The Possession of Hannah Grace
![]() | This article needs a plot summary. (September 2019) |
The Possession of Hannah Grace | |
---|---|
![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Diederik van Rooijen |
Written by | Brian Sieve |
Produced by |
|
Starring |
|
Cinematography | Lennert Hillege |
Edited by |
|
Music by | John Frizzell |
Production companies |
|
Distributed by | Sony Pictures Releasing |
Release date |
|
Running time | 86 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $6–7.7 million[1][2] |
Box office | $43 million[2] |
The Possession of Hannah Grace (also known in some countries as Cadaver) is a 2018 American supernatural horror film directed by Diederik van Rooijen and written by Brian Sieve. It stars Shay Mitchell, Kirby Johnson, Stana Katic, Grey Damon and Nick Thune, and follows a former policewoman who encounters the supernatural while working in a morgue.[3]
The film was released in the United States on November 30, 2018, by Screen Gems. It received generally negative reviews from critics and grossed $43 million worldwide.
Plot
During an exorcism ritual, the possessed Hannah Grace kills the pastor. Her father Grainger then suffocates her to death using a pillow.
Three months later, Megan Reed, an ex-cop with the Boston Police Department struggles with psychological problems and addiction to pills after her patrol partner was shot dead by a criminal whom she failed to subdue.
Megan‘s friend Lisa Roberts finds her a nightshíft job in the Boston Metro Hospital‘s morgue, located in an intimidating brutalist architecture building (portrayed by the Boston City Hall).
During Megan‘s first shift, a man (later identified as Grainger) aggressively tries to convice her to let her into the building, but she denies and informs the two security guards Ernie Gainor and Dave. However, shortly after, Megan helps EMT Randy to move the corpse of a brutally murdered young woman (later identified as the one of Hannah Grace) into the building and the man secretly enters the building. Randy tells Megan a man stabbed Hannah to death and was then caught in the act trying to burn her body in an alleyway.
When Megan tries to fingerprint and photograph Hannah‘s corpse, the camera explodes and the fingerprints return as illegible by the computer. Other strange things occur and Megan becomes growingly suspicious of the corpse.
Megan soon encounters Grainger who had invaded the building trying to drag Hannah‘s corpse through the building. Alongside with the two security guards Ernie and Dave, Megan manages to subdue Grainger. The latter screams Hannah‘s corpse must be burnt because she isn‘t really death, but they do not listen to him and have him arrested by the police.
Megan‘s ex-boyfriend Andrew Kurtz, ist still employed as Boston Police Department officer and responds to the scene. He agrees to help Megan identify the corpse after she tells him about her failed attempts to photograph and fingerprint it. Soon after, Andrew tells Megan Hannah Grace‘s name. Megan subsequently researches on the internet only to find out that Hannah had died during an exorcism three months earlier. She also notices that Hannah‘s bright blue eye color does not match the one listed on her driver‘s license.
Hannah kills Dave by supernaturally forcing him into the incinerator.
Investigating the security footage, Megan sees a glimpse Hannah‘s corpse crawling around in the building. She shows the footage to Lisa who does not believe her and accuses her of having a relapse on her addiction to pills.
Lisa is supernaturally killed by Hannah soon after.
When Randy returns to the morgue to deliver another corpse, he and Megan notice that Hannah‘s body has been supernaturally healing itself – burns and stab wounds have disappeared.
Finally, Megan discovers Dave‘s body and is now convinced that Hannah‘s corpse is cursed. She rushes down to the access bay to warn Randy, but Hannah has already killed him.
Suddenly, Andrew calls Megan to warn her that Grainger has escaped police custody after killing the two officers transporting him. Moment later, Grainger forces Megan to take him to Hannah‘s body at gunpoint. Grainger explains Megan that he is Hannah‘s father. He tells her that numerous exorcism failed because the deamon possessing her was too powerful. So powerful, that it is even able to possess Hannah‘s body after her death by killing people to heal itself, then resting. Grainger wonders why Hannah killed Dave and Lisa, but did not kill Megan. Megan agrees to help Grainger cremate Hannah, but she reanimates and pushes Grainger into the fire.
Andrew and Ernie come to Megan‘s help. Hannah kills Ernie and then tries to kill Andrew, but Megan picks up Andrews sidearm and shoots Hannah, then drags her to the crematorium while Andrew calls for backup. After a brief struggle before the incinerator, Megan pushes Hannah into the fire, eventually killing the demon.
Cast
- Shay Mitchell as Megan Reed, a troubled ex-cop who takes the graveyard shift in a morgue.
- Stana Katic as Lisa Roberts, a nurse and Megan's friend.
- Grey Damon as Andrew Kurtz, a police officer and Megan's ex-boyfriend.
- Kirby Johnson as Hannah Grace, a girl possessed and resurrected by demons.
- Nick Thune as Randy, an EMT and friend of Megan's.
- Jacob Ming-Trent as Ernie Gainor, a security guard at the hospital.
- Max McNamara as Dave, a security guard at the hospital who has a crush on Megan.
- Louis Herthum as Grainger, Hannah Grace's father.
Production
Development
On March 23, 2016, it was announced that Screen Gems hired Diederik van Rooijen to direct horror thriller Cadaver from a script by Brian Sieve, which Todd Garner and Sean Robins would produce through Broken Road Productions.[4] The film was originally entitled Cadaver.[5]
Casting
On June 6, 2016, Shay Mitchell joined the principal cast to play Megan Reed, and on October 28, Stana Katic was also cast in the film, along with Grey Damon, Nick Thune, Jacob Ming-Trent, Max McNamara, Louis Herthum and Kirby Johnson.[6][7]
Filming
Principal photography on the film began on November 8, 2016, in Boston, Massachusetts, with the production team including director of photography Lennert Hillege, production designer Paula Loos, and costume designer Deborah Newhall.[8] Filming would also take place at New England Studios in Devens, Massachusetts.[8][9] The film was shot entirely on a Sony α7S II camera, marking the first time a feature film was shot using a mirrorless full-frame camera.[10]
Release
The film was released in the United States on November 30, 2018.[11] In several countries, including Brazil, Greece and Israel, the film was released a day earlier on November 29.[12]
On October 15, 2018, Sony released the first trailer online.[13] The studio spent about $12 million on promoting the film.[1]
Reception
Box office
The Possession of Hannah Grace grossed $14.8 million in the United States and Canada, and $28.2 million in other territories, for a total worldwide gross of $43 million, against a production budget of about $7.7 million.[2]
In the United States and Canada, the film was projected to gross $3–7 million from 2,065 theaters in its opening weekend.[14] It made $2.6 million on its first day, including $625,000 from Thursday night previews. It went on to debut to $6.5 million, finishing seventh. Due to it being a "low-budget cash grab in the current slow marketplace," anything over $5.5 million would have been considered a success by Sony.[1] In its second weekend the film dropped 51% to $3.2 million, an above-average hold for an horror film (which typically drop at least 60%).[15]
Critical response
![]() | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (October 2019) |
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 19% based on 53 reviews, with a weighted average of 4.09/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The Possession of Hannah Grace feints at real horror just often enough to offer hints of the movie it should have been -- and further frustrate viewers seeking a good scare."[16] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 37 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[17] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C–" on an A+ to F scale, while those surveyed by PostTrak gave it a 36% overall positive score and a 24% "definite recommend."[1][15]
References
- ^ a b c d D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 2, 2018). "'Ralph' Breaking $25M+ 2nd Weekend; 'Grinch' Steals $202M+; 'Hannah Grace' $6M+ In Slow Post Thanksgiving Period – Update". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
- ^ a b c "The Possession of Hannah Grace (2018)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
- ^ Miska, Brad (2018-10-09). "Sony Screen Gems Dates 'The Possession of Hannah Grace' and 'The Intruder' - Bloody Disgusting". bloody-disgusting.com. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ^ Ford, Rebecca (March 23, 2016). "Screen Gems Horror Movie 'Cadaver' Finds Director (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
- ^ Miska, Brad (2018-10-09). "Sony Screen Gems Dates 'The Possession of Hannah Grace' and 'The Intruder' - Bloody Disgusting". bloody-disgusting.com. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ^ McNary, Dave (June 6, 2016). "'Pretty Little Liars' Star Shay Mitchell Joins 'Cadaver' Horror Movie". Variety. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
- ^ Hipes, Patrick (October 28, 2016). "Stana Katic Scrubs In For Horror Movie 'Cadaver' At Screen Gems". Deadline. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
- ^ a b Alexander, Chris (November 8, 2016). "Production Begins on Screen Gems' Cadaver". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
- ^ Gems, Screen (November 8, 2016). "CADAVER: Horror Thriller Directed by Diederik Van Rooijen, Starring Shay Mitchell, Begins Filming in Boston". PR Newswire. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
- ^ "How "The Possession Of Hannah Grace" Was Made With The Sony α7S II". Alpha Universe. December 3, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
- ^ Day-Ramos, Dino (October 8, 2018). "Sony Moves James Gunn Horror 'BrightBurn' To 2019". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
- ^ "Filmes em cartaz". Cinemark. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
- ^ Pedersen, Erik. "'The Possession Of Hannah Grace' Trailer: Shay Mitchell Battles Her Demons – Literally". Deadline. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
- ^ Faughnder, Ryan (November 28, 2018). "'Ralph' and 'Creed' sequels set to dominate post-Thanksgiving box office". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
- ^ a b D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 8, 2018). "Will 'The Grinch' Steal No. 1 Away From 'Ralph'? Both Animated Pics Eye $15M+ During Slow Pre-Christmas Period". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
- ^ "The Possession of Hannah Grace (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "The Possession of Hannah Grace Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
External links
- 2018 films
- 2010s horror thriller films
- 2010s supernatural films
- 2018 horror films
- American films
- American horror thriller films
- American supernatural horror films
- American supernatural thriller films
- Films about exorcism
- Films shot in Boston
- Hospital films
- Screen Gems films
- Films directed by Diederik van Rooijen
- Films scored by John Frizzell (composer)
- 2010s supernatural horror films