Movie Ratings That Actually Work    Become a Member

"One of the 50 Coolest Websites...they simply tell it like it is" - TIME

Possession | 2002 | PG-13 | - 4.2.4

Adaptation of A.S. Byatt's mystery about two literary sleuths (Gwyneth Paltrow and Aaron Eckhart) who fall in love while investigating the secret romantic life of two Victorian poets. Also with Tom Hollander, Lena Headey and Jeremy Northam. [1:43]

SEX/NUDITY 4 - A man and a woman have sex: we see her sitting on top of him and there's brief thrusting (he's bare-chested and she is in a sheer nightdress). A man unlaces a woman's corset and kisses her back and shoulders. A bare-chested man and a woman kiss and lie back in bed caressing each other (we see this scene a couple of times). A man and a woman kiss a few times, a man and a woman lie in bed together and kiss briefly. A woman caresses another woman's face, and a woman lies on a sofa with her head in the lap of another woman who begins to caress her hair. A man and a woman hold hands in several scenes, sometimes accompanied by longing glances. A man takes off his clothes down to his boxers and a woman watches (not in a sexual way). We see a man in bed and his bare shoulders and chest are exposed. There are many discussions of love poetry, and of a homosexual relationship between two women. We see a few nude statues (both male and female, exposing bare breasts and buttocks). Women wear period costumes that expose cleavage.

VIOLENCE/GORE 2 - A woman sews rocks into her skirt, we see her walking into a body of water and hear that she committed suicide. A man chases another man, tackles him, and punches him in the nose (we see some blood). A man threatens two men with a shotgun. A woman dumps over a table in anger. There is a discussion of a child having died and the possibility of a woman having killed her child. Three men are shown digging up a grave.

LANGUAGE 4 - 2 scatological terms, 2 anatomical terms, 3 mild obscenities, 14 religious exclamations, 1 derogatory term for homosexuals.

SUBSTANCE USE - People are shown drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes.

DISCUSSION TOPICS - Secrets, lust, scholars, feminism, misogyny, suffragettes, homosexuality, Anglocentrism, God, poets and poetry, solitude, muses, Sigmund Freud, spiritualism, infidelity, childbirth out of wedlock, forgiveness.

MESSAGE - Keeping secrets from the ones you love can ruin your life.

CAVEATS

Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.

We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.

Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.


how to
support us

PLEASE DONATE

We are a totally independent website with no connections to political, religious or other groups & we neither solicit nor choose advertisers. You can help us keep our independence with a donation.

NO MORE ADS!

Become a member of our premium site for just $1/month & access advance reviews, without any ads, not a single one, ever. And you will be helping support our website & our efforts.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

We welcome suggestions & criticisms -- and we accept compliments too. While we read all emails & try to reply we don't always manage to do so; be assured that we will not share your e-mail address.

how to
support us

PLEASE DONATE

We are a totally independent website with no connections to political, religious or other groups & we neither solicit nor choose advertisers. You can help us keep our independence with a donation.

NO MORE ADS!

Become a member of our premium site for just $2/month & access advance reviews, without any ads, not a single one, ever. And you will be helping support our website & our efforts.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

We welcome suggestions & criticisms -- and we will accept compliments too. While we read all emails & try to reply we do not always manage to do so; be assured that we will not share your e-mail address.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Subscribe to our newsletter

Know when new reviews are published
We will never sell or share your email address with anybody and you can unsubscribe at any time

You're all set! Please check your email for confirmation.

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This