Obsession

2025
Directors: Curry Barker
Starring: Michael Johnston, Inde Navarrette, Cooper Tomlinson, and more.

After breaking the mysterious “One Wish Willow” to win his crush’s heart, a hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for but soon discovers that some desires come at a dark, sinister price.

I saw this with someone who had already seen the film. I knew basically what it was about, I thought. A guy has a huge crush on a girl he works with. When it’s apparent she doesn’t feel the same way, and our hero tries something in the hopes it will make her stay. He gets his wish but it turns into a nightmare. The monkey’s paw where you get your wish but you’re punished for messing with fate.

No, this movie went way deeper than that. It was an uncomfortable watch at times, but the message and how it was presented were truly stunning.

We meet Bear. Twenty something and having possibly the worst day of his life. He’s alone and in love with a girl, a coworker, who is always there for him but she’s just a good friend. The Nikki we meet at the beginning of the movie is a really good person.

At the beginning of the story, he’s practicing with friends how to confess his feelings for Nikki. It doesn’t go well. He goes home to find his beloved pet has passed away because of his own carelessness (foreshadowing), and later Nikki tells him she’s resigning from her job and moving because she’s seeking something different in life. Basically, before he can confess anything, she’s leaving. When she loses a beloved crystal necklace, he goes to buy one for her and while he’s in the mystical shop, he sees what looks like a gimmicky end-cap buy. “One Wish Willow.” He buys it and it ends up being his Hail Mary pass when he realizes Nikki will soon be gone from his life. He wishes for “Nikki Freeman to love him more than anyone in the fucking world.”

Yeah.

Now, truly, I expected a film that would punish him for such a terrible wish. I expected a possessed woman story with a side of dark comedy. I didn’t expect to see every loathesome quality of the male personality taken on in this film. It spoke truth about men and their inability to let a woman decide what to do with her own body. Then it escalated into a bigger conversation about autonomy, consent, and turning women against each other in a way that left me speechless. 

As the story goes on and he gets what he thought he wanted, we see him treat Nikki in ways we’ve all seen in real life. A woman devoted who will do anything to keep the man she loves while he mocks her to his friends, tries to get pity from other women, all the while taking what he wants from the woman without a single regard for her feelings or wellfare. It’s like watching a horrible car crash honestly. There are also heartbreaking moments when the real Nikki is trying to reach out for help, a reminder that she’s being forced against her will to be hopelessly in love with Bear and in the process loses her autonomy, her choices, and her freedom. And she gets very little in return. 

This film stayed with me long after I finished it. Honestly, I’m not sure I’d be able to watch it again because it was a painful thing to watch. Michael Johnston gave an amazing performance as Bear and I’m sure he was relatable to any younger men watching. Inde Navarrette was amazing. I’ve never seen the actor before but she gave everything to her performance as Nikki and I really, really hope to see her in more in the future. Her performance was fearless, heartbreaking, and tragic in turns. 

The film was just shy of two hours and rated R for gore, violence, nudity, a really cringy sex scene, and profanity. This film isn’t for everyone and definitely not for the younger set. But if you love horror and you like a side of truth with it, you will love this film.

Isy