******UNSETTLING SPOILERS!******

Made on a sub-shoestring budget between $750,000 (yes, thousand) and $1 million, the Universal-Blumhouse distributed “Obsession” debuted at the Toronto Film Festival last year, and was a huge hit. When it was released in the United States this past March, it did incredible business, making over 400 times its production budget, and becoming something of an indie phenomenon–something not seen since 1999’s (somewhat overrated) “The Blair Witch Project.”

Having missed “Obsession” in theaters, I streamed it at home. I fired up the HD digital projector and opened up my large collapsible home screen to give this somewhat boxy-framed movie (1.37:1) an immersive theatrical approximation. It worked, and the movie was deeply unsettling. At my advanced age and longtime marital status, I worried I might be too demographically mismatched for a horror-relationship movie about twenty-somethings written & directed by Gen Z director/comedian Curry Barker. Nevertheless, “Obsession” manages to disturb across many demographics…

“Obsession” (2026)

Note: Many guys, myself included, have all been ‘the friend’; the guy girls turn to when they need a shoulder to cry on between boyfriends. As an old Gen-Xer, my humble advice to such men would be to value those friendships, as they can teach young men to view women as fully dimensional beings, not airbrushed pinups on a garage wall. They teach patience and empathy, too. Many of my most rewarding friendships have been women, many of whom I remain friends with to this day (including my wife, of course).

Note: Liked the movie’s conceit of genuine magic being a cheap commodity, like a pack of gum you’d buy on the way out of a convenience store.

Note: The four friends have an uneasy dynamic, as Bear pines for Nikki, who’s secretly slept with Ian off and on. Meanwhile, Sarah is secretly pining for Bear. This is one queasy quad.

Note: Bear is a sullen, passive-aggressive guy who’s not above playing the sympathy card in order to score points with Nikki (his recently deceased cat, which accidentally overdosed on his medication in a grisly bit of foreshadowing). Bear’s startled and initially chaste reaction when his wish kicks suggests he might have some scruples, but like so many hormonally-afflicted young people, he has his own ‘dark passenger’ known as the libido.

Note: At first, the honeymoon phase of the wish is everything Bear hoped for, but if he were a truly good person, he would’ve instantly done whatever he could to reverse the spell–no, curse–as soon as he saw glimpses of Nikki’s brief startled reactions each time her true self briefly surfaced. Those moments homaged “Get Out” (2017) when the stolen bodies in that movie would occasionally resist against the personae hijacking them. In that way, I found “Obsession” to be less of a monkey’s paw tale and more of a possession movie.

Note: Actress Inde Navarette played Lana Lang’s brooding teenaged daughter Sarah in TV’s “Superman & Lois” (2021-2024), in which she was involved in a similar friendship-turned-romantic with Clark Kent’s sensitive super-son, Jordan (Alexander Garfin).

Note: I’m not exaggerating when I say that Navarette’s work in “Obsession” should be considered for an Oscar next year. Oscar-winning horror films have some precedence; there’s “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” (Oscar for Frederich March) “The Exorcist” (two Oscars), “Silence of the Lambs” (four Oscars, including awards for Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture), and last year’s “Sinners” (four Oscars, including Best Actor for Michael B. Jordan). Navarette could win easily.

Note: The flat, monotone voice of the supernatural customer service number for One Wish Willow is that of writer/director Curry Barker, who was one half of a comedy duo with Cooper Tomlinson, who plays Ian. One of the movie’s most deeply disturbing moments comes when Bear hears the real Nikki screaming from the other end of the customer service call–like a tormented soul, writhing in hell.

Note: Once again, Navarette’s acting range is on full display in the deeply disturbing game night scene, as the possessed Nikki begins reciting a bizarre variation of “Hansel and Gretel,” but with a nasty incestuous angle and in an odd accent that seems to come from Nikki’s body-thief demon (for lack of a better designation).

Note: Possessed-Nikki’s increasing acts of self-mutilation, however seemingly ‘accidental,’ also recall the scars that appear on the face of the possessed Regan (Linda Blair) in “The Exorcist,” which were meant to appear self-inflicted; as if the demon were using the crucifix to angrily gouge scars into young Regan’s face. Nikki’s hygiene also takes a nosedive, as we later see when she stands frozen at the heavily duct-taped front door, motionlessly awaiting Bear’s return from work. Standing in place, Nikki urinates (and later defecates) on the carpet–similar to possessed-Regan’s behavior in the party scene from “The Exorcist.”

Note: Somewhat predictably, Bear’s coworker friend Sarah (Megan Lawless) has a crush on him, similar to the one he had on Nikki before things went south. This scene right out of “Clerks” is spoiled when it’s revealed Nikki packed a dead cat sandwich for Bear, which goes a little too far, and reeks of “Fatal Attraction” (1987) with its boiling rabbit.

Note: The scene of Bear being forced to help Nikki get rid of Sarah’s smashed-in corpse is given an extra layer of tragedy when Bear later opens a letter Sarah received from a promising school only to confirm it was an acceptance letter. Sarah’s future was all set to take off before her involvement with the unworthy Bear cost her life. It’s fitting “Bear” is named after a creature many women feel safer around than a man.

Note: Underrated actor Darin Toonder, who plays another enigmatic employee of the crystal shop, is known for roles in TV’s “General Hospital” and Disney+’s “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.” Toonder’s insouciant character begs more questions than he answers in this universe where magic is a casual commodity. Do other curios in the shop wield such insane powers? What was his wish?

Note: The sight of a billion dollars in thick bundles falling from the ceiling is like something out of Rod Serling’s classic “Twilight Zone” (specifically the genie episode, “The Man in the Bottle”), and is almost comical in its matter-of-factness.

Note: The ending of the movie doesn’t allow Nikki any recourse, let alone justice, which admittedly increases the depths of its horror. Perhaps I’m just too weaned on more conventional horror movies, because I half-expected (or hoped) Nikki would get some much-deserved vengeance on Bear somehow, as he banished her into hellish torment–however unwittingly. Once Bear saw signs of Nikki’s latent consciousness inside of his ‘dream girl,’ he should’ve tirelessly searched for a means to undo the curse at all costs. For that, I can’t sympathize with Bear. He took advantage of possessed-Nikki without any genuine consent.

The End.

Summing It Up

To be honest, I had no pressing desire to see “Obsession” until word-of-mouth surrounding the movie continued to grow, months after its release. Even a friend of mine at my local grocery store recommended it. So I waited for “Obsession” to become available for streaming. Arriving on Peacock this month, I was very curious to see if the movie justified its considerable hype. What I found was a deeply disturbing, supernatural relationship drama with some of the best acting I’ve seen in a horror film since 1973’s “The Exorcist,” with major kudos to lead actress Inde Navarette, whom I remember from the underrated DC comics series, “Superman & Lois.” Navarette’s performance should be considered for an Oscar.

The movie’s real horror doesn’t come from the occasional jumpscare or when Nikki walks backward, or some other Satanic bit of business. The most distressing aspect of this movie comes from putting ourselves in Nikki’s place as she’s rendered a helpless passenger, watching as her seized body is forced to act against her will. She’s only able to communicate through desperate somnambulist pleas while the demon controlling her is asleep. Writer/director Curry Barker says the movie was inspired by a monkey’s paw segment of a Simpsons’ Halloween episode, but it shares more with Regan’s possession in “The Exorcist” as well as writer/director Jordan Peele‘s “Get Out” (2017).

Despite an excellent and subtle performance by Michael Johnston, Bear is this movie’s true ‘monster,’ as he continues to have sex with Nikki and later tries to “make it work” despite knowing that he’s keeping her consciousness imprisoned. The moment Bear realizes the One Wish Willow worked, he should’ve immediately tried everything in his power to reverse it at all costs. But he doesn’t. Instead, Bear keeps possessed-Nikki as his dark secret. It’s for this reason that I don’t think I’ll ever watch “Obsession” again, because it’s too difficult to see Nikki unable to act in her own defense, let alone seek justice afterward. At my age, I can imagine if Nikki were my daughter, and it fills me with a sick feeling of futile rage. My empathy circuit explodes.

“Obsession” is a disturbing, deeply effective horror movie. One of the best I’ve seen in years, in fact. Yet I just can’t watch it again. This isn’t an insult to the talent involved. If anything, it’s the highest compliment. My congratulations to Curry Barker, Inde Navarette and Michael Johnston for doing their respective jobs too well.

Where to Watch

“Obsession” (2026) is currently available for streaming via Peacock, and is also available or digital rental or purchase via Amazon. As of this writing, the movie is also scheduled to make its physical media release this month.