Do you remember the Fairly OddParents episode where Timmy wishes to be alone with his crush, Trixie Tang, and accidentally wipes out the entire population? It starts off like his ultimate fantasy where it is just him and his girl orbiting the world. Trixie, whose entire personality and self-worth is based on people, in particular boys, worshipping her, becomes obsessed with Timmy. Every second becomes about him validating her vanity and feeding her neediness. Eventually Timmy has enough and breaks up with her. Trixie doesn’t take the news well so she tries to murder him. Now I want you to take that premise and make is 10x more fucked up and disturbing and that is basically is Curry Barker’s Obsession.
After breaking the mysterious “One Wish Willow” Bear (Michael Johnston, Teen Wolf) wishes for his crush Nikki (Inde Navarrette, Superman & Lois) to love him more than anyone else in the world. Immediately the hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for. However he soon discovers that some desires come at an incredibly dark and sinister price.
Going into Obsession, I knew that it was going to be a fucked up film based off of the word of mouth from TIFF. However, nothing could have prepared me for how disturbing this film is. To put this film into simple words, Obsession is a cautionary tale about being careful for what you wish for, or in other words, a Monkey Paw tale. When Bear’s wish comes true, it is at first absolute bliss. They are having great sex, enjoying each other’s company, and overall having a good time. Bear is head over heels and Nikki appears to be happy. However, when their friends begin to voice concerns, the honeymoon is over and the curse of the monkey paw takes over.
Though Bear is happy, he and his friends notice something is off about Nikki. Besides no longer feeling like herself, she begins acting strange as if possessed by an outside force. And every act of love she gives begins to become more and more terrifying. Whether it’s the way she watches him sleep at night, the mysterious ingredient she puts in his foot, or the way her body moves when her love is questioned, Bear realizes his wish may be cursed. What unfolds next is a raw, visceral and terrifying cautionary tale of being careful for what you wish for.
With Obsession, Curry Barker doesn’t just riff on this familiar premise, but he drags it into uncomfortably real territory. There is no romcom gloss to be found here. The only thing that you will find in Obsession is a mean, suffocating nightmare that refuses to let you go. Every frame is pulsing with this manic energy as it constantly attacks your senses. Every frame feels jittery, overstimulating, dirty, and claustrophobic. The sound design crawls under your skin as you hear every heartbeat and drop of sweat. And when the film turns grotesque it makes you want to throw up. It is less of a movie you watch but more so an experience you endure. A sustained assault on the senses that doesn’t give you any space and leaves you rattled from the inside out.
What further adds to the attack are the performances from the ensemble cast, mostly made of newcomers. Michael Johnston anchors this film as this hopeless romantic who realizes that his fantasy is actually something rotten to its core. He carries this film with this dread as he realizes that his wish is having dangerous consequences. However, this film belongs to Inde Navarrette as Nikki. Her performance is raw, visceral and deeply unsettling as she becomes obsessed with Bear. The slight offness with her line delivery and the uncomfortable motions of her body, makes her terrifying to watch as she screams in your face as she professes her love for Bear. If Obsession wasn’t a horror film, she would be sweeping award season.
Overall, Obsession is one hell of a directorial debut from Curry Barker. It’s a relentless experience that goes beyond cheap jump scare, but dives head first into this suffocating psychological spiral that just keeps tightening the noose. The film is unapologetically mean, ugly, and downright terrifying as it constantly attacks you as we are stuck in this situation alongside Bear. By the end of the film I was completely exhausted and wrung out. So much so that I left the theater in tears because of how unforgiving this film is. It’s not just that it’s disturbing, it is a film that clings on to you long after the credits roll.
My Rating: A+
Coming to Theaters May 15th
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