Half an hour into "Obsession," I was not impressed. I'd spent what felt like an interminable amount of time watching the lead, a mopey twenty-something named Bear (Michael Johsnton) pine after his co-worker Nikki (Inde Navarette). The two of them work retail jobs at a music store with their friends, including the boorish Ian (Cooper Tomlinson), and artsy Sarah (Megan Lawless). Bear has been in love with Nikki for years, but can't bring himself to actually tell her he has feelings for her, even when she asks him outright if he's interested. I didn't find Bear sympathetic or interesting. Fortunately, "Obsession" is a horror movie and not a romantic comedy or coming-of-age story, so this was not a problem.
How "Obsession" became a word-of-mouth driven box-office breakout has been the subject of much interest. Writer and director Curry Barker is having a real Cinderella moment, having made a horror film for less than a million dollars that went on to outgross major studio summer tentpoles. And after seeing the film, I understand why. "Obsession" offers a very good time. It's a horror film that has genuinely surprising shocks, a good amount of nervy suspense, and some deadpan comedy too. It's similar to last year's "Weapons" in that some of its most horrific moments are also wonderfully funny and absurd. It uses a simple fantasy premise - Bear makes a wish on a novelty item called a "One Wish Willow" to have Nikki love him "more than anyone else in the world" - and takes it to twisted extremes.
The movie really kicks into gear when Nikki becomes the post-wish "Freaky Nikki," the utterly obsessed and increasingly deranged version of Nikki who will do anything to be Bear's perfect girlfriend, but maybe doesn't have a good grasp on being a functional human being any longer. Inde Navarette's performance is absolutely bugnuts insane in the best way possible. She's a nice, normal girl one minute, then a creepily fixated freak trying to pretend that she's normal. Whenever the mask slips, it's always a surprise as to how she's going to lash out next. Will she start screaming in the middle of a restaurant? Will she start telling you about her disturbing Hansel and Gretel incest fanfiction? Will she just pull a comedic frown-y face at Bear in a way that defies description? Freaky Nikki is a fabulous addition to the modern female monster pantheon, right up there with Monstro Elisasue and Aunt Gladys.
The unappealing intro is actually doing a lot to set the audience up to expect a certain kind of story with certain types of characters that are all going to be subverted. We all know how this unrequited romance plot with the dorky guy and the hot girl is supposed to go, right? "Obsession" feels very Gen Z in a good way. There's casual drug use, mumbled line delivery, and Bear is a version of the increasingly common trope of the toxic "nice guy." Thematically, the story touches on a range of relationship and mental health issues, and has sparked some interesting discussions online about Bear's degree of culpability for what happens. Aside from Navarette, the performances aren't great, which actually adds to the verisimilitude of this film. It's easier to accept that this insanity is happening to a regular group of people, all flawed and familiar in believable ways.
Barker also does a great job stretching a limited budget, orchestrating some excellent creepy shots of Nikki with a few basic lighting tricks. His editing choices and the sound design play a big role in the effectiveness of some of the reveals. There are relatively few traditional jumpscares, but several shots that are more disturbing and uncomfortable the longer you look at them. I don't know why the image of Nikki holding a bouquet of flowers over her face like a Matisse painting is so striking, but I couldn't look away from the screen. And this is before anything really violent happens - a lot of very violent things do happen, by the way. I worry that I've made this film sound lighter and more frivolous than it is, because the horror is absolutely dark, nightmare-inducing horror, and sensitive souls should approach with care.
For those of you who regularly enjoy such depravities, do seek this one out. It's a keeper.
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