Obsession is the most disturbing horror film in years – believe the hype

The poster and title of this horror release are so bland that you’d be forgiven for ignoring it completely until now.

It looks, at best, like a Gen Z Fatal Attraction, about a clingy girlfriend with jealousy issues. However, the 18 certificate is a better indicator of what lies in store. This is one of the finest and most disturbing horror films in years and marks the breakthrough of a serious new talent.

It begins like a rom-com, with a painfully shy and earnest young man, Bear (Michael Johnston), practising how to confess his love to his friend and co-worker Nikki (Inde Navarrette).

When the moment comes, he chickens out and, instead, wishes on a novelty toy called a One Wish Willow that she would love him ‘more than anyone in the world’.

Of course, his wish comes true but the Nikki who follows him home and soon refuses to leave isn’t quite as he expected.

Oh sure, there’s a romantic montage where they giggle and kiss and seem destined to live happily ever after – but there are signs from the beginning that something else is going on. Nikki is needy, jealous and manipulative to keep Bear around at all times. She threatens violence to herself and others if he lets her down.

Worse, the wish cannot be undone and the customer helpline for the toy that Bear calls – a witty inclusion in a horror – offers no helpful advice. The tension builds, via incredibly awkward drinking games and nightmarish dates, to a bloody and shocking finale that will leave you thoughtful as well as disturbed.

Curry Barker, the film’s director, is still only 26 but already a seasoned creator of eerie, funny YouTube hits – notably the brilliant hour-long Milk & Serial, which landed him the opportunity to make this bigger feature.

Part of his cleverness is to help his objectively pretty leading lady look monstrous, mostly through smart lighting choices that often silhouette her from behind.

But credit to Navarrette herself for a horror performance that’s among the greats. From her unsettlingly false, too-broad smiles to her sudden bursts of movement, this is the essence of every ‘crazy’ ex-girlfriend boiled down into one concentrated poison.

And yet, Nikki is the victim here, and Barker never loses sight of that. In fact, aside from the obvious thrills of the horror beats, what’s most interesting about this film is its deep awareness of relationship mechanics and the pitfalls of love.

Barker’s generation has grown up steeped in awareness of toxic behaviour, boundaries and all the other psychological buzzwords that have passed into online discourse, and the film becomes a speed run through every red flag of a deeply unhealthy relationship before it turns completely blood-soaked.

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