I watched Obsession and so should you

Added: 2026-05-19

[00:00:00]If you told me at the beginning of 2026 that one of the best movies of the year would be a horror film, I'd say, "Yeah, Markiplier's new movie is coming out."

[00:00:11]But if you then told me it would be a Blumhouse horror film, I'd slap the crack pipe out your hand. Yet, against all odds, Blumhouse's latest movie, Obsession, is actually one of the best horror movies I've ever seen and easily one of the best movies of the year so far. I haven't been this pleasantly surprised with a horror film since the Smile franchise. And while it may not be directed by the man, the myth, the legend, Markiplier, it is still a YouTuber-directed film.

[00:00:49]Curry Barker knocked it out of the park, and I think people like him, RockaRolla, and Markiplier are proof that the best horror films right now are the ones made by YouTubers. I actually can't think of anything I disliked about this movie, so I'm just going to go all in on glazing it. Spoilers if you haven't seen the film yet. With that out of the way, let's get started.

[00:01:17]>> [music] >> So, the plot follows a super simple concept that's been done dozens of times. A person makes a wish for love that overwrites another person's free will to bend to that wish.

[00:01:33]It's a really fun concept that's been explored in other movies like Wish Upon, but while that movie was just an affront to God, complete dumpster fire of a film, Obsession takes that simple concept and elevates it in a new way through a performance that is unapologetic. The actors who play the main characters, Bear and Nikki, gave an extraordinary performance, especially Inday Navarret.

[00:02:04]Like, her performance as Nikki was able to sell you on the fact that everything she was doing was inhumane. She was no longer a person, but rather this entity that was piloting her body as a result of the wish made by the main guy, Bear.

[00:02:22]They also aren't afraid to make you question his morality. Like, Bear is not a bad guy. He obviously did not know that the wish would actually work. He does care about Nikki still.

[00:02:35]But, even after piecing together that what was happening to her was a result of the wish he made on that [ __ ] toy, he still takes advantage of it at first, and it makes you want to root against him at times, which isn't a bad thing.

[00:02:53]I've said before that one of my main criticisms when it comes to modern entertainment is that production companies are afraid to make flawed characters. Nowadays, characters in TV shows or movies are just morally perfect off rip, which makes it extremely uninteresting watching them have no kind of character growth, and their only obstacle is society itself. I [ __ ] hate that. So, having a movie where the central conflict is a direct result of the main character's actions, and watching them struggle to try and fix it, while also having the audience questioning their decisions along the way, I think makes for a really entertaining film. Both actors were able to sell you on everything that was happening. It's also, first and foremost, just fun. Because it's a Blumhouse horror film, I expected it to be fun bad, even though I actually thought it looked pretty decent from the trailer.

[00:03:59]But, it's fun in the truest sense of the word. It's entertaining to watch, and because this is a horror film, you're actually on the edge of your seat at times in anticipation for the next scare.

[00:04:15]It's extremely unnerving, but also tiptoes on the line of comedy during certain scenes.

[00:04:22]It's also really good at building tension, and unapologetically uses cringe to a tactical point where it's self-aware of what they're doing because it's part of what's happening in the film. A hopeless romantic has made a wish for the girl of his dreams to fall in love with him, and now she's obsessed with him, but it's not actually her who's having these feelings. They make it pretty clear that she's lost her free will, and it's just this husk that is being piloted by some kind of entity as a result of the wish she's made.

[00:05:02]I know I already said that, but that's just really the best way to describe it.

[00:05:06]They'll have these rare instances of Nikki coming through, and it'll snap from her being obsessed with Bear to then panicking and her crying out for help.

[00:05:18]Like, it's not afraid to make you uncomfortable, and embraces the weirdness of what's happening rather than relying on the normal horror movie clichés. Some of the best scenes were the ones that were most uncomfortable, actually. For example, when Bear has to go in for work and Nikki has the day off, she'll just stand there smiling through the door outside the building for 8 hours, literally pissing herself, covered in vomit, etc. It's so unnerving and uncomfortable, and that's what a horror film should be. Not having stuff like this for the sake of irony, but because it helps elevate the plot in a way that shows how frightening the situation is.

[00:06:10]And in the case of Obsession, it helps sell the unpredictability of each scene as they're building all this tension.

[00:06:20]You don't know if it's going to go in a comedic direction, like that very awkward sex scene that was shown in the trailer, or if it's going to be something unnerving, like this one scene where Nikki is just talking to Bear in the dark.

[00:06:34]And because you can't see her facial expressions, you don't know what she's thinking or what's about to happen.

[00:06:43]Like, this is just a horror film that does a great job at being scary without relying on the standard tropes.

[00:06:52]At no point does Nikki ever become demonic, it's not very violent or gory.

[00:06:59]For the most part, you are just watching two human beings, one who has been yandered, and the other being terrified of what he's created.

[00:07:11]It's genuinely impressive at how effective it is at making you tense up with how simple some of the scenes are.

[00:07:20]I think a lot of it has to do with how relatable some of the situations can be.

[00:07:24]Like, usually when a supernatural element is involved, characters will go from fighting on their home turf to eventually somewhere far out, like a different dimension or this abandoned church that was used for demonic rituals, [ __ ] like that.

[00:07:41]But in Obsession, most of the conflicts and by association scares, they happen in some of the most relatable places. Like there's this one scene where they're at a party with their friends, and Nikki is unable to have any kind of normal human interaction with them, and ends up killing the vibe. Or when they're at a restaurant, and Bear tries to have just a normal conversation with her, she's unable to be authentic, and consistently says whatever she thinks he wants to hear, which eventually leads to her causing a scene. I meant it when I said that I can't think of anything I disliked about this movie.

[00:08:28]I really thought this was going to follow the same horror movie tropes, with maybe like a twist towards the end where it gets revealed that there was no wish. There wasn't some kind of supernatural presence. She's just like that.

[00:08:45]Which, you know, wouldn't be the worst twist in the world, but I think how the movie actually plays out hit the nail right on the head. Again, they make it pretty clear that Nikki's lost her free will as a result of the wish, and that while she's aware of what's happening, she's completely helpless against it.

[00:09:08]I'm just blown away by how good it was, and I can't think of anything I would change.

[00:09:15]I loved how self-aware it was. I loved all the cringe, stalker type behavior, and over-the-top scenes. All of it works, and it's not because it's unique in terms of concept, but because of how they get there by building tension through some really unique shots, lighting, cinematography.

[00:09:39]All of this conveyed in a way that complements the stellar performance from the actors.

[00:09:45]If I had to give one piece of advice, it would be for the audience. No, this is a movie you're not going to want to see alone because you're going to have so much to say once it ends.

[00:10:01]Anyways, I just had to talk about this after seeing the movie for myself.

[00:10:06]It's very rare for any movie, let alone a horror film, to make me feel the way I do after seeing Obsession.

[00:10:17]It's easily one of my favorites in the genre now and just another impressive feature in this year's lineup. Like 2026 has some heavy hitters dropping and while I don't think it's going to be winning any Academy Awards, it is nice for Obsession to be amongst their ranks.

[00:10:38]I highly recommend watching it if you like horror films and if you don't want to be the victim of an obsession, make sure you tip your bartenders and go to church.

[00:10:51]That's really about it.

[00:10:53]See you.