Obsession (2026) Review: A Wishful and a Wild Feature!

Every filmmaker’s one wish is to see their movie on the big screen. This is often a difficult feat, especially for independent filmmakers who often require a major film production company to buy their film from a film festival, for example. However, it seems everyone wants to write their feature length screenplays when in reality the best way to become a filmmaker is to just do it. Curry Barker began with his sketch comedy series titled “that’s a bad idea” with his best friend Cooper Tomlinson, posting their videos on YouTube.

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Being a place where creators can upload their own videos on their own terms, Barker decided to write, direct, and star in Milk and Serial, a horror film that he posted solely on YouTube. The film gained notable traction from fans and critics alike, resulting in Barker being a director to watch. Fast forward to 2025, his second feature length film Obsession premiered at TIFF, catching the eyes of many, where ultimately Focus Features bought it for nationwide distribution in the United States. It can be so easy to wish something will happen but it takes work, determination, and a little bit of luck to make it so.

Obsession turns out to be one of the best horror films of the year so far with a standout performance by Inde Navarrette. It leads its audience down a path where wishing rather than facing reality can have consequences.

Bear Bailey (Michael Johnston) is in love with his friend and co-worker Nikki (Inde Navarrette), both working at a local music store, along with his best friend Ian (Cooper Tomlinson) and other friend Sarah (Megan Lawless). As Bear and Ian debate the best way and time to tell Nikki about his feelings for her, Bear decides that a weekend trivia night is a good time to do it.

However, before he gets to the bar he stumbles into a mystic shop looking for a crystal necklace for Nikki but instead opts for a trinket called a One Wish Willow that is supposed to grant you one wish. Sure, he thinks. As his nerves get the better of him upon driving Nikki home that night and he fails to tell her the truth, Bear makes a wish on the One Wish Willow that Nikki will love him more than anybody in the world. What results is both a fantasy he thought he could never have and a nightmare he never imagined he’d find himself in.

Obsession is a masterclass in low budget filmmaking with a sharp writer and director at its helm. Barker has harnessed both a relatable look at dating culture and fear of rejection, showing that a clear idea and timely execution will bring horror audiences to the theater, despite a lack of familiar cast or major notoriety. Being made for only one million dollars proves that true artistry and creativity in the genre will always outweigh the costly production that often goes into studio films.

The slightly comedic elements in Obsession is utilized in an uncomfortable but entertaining manner that coincides with its added suspenseful moments. One is bound to want to laugh at the idea of how obsessive a girl can be over her boyfriend, but these moments are quickly met with unnerving actions and consequences that put the audience “back in their place.” Barker paints his two main characters of Bear and Nikki with the intent of challenging horror audiences on where the true “evil” lies when intense feelings of longing are involved.

In the beginning, getting behind a character like Bear who believes he is in love with Nikki would cause anyone to root for him to see a happy outcome. However, upon seeing Bear’s reaction to consequences he believes he inadvertently created, it becomes clear that his “innocent” feelings towards Nikki show how his desires outweigh his compassion for the girl he says he loves. As a male writer and director, Curry Barker is able to present a horror film that shines a light on the pitfalls of young men that often proclaim themselves as “nice guys.”

There are a number of conversations to be had about Obsession that Barker leaves the audience with. For those with a female outlook on relationships, the film provides evidence that signals a subjective idea of men longing for a woman and the fantasy they have in mind of one day being with her.

However, this also being met with the reality of their wish coming true, only to realize the possibilities and vision was way more attractive than the realities that life often brings. This matches Bear’s infatuation with Nikki where the reality of getting to be with her through supernatural powers mirrors more human qualities of jealousy and struggles that are evident in the real world.

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Although the idea of the film regarding relationships is heightened to the nth degree, the concepts it displays can be relatable to both men and women alike. Where the film begins to unveil the true villain between Bear and Nikki, it pulls the curtain back to examine the terrifying reality some women face when a man sets his sights on her. This can become both a spectrum of shared love or dangerous obsession, either a love story or a nightmarish horror. Obsession will surely be just the beginning for Barker and will likely become a classic in years to come.

‘Obsession (2026)’ Rating – 4/5

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