Obsession
Inde Navarette's breakout sets the tone in new horror sensation
Few horror movies this year have lingered in my mind quite like Obsession has. Rather than relying heavily on jump scares, Curry Barker’s breakout feature builds its terror through the anticipation of what could go wrong next through dread and crafting an unnerving story that finds a way to slowly burrow under your skin.
After wishing on the mysterious “One Wish Willow” that his crush Nikki (Indi Navarette) would love him more than anyone in the entire world, Bear (Michael Johnston) finds himself getting exactly what he asked for but quickly discovering that it all comes at a sinister price.
Since its release, Obsession has quickly grown into one of the year’s most exciting word-of-mouth success stories. Made for less than $1 million, the film has already crossed $60 million at the domestic box office and accomplished the almost unheard of feat of growing by 30 percent in its second weekend.
It’s a movie that takes contemporary anxieties surrounding consent, entitlement, and control, and channels them into something deeply uncomfortable. As much as Obsession is about consent and exploitation, it’s equally about cowardice and emotional avoidance. One of the smartest decisions Barket makes is framing Bear as such a flawed and outright unsympathetic protagonist who you could easily look at as the villain of the story in a lot of ways. Meanwhile, Nikki becomes this terrifying and unpredictable force after the wish is made, but you also cannot help but feel horrible for the girl who has effectively been buried underneath something she never would have chosen for herself.
That’s where Navarette’s performance becomes the film’s biggest strength. She brings an incredible amount of emotional layering to Nikki, balancing the character’s terrifying unpredictability of, for lack of a better term, Freaky Nikki with glimpses of the person still buried underneath it all. It’s a phenomenal, star-making performance and one of my favorite breakout turns in years.
As things continue spiraling out of control, Barker remains impressively restrained in his filmmaking. I’ve listened to a few interviews with him since watching the movie, and Barker has talked about his belief that unease can be more impactful than shock, and Obsession is operating at its absolute best when it is building that sustained dread. The camera often remains static, forcing you to sit in the darkness of each scene and scan every corner of the frame waiting for something terrible to emerge.
The film’s use of shadows is especially effective. After the wish is made, Nikki is often framed in silhouette or partially obscured by darkness, visually reinforcing the idea that she has become just a shell of her actual self. The way Barker stages her movements in the background of scenes, slowly emerging from darkness or suddenly appearing behind Bear, creates some of the movie’s most deeply unsettling moments.
I’m trying hard not to dive too deeply into some of the more specific things that happen in this movie because it really is best experienced knowing as little as possible. But ultimately, this is a story that frames all of its horror around insecurity and control rather than simply obsession. Bear spends much of the movie trying to avoid vulnerability while still getting everything he wants, never fully understanding the damage that comes with trying to control another person. The deeper Obsession goes, the clearer it becomes that the film’s real terror comes not from the supernatural elements themselves, but from the entitlement, loneliness, and emotional immaturity that set everything into motion in the first place.
Movies like Obsession are exactly why horror continues to be one of the most exciting spaces for emerging filmmakers. Bold, unsettling, and impressively crafted, Curry Barker’s breakout feature feels like the arrival of a major new voice — and one of the year’s very best horror films. Obsession is now playing in theaters.