Preamble

Culture moves at the speed of lightning these days, so when I walked into Obsession, I had the wave of its success in mind (and what that means for YouTubers turned filmmakers). But I also had the fact that its director has been tapped to helm a new Texas Chain Saw Massacre movie. Talk about a bucketload of expectation. With that said, have you seen Obsession and given its themes, how many times? Let me know in the comments below.

Brief Consideration

Since finally catching up with Obsession last night, I’ve been noodling on its true horror. On the surface, its story of a twenty-something, Baron (Michael Johnston), who wishes for his crush, Nikki (Inde Navarrette), to love him more than anyone in the world is horrific for its ironic nature. This stems from Nikki becoming a toxic co-dependent person who makes Baron (aka Bear) feel trapped in a never-ending cycle of erratic behaviour.

However, Obsession’s real horror comes from the suppression of Nikki’s character. She’s no longer the confident and biting woman that Bear fell for, but instead a husk that unstably deals with her overwhelming feelings. In fact, the film’s most insidious moments give us the sense that the real Nikki is trapped and watching as someone takes control of her body and mind. In light of that, a very good case can be made that Bear is the true antagonist, not only from the perspective of what he turns Nikki into, but ultimately the situation he leaves her in.

On the face of it, Curry Barker’s direction is not subtle insofar as how it draws attention to itself. But a large part of my enjoyment of Obsession was seeing Barker’s camerawork. He often employs long shots and push-ins to immerse the viewer in the intimacy of his characters and Bear’s infatuation with Nikki. Plus, the 1.50:1 aspect ratio provides a sense of the characters feeling larger than life, which results in their struggles and dilemmas seeming all-consuming, as we’re confined within this tighter screen format.

Whilst Inde Navarrette is the headline performance, easily shifting states that range from heartbreaking to demonic, I was also really taken by Megan Lawless. Her portrayal of longing and warmth was really appealing and neatly juxtaposed with Bear’s initial romantic pining. And in his first feature film, composer Rock Burwell’s score is a melancholic synth treat that effectively jars the audience in erotic scenes and provides a comforting sense of romantic bliss.