Scattered thoughts on Obsession

(Spoilers for Obsession ahead)

I don't think I can quite express in words just how much of a rollercoaster Obsession felt. It felt so real, dude. Like I was some sort of voyeur peeping in on the lives of four friends in some rural Midwestern town. I'd probably describe it as timeless for that reason alone. Even though it's clearly set in the modern day the events feel like they could've happened in 1974, or 1993, or some other random year within the last few decades. 

There's something to be said about Bear, I feel. He starts off as this luckless everyman who works a shitty nine-to-five and has an aspiration that seems unachievable (given his current position) and by the end has become a figure akin to Frankenstein: completely and utterly terrified of the unspeakable horror he has created, yet unwilling to divulge the truth to those that surround him. I would, by no means, say he's a villain (this is a story in which there is no true villain, no singular entity to place the blame on), but his actions do lead to both his death and those of Ian and Sarah. As I mentioned before, some very realistic acting too, especially during the "boy's night" scene at Ian's house; Michael Johnston effortlessly portrays a man who is completely lost in his own thoughts, afraid of what will happen to him were he to reveal what really became of Nikki, even though everyone else is concerned by her behaviour.

Actually, speaking of Nikki, let me talk about her. The instant shift in her demeanor the moment Bear snaps the One Wish Willow in half is extraordinary. Without having said anything, without having done anything except stand on her porch, you already know that she's gone. All is lost. The only way that this could possibly end for the two of them is death. The scene where Bear talks to Ian at their job, too, and the way she's there, in the background, watching them, completely still, almost unnoticeable until the film finally alludes to her presence. Masterful.

Needless comparison time: I also saw Backrooms recently (and I'm probably going to write about that movie too). Whereas that movie felt more clinical and precise, exploiting the viewer's fear of the unknown and/or surreal, Obsession goes for a more traditional character arc, a more traditional rise-and-fall. But who am I kidding, both were great. Hell, I'd say I'm not easily scared and yet this movie had me on edge midway through. And everything just kept building on top of each other until it all boiled over for one of the most explosive climaxes I've seen to a movie thus far. Can you imagine being in Nikki's shoes? Waking up from your friend accidentally putting you in what must have felt like eternal damnation, only to find him unresponsive on your lap, and his best friend shot dead not far? Could you live with yourself, knowing this is, in some twisted, convoluted way, your fault? I don't think I could. I don't think anyone could.

Great film. I eagerly await Curry Barker's next joint.