“Obsession” A Shocking, Unpredictable Horror Flick

After breaking the mysterious “One Wish Willow” to win his crush’s heart, a hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for but soon discovers that some desires come at a dark, sinister price.

“Obsession” ended up being one of the horror-thrillers that has been on my radar for some time. The trailers for the movie looked mysterious and intriguing, and after seeing a lot of the reactions online, not to mention seeing the increased box office, my intrigue for this movie increased even more. And, now that I finally checked this out, all I can say is that this shocking, suspenseful and weird movie is most definitely worth checking out if you love the genre!

This new indie horror-thriller delivers incredible performances (most notably from Inde Navarrette), a unique reliance on unsettling social tension over cheap jump scares and even a sharp commentary on modern toxic dating.

I just have to say that Indie Navarrette’s performance as Nikki is really incredible. Throughout the indie thriller, Navarrette shows that she has the ability to instantly pivot between sweet, vulnerable, terrifying and absolutely unhinged.

She also perfectly balances her character’s descent into a dark obsession without ever going too campy at all and her shifts in body language, pauses and facial expressions feel really haunting - especially at the scene where the possessed Nikki literally just stands in the same place and has a weird smile for several seconds after Bear (the main male lead) leaves for work.

Now, while her actions become more unhinged and terrifying as the movie goes on, you can also feel deep sympathy for her character as Nikki is controlled by an invisible supernatural entity and simply has very little to no control at all.

“Obsession” does an awesome job putting a very unsettling twist on the “be careful what you wish for” trope. While the movie opens like an awkward romantic-comedy in a way, following an insecure nice guy pining for a crush, this relatable real world setup makes the story highly engaging before it descends into supernatural horror. The overall narrative also does a great job keeping audiences guessing by subverting

expectations especially when the possessed/cursed Nikki retaliates to maintain control over Bear.

The indie thriller also provides us with quite a few moments that can get a bit unsettling yet really memorable. There’s a scene where the cursed Nikki stands silently in the dark corner of a bedroom just staring at Bear as he sleeps. This is a very chilling moment due to the fact that her face appears heavily distorted and the production team achieved this look exclusively through shadows and highlights. 

There’s also a moment in the movie where Bear tries to leave for work and realizes that the possessed.cursed Nikki overnight has actually duct-taped the entire front door. It’s not really a thrilling moment, yet it can actually be unexpected and a little on the humorous side. There’s also plenty of other weird and thrilling moments to talk about without spoiling too much!

Before wrapping up this review, I noticed online that there is an online argument about whether the character of Bear can also be a villain of the story. On one side, some people believe he’s a villain due to him creating a dangerous, non-consensual spell that ultimately traps her by wishing Nikki loved him “more than anyone in the entire world.”

There’s the other side of the argument where his intentions stem from deep loneliness, insecurity and unrequited love rather than a desire to inflict harm. And a few even argue that the cursed willow or the altered version of Nikki become the true antagonists, painting Bear as a tragic fool who creates a monster he simply can’t control - in a way making him an anti-villain.

“Obsession” is a viscerally disturbing, crowd-pleasing (if you like the horror genre), and at times, darkly humorous take on the classic “monkey’s paw” trope. Rather than a simple slasher, the narrative is widely celebrated for its poignant commentary on modern loneliness that spirals into an inescapable nightmare of psychological horror and visceral violence.

The audience response has translated into a massive financial triumph as “Obsession” pulled off a rare feat for a horror movie by seeing its second weekend ticket sales climb 39% higher than its debut weekend, already cementing itself as one of the most profitable indie releases of the year.

Cast: Michael Johnston (Bear); Inde Navarrette (Nikki); Cooper Tomlinson (Ian); Megan Lawless (Sarah); Andy Richter (Carter); Haley Fitzgerald (Viola); Darin Toonder (Harry); Anthony Pavone (Reggie)

Writer/director: Curry Barker (feature film debut)

MPA: Rated R for strong bloody violence, grisly images, sexual content, pervasive language, and brief graphic nudity   (runtime 108 minutes)

Make sure to keep on checking my Wyoming County Press Examiner reviews page on Facebook to see some interesting trivia bits about the movies that I check out for the paper and future review slates that I have planned. I am also thinking about doing a special review/re-watch of “Obsession” that will contain spoilers exclusively for the Facebook page once the movie is available on streaming (SVOD).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMC8kkwbIQQ

• Was shot for under a million dollars and was picked up by Focus Features for distribution for $15-million+ after a bidding war. Several distributors wanted it, including A24 and NEON.

• The music store scenes were filmed at Cassell's Music in San Fernando, California. It is the same music store where the scenes in Wayne's World (1992) were filmed in which Mike Myers' character Wayne Campbell pines for the 1964 Fender Stratocaster. Cassel's Music closed in 2025 after 78 years in business.

• Filmed in just 20 days.

• Director Curry Barker's stylistic approach throughout this film was to avoid cutting unless absolutely necessary and to eliminate insert shots entirely, with the sole exception being shots of something at which a character is actively looking. The entire film is constructed from the perspective of Michael Johnston's character Bear.

• Director Curry Barker's ambition to shoot in long takes created a significant editing challenge he had to learn the hard way: without coverage, there is no way to fix pacing in post-production. He described learning to "find the pacing on the day" as an essential lesson for anyone working in that style.

• Director Curry Barker's previous feature Milk & Serial (2024), which helped him secure the deal with this film, was produced for just $800 and released independently on YouTube, where it became a viral sensation.

• One of the film's most demanding shooting days was a nine-page overnight sequence involving Bear's initial wish and Nikki's return to the car, a scene Barker deliberately stretched out to let the audience live inside the moment, including a lengthy sequence where Nikki cries about her father's sickness.

• World premier was in the coveted Friday night slot of Midnight Madness at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on September 5, 2025.

• The festival cut of the film featured graphic violence that was cut and censored for the R rated release.