you know what these are?

Satellite cities for
Raleigh-Durham.

Don't call 'em suburbs!
Satellite cities.

You don't say suburbs anymore.

They have their own orbits.

I'm not sure why people don't
wanna be associated with

Raleigh and Durham, but anyway,
I've done the Redneck show there

three times now, and I can
assure you they get it.

Not every audience gets it,
but they get it.

"Hi, Darcy."

See, they don't even write to me
anymore. They write to you.

"Hi, Darcy.
I have a question for Joe Bob

and a request.

I saw this super old website
post online talking about

"Godstuff", and it mentions
a project you were working on.

What can you tell us about
'The Joe Bob Story'?"

Well, first of all, "Godstuff"
was the segment I did

on "The Daily Show", and I guess
this was an old article

about that.

And quotes the article.

"Joe Bob is presently putting
the finishing touches on his

screenplay 'The Joe Bob Story,'
which has been described as

a country/western
'This Is Spinal Tap.'

The film is scheduled to begin
production in the fall."

Okay, yeah, should I answer
that part first

or should I read
the second part?

-Answer that part
because I'm curious.

-So yeah, I did write a script
called "The Joe Bob Story,"

the William Morris Agency
set it up,

it was gonna be produced
with money they raised out of

their Nashville office,
and then, like most things

in showbiz, it fell through.

And to tell you the truth,
I don't remember why exactly

it fell through.

It was just one of those things
where they stop returning

your phone calls.

We had a cast lined up.

Oh, I remember now!

It was Cary Woods.

It was the same guy who
produced "Scream,"

but at the time, his biggest
movie was "Rudy."

And he produced a lot of cool
indie films,

like "Kids."
Remember that film?

And "Things To Do in
Denver When You're Dead,"

And "Beautiful Girls," and
"Swingers," "Gummo."

At some point, he disappeared.

I don't know what
happened to Cary.

But I do remember I went to this
big Hollywood party,

and it's very difficult
to get me to go to

a big Hollywood party.

I'm not a big
Hollywood party person.

But he wanted me to go to this
party because he was trying to

talk Ashley Judd into being
the female lead in

"The Joe Bob Story,"
and so I had this convo with

Ashley in which she complained
a lot about the nudity

in the film, indicating she had
read the script.

And so that was it.

They don't ever call
you up and say,

"This project is dead."

They just say, "We're gonna put
this on the back burner

for now, Joe Bob."

So "Putting this on the back
burner for now" means

"Your project is dead."

So anyway, I had many other
things going on, and I moved on,

but a lot of people who read
the script, I mean,

a lot of character actors
and a lot of

Nashville people, they would get
in touch with me

because I guess the script was
getting passed around.

And they would say they wanted
to play one of the parts

or do the music.

One of the giant music companies
did this whole presentation

about how they could do
the music with all their

country/western artists.

And but thank you, Cameron.

I never would have thought of
that if you hadn't

asked me about it.

People are always fascinated by
your failed projects, right?

Okay, the rest of the letter.

"Would Joe Bob
or yourself be up --"

It's still writing to you.

"Would Joe Bob or yourself be
up for doing an MTV Cribs

style video?"

No.

-At least read the rest of it.

-"If not a house tour maybe
Joe Bob could show off

his bolo collection
or a bookcase and talk about

some interesting stuff he owns.

And yourself, a horror
collection tour!

Just an idea!"

-I'd be down for it.
-I'm not.

-Why not?

-I'm just not a fan of any
kind of reality TV.

I don't like to do small talk.

-Isn't that exactly what we do?

-Well, yes, but it's small talk
about movies,

not so much about ourselves.

-Well, I think you
should reconsider.

Cameron, that's not
an absolute no.

Let me try to reason
with the boss man.

-Cameron, that is
an absolute no.

-Don't be stubborn.

I'm Joe Bob Briggs, and I am not
responsible for anything

Darcy promises, reminding
you that you should never

drink and drive because
you might hit a bump

and spill your beer.

And the drive-in will never die.

80-year-old couple,
shopping in an antique store.

Man picks up a lamp, and he rubs
it, and a genie appears.

And the genie says,
"I've been in this lamp for

4,000 years so you can have
a wish for anything you want."

And the 80-year-old man says,

"Make my wife 50 years
younger than me."

The genie waves his hand, poof!

The man is 130 years old.

[Laughter]

No?
-It was good.

Martial artist is
showing off in a bar.

A nerd walks in,
and the martial artist

tosses him on the ground
and he says,

"That was a judo throw
that I got from Japan."

Well, the nerd tries to get up,
but the martial artist kicks him

in the head and says,

"That was a savate kick
that I got from France."

The nerd manages to stand up,
the martial artist elbows him

in the ribs and knocks him
back down and says,

"That was a Muay Thai elbow
that I got from Thailand."

The nerd struggles to his feet,
he heads for the back room

of the bar, the martial artist
guy follows him.

And after a while, there's
a big thud in the back room,

and the nerd emerges from
the room.

And the bartender asks him
what happened.

And the nerd says, "When he gets
back up off the floor,

tell him that was
a Louisville Slugger

I got from
Dick's Sporting Goods.

[Laughter]

-Yay, good one!

-♪ We are drive-in mutants

-♪ Drive-in mutants

-♪ We are not like
other people ♪

♪ We are sick
-♪ Sick

-♪ We are disgusting
-♪ Disgusting

-♪ We believe in,
we believe in ♪

-♪ Blood

♪ And breasts

♪ And beasts

-♪ Yeah, we believe in

-♪ Blood

♪ And breasts

♪ And beasts

-♪ If life had a vomit meter

♪ We'd be off the scale
-♪ Off the scale

-♪ As long as one drive-in
remains on the planet Earth ♪

♪ We will party like
jungle animals ♪

♪ We will boogie till we puke

-♪ Boogie till we puke

-♪ The drive-in will never die

♪ We will boogie till we puke

-♪ Boogie till we puke

-♪ The drive-in will never die

-♪ We believe in

♪ Blood

♪ And breasts

♪ And beasts

-♪ We believe in

-♪ Blood

♪ And breasts