10 Unexpectedly Intense Performances In Horror Movies
1. Isabella Adjani - Possession
Andrew Zulanski's Possession is sure to leave a lasting impression on anyone, even if they can't make heads or tails of it.
In this psychological drama, secret agent Mark (Sam Neill) hires an investigator to keep tabs on his wife Anna (Isabella Adjani) after she inexplicably demands for a divorce. Over time, Mark realises the truth behind Anna's behaviour is more disturbing than he could've ever imagined.
As is common practice in Zulanski's work, the ensemble regularly deliver their lines in a surreal and exaggerated manner. With that said, Isabella Adjani is on another level, caught in a permanent state of delirium and frantic energy. Due to her over-the-top mannerisms and delivery, her performance could come across as fake. However, Adjani's erratic behaviour never feels jarring, since every utterance and gesture she performs feels in the moment.
Of course, the scene that's seared in everybody's memory is when Anna suffers a miscarriage. During this sequence, Anna experiences every heightened emotion imaginable, laughing maniacally one moment, screeching uncontrollably the next. After writhing on the ground and across the walls while contorting her body with balletic ferocity, Anna unleashes an ear-splitting scream from the depths of her soul while expelling fluids from every orifice.
Even after 40+ years, few performances in horror can measure up to what Isabella Adjani achieved here.