‘Obsession’ review
We all know those couples who are just a little too into each other. They make everyone uncomfortable with excessive PDA and always come as a package deal. Maybe it’s a little cute at first to see your friends in the early stages of romance, but when the relationship reaches a point of obsessive clinging, it’s tempting to stop inviting them to things. Now imagine one of those partners is possessed with supernatural rage and will murder anyone who even looks at their beloved. It’s one thing to sit in awkward silence when a girl snaps at anyone who comes near their man; it’s quite another to gape in horror as she jerks around the room like Regan from The Exorcist and commits horrific violence.
If you’ve ever found yourself annoyed at the manic pixie dream girl trope, you might get sardonic pleasure out of watching Obsession. The film grabs this overused device and takes it to its nightmarish extreme by giving the main character exactly what he wants in the form of a 100% slavishly devoted hot girlfriend who refuses to let him do anything but sleep with her and engage in unnervingly cutesy banter. While Inde Navarrette’s Nikki is a demonic exaggeration of a cliched love interest whose main purpose is to shock the audience with excruciatingly uncomfortable scares, she retains the recognizable form of a toxic, co-dependent partner that unnerves us to our core.
The film starts off innocently enough as the hapless Baron, or “Bear” to his friends (Michael Johnston), struggles to tell his close friend Nikki that he’s in love with her. Her charming, flirty personality makes it hard for him to decipher if their chemistry is friendly or romantic. Frustrated by his inability to express himself, Bear makes a wish on an innocuous novelty toy that Nikki loves him more than anything on Earth. This innocent expression turns his life into a living nightmare as his wish possesses Nikki and turns her into the jealous girlfriend from hell.
As the “relationship” descends into violence and madness, it’s clear that Bear is more in love with the idea of Nikki than Nikki herself. He overlooks and normalizes glaring red flags as his stable, independent friend turns into a clingy grotesque. He knows something’s off, but he continues to live out his fantasy at the expense of his social life and Nikki’s freedom. The film never lets you settle into any charming romantic chemistry, as things stop being cute and sexy once the title obsession kicks in full force.
The film’s tonal balancing act is entirely dependent on Navarette, and she knocks it out of the park with a performance that already feels iconic in the history of horror. She bears it all as a new type of horror monster that’s equal parts embarrassing and terrifying. She effortlessly makes you fall in love with normal Nikki in her short time on screen, and it’s so disturbing to see her descend so far into madness. Her ability to flip on a dime from demure dream girl to freakish banshee provides the film with its uncomfortable dark humor, with her jerky, animalistic movements making you jump and laugh simultaneously. It was such a treat to see Amy Madigan receive so many accolades for Weapons last year, and Navarrette is worthy of the same type of flowers.
Once you get past the squirm-inducing humor of this girl completely embarrassing herself in public by throwing tantrums and laughing too loud and long, a creeping dread sets in. As Bear starts to crave independence from his nightmarish fantasy girl, Nikki’s rage-fueled jealousy takes hold. Jealous partners are scary enough on their own, so imagine one capable of superhuman violence. You just know the film is building towards a bloody third act, so anytime Bear leaves the house or, God forbid, talks to another girl, you’re anxiously dreading Nikki popping out of the shadows in a violent rampage.
While Bear’s unfortunate situation provides most of the shocking gross-out scares, it’s the real Nikki’s fate that makes you ponder the film’s disturbing, existential horror at the periphery. As Bear continues to go along with his supernatural bargain, he turns from a hapless victim into a willing participant in Nikki’s pain. The film gives us brief glimpses of Nikki’s attempts to break free from her torturous hell, where her body has sex and commits self-harm against her will. It gets to a point where Bear can’t ignore what’s going on and makes a conscious choice to keep his friend in the sunken place so he can have his way with her.
Bear’s inability to break it off with Nikki destroys his life and the lives of those around him. By the end of the film, he’s become the true villain, as his cowardice and selfishness allow demon Nikki to wreak havoc in his name. It’s hard to let go of the girl of your dreams even if she becomes the girl of your nightmares. But the film makes it clear early on that we’re not dealing with love. Would Bear and Nikki have worked out if he’d mustered up the courage to reveal his true feelings to her? Probably not. But by the film’s bloody climax, that question is the furthest thing from your mind.
★★★★