The Possession of Michael King (2014)

After poor advice from a psychic leads to the death of his wife, a man vows to disprove the existence of the paranormal by allowing himself to be possessed by demons.

Review

Written and directed by David Jung (debut), The Possession of Michael King dares to do something different with an old formula. Doing away with the "I may be possessed, I can't really remember, but maybe I killed someone" take, Michael King is about someone disproving the existence of the supernatural by trying to get possessed.

With little experience, Jung has produced a memorably taut horror experience. With shysters creeping out of the woodwork to try and take King's money, the viewer is drawn through the narrative as we see time and time again: the people who offer experiences of the supernatural don't believe in it themselves. But the journey is dark, and writing believable. King is pulled from one event to another, some of which appear to allow him access to the other side - but with each becoming more terrifying than the last. There is no shortage of weirdo's and loonies in the film - with King desperately seeking resolution.

Much should be thought of the performance of lead, Shane Johnson (Black Cadillac). With a long career mostly on the small screen, Jung has dragged a stark and terrifying performance from him. As the film treads forward and King has been tormented to the point that he is no longer sure of what he has experienced, with both wear on him physically and emotionally, Johnson's performance is at times outstanding. The rest of the cast shine too, especially the performances of Tomas Arana (Guardians of the Galaxy) and Ella Anderson (The Glass Castle).

Definitely one to watch, The Possession of Michael King is a damn fine possession horror, with some new tweaks and good directions. It ramps to the end, and has a chilling conclusion.