The Reel Review
Frustrated that his secret crush doesn’t seem interested in him, a shy young music store employee cracks open a novelty store item, a One Wish Willow, that grants him his wish of making his co-worker Nikki love him more than anyone. He soon discovers, however, that it also has unleashed a sinister dark side within her. Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette star in this grisly Gen Z horror/thriller.
Obsession is one dark and twisted film with a shocking amount of gore as Baron (Bear to his friends) finds himself in increasingly troubling circumstances with a controlling girlfriend who is no longer anything like her prior self. The symbolism about losing one’s self identity while being trapped in an unhealthy, co-dependent relationship is amplified to the extreme, set to a backdrop of dim lighting and a chilling score.
Although the story’s premise itself isn’t really anything new, the shockingly gruesome twists are. Michael Johnston (Teen Wolf, Slash) deftly captures the frustrating wishy-washiness of his character with Inde Navarrette (13 Reasons Why, Superman & Lois) giving an impressively disturbing, all-in emotional and physical performance. Obsession is a crowd-pleasingly icky instant classic.
REEL FACTS
• Shot in just 20 days, Obsession cost only $750,000 to make but has grossed more than $300 million at the box office worldwide.
• The music store scenes were filmed at Cassell’s Music in San Fernando, California, which was also featured in the 1992 comedy Wayne’s World. Cassell’s Music closed in 2025 after 78 years in business.
• 26-year-old Curry Barker got his start on YouTube before being tapped to make his feature length directorial debut, 2024’s Milk & Serial. His next film is Anything But Ghosts, starring Aaron Paul, Bryce Dallas Howard and Violet McGraw.
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