2019’s drama/horror film Repossession hits a nerve, but not in a painful Elm Street sort of way. It explores the very reality of most adults, revealing the possibilities of what such problems could bring about if not handled promptly. For instance, the destruction of a family because of costly procrastination.
Living a thriving life in expensive, clique-driven Singapore, 50-year-old Jim (Gerald Chew from Apprentice, among others) unexpectedly loses his job. At first positive that he can land a new prestigious job as an engineer, he elects to keep his unemployment a secret from his wife with dire consequences. Jim’s stress escalates daily as he tries desperately to find a new job, but his pride keeps him from telling his wife Linda (Amy Cheng from Crazy Rich Asians). Since Linda is not a spoiled and materially minded wife, we find it strange that Jim would be reluctant to share his financial fall with her.
Watching the first half of the film, we find it absurd that Jim is clinging to his material possessions and status instead of admitting that he needs to make some sacrifices in his financial holdings. However, when taking note of his relationship with his best friend Vinod (Sivakumar Palakrishnan) and their conversations, we get the idea that Jim’s decision to keep his unemployment a secret leans more on past guilt than blunt ego.
It is this past guilt that releases a deeper, more sinister part of Jim’s psyche. This is where the film perks up somewhat, but not enough to induce proper horror. The first part of Repossession is slow and pallid, regarding both cinematography and story, but stick it out, because it gets interesting.
As Jim fails time after time to get back on his feet, his memories of past atrocities come into play and we realize that Repossession does not only earn its name from the consequences of those overdue mortgage and car payments. Malevolent roots lie deep in Jim’s mind and slowly come to life as his life descends into a waking nightmare many of us can relate to.
Repossession deals not only with the stress on the modern adult, but also points out the all too familiar factors that prompt a lot of people to lose hope and even commit suicide when they lose control of their income and feel as if they let their families down. Repossession addresses a very real nightmare in real life, which makes it heavy subject matter not really intended so much for entertainment as it does for social commentary.
The film has a few decent horror scenes which skillfully portray Jim’s demons from his past, but the character is too uninteresting to invoke our pity. Although the drama burns slow and the horror is subtle, the last part of the film picks up the shock factor and depicts Jim’s downward spiraling hold on sanity well enough to feel insidiously deliberate.
Though not a movie for popcorn and blood, Repossession holds its own in a more tangible projection of our every day nightmares of stress where living a good life is not always subject to one’s own choices.
Sometimes our fate is in the hands of cruel reality and no matter what we do to recover, our efforts come to nothing.
Sometimes, our problems become so real that our demons literally overwhelm us and the only line between the two is how we choose to handle it.
—Tasha Danzig