Johnson Thomas
Dark, Twisted and Disturbing Indie horror
Film: Obsession
Cast: Michael Johnston, Indie Navarrette, Cooper Tomlinson, Megan Lawless
Director: Curry Barker
Rating: * * *
Runtime: 109 m
Curry Barker’s ‘Obsession’ is a tricky scary movie that is likely to put you off relationships for good. Just imagine that you are attracted to a girl who fits your ideal and because of some wish fulfilling trickery she falls for you too… And it’s only later that you realise that her love is an obsession that makes her go to the weirdest extent to keep you bound to her. That’s the gist of the story here.
The 26-year-old former YouTuber turned filmmaker’s second feature has Bear/Baron(Michael Johnston) secretly crushing on Nikki (Indie Navarrette), his childhood friend and current coworker at a music store. He is diffident about expressing his feelings to her because he feels that she might not reciprocate and that might possibly ruin their friendship. Their mutual friend Ian (Cooper Tomlinson) encourages him to speak to Nikki about his feelings while also warning him about the possible fallout, and another mutual friend Sarah (Megan Lawless), appears to have a secret crush on him.
After breaking the mysterious "One Wish Willow" a novelty trinket he picks up from a gift shop, the clueless romantic finds himself getting much more than what he wanted. His desires invoke a dark, sinister price.
There’s a price to pay for a love that is more than anything in the world and it’s not a happily ever after fairy tale scenario. Once Bear and Nikki become a couple the narrative takes the audience to a dark malignant place. Thereafter “Obsession” becomes an unsettling watch. Bear’s fascination with Nikki invokes the sinister in her, replacing the smart, pretty woman with someone volatile and given to extreme behaviour.
Nikki starts displaying dual personalities.At times she is normal and fun loving, then there are times when her eyes display mania and her behavior becomes disturbing. It’s a nightmare scenario for the diffident romantic. Yet he sticks with her till things go totally out of control. Bear’s needy decision-making hurtles him into a danger zone he doesn’t see coming.
Curry Barker does not resort to jump scares to scare the audience. His dodgy characters do the needful all by themselves. The latter portion of the film is replete with grotesque, revolting imagery and brutal violence. Pet lovers may not be happy about a sequence involving a dead cat.
Barker’s attempt to shock the audience out of their comfort zones works beautifully. The bludgeoning scene that comes out of nowhere could even stop your heart. Altogether “Obsession” is gory and could get you all queasy and unsettled with its bludgeoning, blood splattering gore.
This is not a typical horror film. It’s an altogether straightforward attempt to take the audience to places they’ve never been before. The manipulation is in the technique through which the narrative is framed. Barker cuts the film to suit a tune that gets meaner and more reprehensible as the story nears conclusion.
The narrative favors Bear’s perspective so Nikki becomes the villain of this piece. There’s no psychological or emotional perspective to draw you in deep. It’s a straightforward tale that hits you where you least expect it to.
Barker taps into unrequited feelings and being friended. The script is razor sharp, if a little uni-dimensional and the effect is twisted, diabolical and disturbing. Watching Bear slowly realise the nightmare he has created is horrifying in itself, and Barker wrings every ounce of discomfort out of the concept.
Michael Johnston does well to stay in character. Bear’s realisation that his nightmare was self created and that there’s little he can do to change the course of fate, is hard hitting. But it’s Indie Navarrette who steals the show despite being hampered by an underwritten role. Her Nikki is both loving and scary. That bipolarity makes it that much more difficult for Bear and the audience to straitjacket her. It’s a powerfully unhinged performance that gives this film its bite.
This film plays like a dark twisted romance. Barker manages to generate a decent amount of atmospheric tension with steady patient cuts, thus allowing for the viewer to get entrenched in the story. The sound design creates enough upsetting noises to break the silences in order to amplify the horror.
Curry Barker’s “Obsession” captures critical moments with spine-chilling effect. The film is a deliberate ‘uncomfortable’ visceral experience that is likely to horrify you with it’s gender skewed story. This is the freshest and neatest horror setup to come to the screens in a long while. The warning is clear. Love does not come to you neatly packaged to suit your expectations. So, Beware!
Johnsont307@gmail.com
