Obsession Is Worth The Risk
Obsession has to be the horror movie of the summer. Along with Masters of the Universe, it’s one of my favourite films of the season.
It seemed like everyone was buzzing about Obsession. Whether it was online, through word of mouth, or just random acquaintances, this was always the movie people kept telling me I had to see. Then Pep gave me that final push. When someone recommends a movie with that much confidence, you either buy a ticket… or spend the next month pretending you’ve already seen it. Thanks, Pep. You picked a winner.
If you’ve read my reviews before, you know I have a soft spot for horror movies, and this one checks all the boxes. There’s a mysterious object with demonic powers that promises to grant your greatest wish. The only catch? It takes your request a little too literally. As kids, we wanted our toys to come to life. Obsession reminds us why that was a spectacularly bad idea. The movie starts simply enough. Boy likes girl. Boy wants to tell girl how he feels. Then comes the question: what if a One Wish Willow could actually make your dream come true?
Honestly, if I’d stumbled across a One Wish Willow, I probably would’ve bought it in a heartbeat. Years ago there was an underground vintage toy shop in Yorkville, and I swear this thing would’ve been sitting on a shelf between the Burning Schoolhouse and the Charlie’s Angels board game. I would’ve walked out with all three and then spent the ride home wondering why my wallet was suddenly so much lighter. Come to think of it, that shop sold a lot of strange things over the years. It was owned by two brothers who couldn’t stand each other. Somehow, that made shopping there part retail experience and part family therapy. Thankfully, they never stocked One Wish Willows. Otherwise I’d probably own one… and this review would be written in crayon from a padded room.
In Obsession, boy gets girl and then spends the rest of the movie wishing he’d wished for literally anything else. It turns out “be careful what you wish for” isn't just a saying, it is the best dating advice ever written.
The movie ultimately belongs to Inde Navarrette. Her performance is the reason this movie works as well as it does. She pivots from sweet and vulnerable to completely unhinged with terrifying ease. One minute you’re rooting for her; the next you’re mentally deleting every dating app on your phone. She doesn’t just steal scenes, she kidnaps the movie. If horror performances ever received the recognition they deserve, she’d absolutely be in the Oscar conversation.
What impressed me almost as much is how well the story is constructed. Rather than leaning on endless jump scares, it quietly tightens the screws, one scene at a time, until everything explodes into a finale that’s equal parts shocking and inevitable. The film also knows when to embrace the wonderfully bizarre. One image of her silently holding a flower vase in front of her face is so strange it’s impossible to look away, and the slow, shuffling movements are deeply unsettling in a way that lingers with you. They’re not traditional scares but they’re exactly the kind of off-kilter moments that get under your skin.
For a first-time director, this is an astonishing achievement. Even more surprising, Obsession feels like the movie that reminds Blumhouse what made horror fans fall in love with the studio in the first place. After a stretch of films that were more forgettable than frightening, this is exactly the jolt it needed.
Some toys are meant to be played with. Others are meant to stay on the shelf. The One Wish Willow definitely belongs in the second category. Thankfully, Obsession does not.