Obsession - A Mixed Bag

“Don’t bend it; don’t water it down; don’t try to make it logical. Don’t edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly.”

-Franz Kafka

I’m a little late to the party here, but after finally watching the 2026 horror release Obsession, which hit VOD streaming last week, I have some thoughts.

These thoughts are more of an observation than a review. I’m just some random guy who runs a horror website, so why would anybody care about my review anyway?

Let’s start by focusing on the positives.

I was a fan of writer/director Curry Barker’s previous film, Milk and Serial, from 2024. It proved to be an impressive little “found footage” style horror film, produced for only $800 dollars, that went on to become a viral hit on Youtube.

He’s also the co-creator of the popular sketch comedy channel “that’s a bad idea”.

It’s nice that Barker was given a much larger budget ($750,000) and that the success of Obsession has opened up more opportunities for him as a filmmaker.

He’s set to write and direct a new Texas Chainsaw Massacre reboot soon.

As they say, don’t hate the player, hate the game.

The film uses many subtle tricks and lighting tropes to optimal benefit and does manage some onscreen creepiness with uncanny valley effectiveness.

That being said, there is absolutely nothing original about Obsession that hasn’t already been covered in countless other films, television shows, or books.

It’s very reminiscent of The Monkey from 2025, both in tone and dark humor, which fell flat for me personally, as a viewer who watched in a theater.

Do I regret waiting and not seeing Obsession in a theater?

Not at all, I think my outlook would be even harsher had seen it in a packed theater with expectations of “best horror film of the year!”

Yes, I can enjoy a movie just to enjoy a movie, and not be “critical”, but it’s taking more and more to get me to a theater these days, after a few too many recent disappointments.

There’s no denying it’s a well executed movie, yet one in which the hype greatly supersedes the actual product. While I can understand why the film gained traction, especially with younger couples going to the movies, it’s a bit baffling as to how it became a “phenomenon” with countless articles and memes.

After more than a month of “box office breaking” reports and coverage, a new article states that Obsession has now overtaken The Exorcist on the list of highest grossing domestic horror releases of all time.

That, ladies and gentlemen, is what instigated the writing of this particular article.

Allow me to be absolutely clear as a consummate viewer and collector of horror films and literature for my entire life.

The Exorcist is superior to Obsession in every conceivable way!

Hell, The Exorcist III is a better film than Obsession.

Despite some decent acting, none of the characters of Curry Barker’s latest film are very likable (aside from Sarah), and it requires complete suspension of disbelief to make it past the first 20 minutes.

After which, if you are like me, you’ll realize it’s more a black comedy than a horror film, and you’ll have several parts where you roll your eyes at the screen for the poor decisions, lazy writing, and lack of character complexity taking place.

The movie, managing a certain generic greatness, has Hollywood now scouring the archives of Youtube and Reddit for the next great money making success story to exploit for a Gen Z crowd.

We have entered the age of content creators, and hyper refined marketing strategies, reshaping the landscape of mainstream horror, under the guise of “indie”.

I’m not knocking Curry Barker. I’m not a hater. Obsession was fine.

But I can easily think of a half dozen horror films in recent years (many of them foreign), that are much better, far more difficult and elaborate to write and direct, and didn’t receive a fraction of the buzz or success, pretty much going straight to streaming and lost in the shuffle.

Once again, Obsession was fine, but probably something I might only watch one more time in my life, even though it arrives on Peacock July 17^th.

The Exorcist? Texas Chainsaw Massacre? I’m already in double digit viewing, with no signs of stopping any time soon.

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Mad Mike Mandrake runs the Horror to Culture website, is the host of the Insane Signals podcast and video variety show, and Editorial Director at House of Scream online magazine.