Abstract
"Good for Her" traces how contemporary possession films portray their protagonists with a level of complexity previously withheld from on-screen female characters. I introduce the concept of the "corruption arc" as the narrative tool used in possession films to mark the protagonist's descent into worlds beyond our own. There are two distinct forms of corruption that lend different portrayals of the corrupted figure. Spiritual corruption traditionally centers an instance of paranormal possession framed as or instigated by sexual violation. On the other hand, the scientific corruption arc relies on a different methodology of displaying terror: aliens, body horror, and a broader existential question of what it means to be--or, more appropriately, remain--human in the face of tragedy, all tend to be at the center of these narratives. What both branches of corruption share, however, is a far-reaching meditation on how the cinematic medium can portray femininity in crisis without de-centering the female lead from her own narrative. The violent configuration of corruption therefore demonstrates a cinematic re-imagination of on-screen female interiority. By analyzing The Witch (2015, dir. Robert Eggers), Under the Skin (2013, dir. Johnathan Glazer), and Annihilation (2018, dir. Alex Garland), I present three films that demonstrate the complicated, visceral experience that is existing in a feminized body, a perspective frequently disregarded in the history of cinematic horror.