Obsession Recasts 53-Year-Old Possession Genre With a Non-Demonic Wish Gone Wrong
Updated
Updated · Polygon · May 12
Obsession Recasts 53-Year-Old Possession Genre With a Non-Demonic Wish Gone Wrong
4 articles · Updated · Polygon · May 12
Curry Barker’s debut horror film turns possession into a monkey’s-paw story: Bear wishes that Nikki would love him more than anyone, and the granted wish traps her consciousness inside her own body.
That setup shifts the menace away from Exorcist-style demons toward a secular force tied to Bear’s selfishness, making his disregard for Nikki’s autonomy the film’s real source of horror.
Inde Navarrette anchors the twist by first establishing Nikki as herself, then playing the imitation version with panicked eagerness and mania that makes the character both monstrous and pitiable.
Friends read Nikki’s behavior as a mental-health crisis while Bear tries to salvage the relationship, giving the film a supernatural-stalker dynamic rather than a conventional exorcism plot.
The result is a fresh take on a genre long defined by 1973’s The Exorcist, suggesting possession can still feel new without relying on literal demons.
How will Obsession's director apply his psychological horror style to A24's upcoming Texas Chainsaw Massacre reboot?
Is Obsession's protagonist a tragic victim of a wish gone wrong, or simply a villain who violates consent?
Will the promised director's cut restore the film's original NC-17 gore, changing its psychological horror tone?