Obsession absolutely deserves the hype. The atmosphere created by Curry Barker is sublime with its innate creepiness, and that is difficult to nail for a director in his feature film debut. I noticed a lot of anticipatory framing, dynamic movement of characters within shots, the use of shallow focus, and intentionally harsh lighting (or lack therof). Inde’s performance steals the show, as many have pointed out, due to her convincing dual-character acting and her micro-expressions. Michael Johnston was also excellent in playing Bear, especially when it comes to revealing character intricacies underneath his “nice guy” veneer. I love that Obsession is a play on the classic “person makes a wish and it comes true” story, and my enjoyment is amplified more by Barker’s imbuement of thematic complexity.
There has obviously been a lot of analytical discourse already on this movie; I want to echo the analyses by others related to both the one-sided superficiality of Bear’s obsessive manifestation and his continuous entrapment. Underneath his seemingly innocent visage lies this manipulative cowardice. He tries to keep her in this state of inane fealty, ignoring pleas to free her from this predicament, even as his obsessive reflection onto her grows increasingly violent and unstable. It is this escalating carnage that underlines his twisted idea of love: not a genuine bond that preserves both partners’ individuality, but an artificial “love” that mercilessly binds her to his own desires only. His use of her body in such a desecrating way — it is to the point where she expels fluids and sheds blood — characterizes his wretchedly carnal vision for his control. Even as the sleeping pills take effect, he does not learn his lesson nor does he lament based on his actions. He dies as a coward, never fully committing to reversing his dominant imposition over her.
