There will be full spoilers ahead.

Obsession (2026) was easily one of the most hyped horror releases of the year. The internet was glazing this film relentlessly, and usually, when a movie reaches that level of noise, it fails to deliver. I went in thinking there was no way it could live up to the chatter. I was dead wrong. The hype did not even do it justice.

This film was a wild, immersive experience. Beyond the visuals, the sound design is top-tier. I made the mistake of turning the volume up high to get fully immersed, and I regretted that decision immediately. The score and audio engineering are eerie, suffocating, and designed to spike your anxiety at every turn.

The lighting crew deserves a massive raise as well. The exact moment I realized this movie was going to haunt me was when Nikki returns to Bear's house. She stands motionless in the dark doorway, completely enveloped in shadow, with only the ambient light catching her eyes. It is simple, cheap, and deeply unsettling.

The cast is a surprisingly perfect ensemble. I could not stop thinking that Michael Johnston, who plays Bear, looks uncannily like the YouTuber Ludwig Ahgren, which added an accidental layer of bizarre comedy for me. But he plays the pathetic, in-over-his-head lead brilliantly. Having followed Cooper Tomlinson and director Curry Barker on TikTok for years, seeing Tomlinson hold his own on a big budget theatrical screen was incredible.

Then there is Inde Navarrette. Her physical acting as Nikki is star-making. The way she stands in dark corners, waiting for your eyes to scan the room before you realize she is right there, made me jump out of my skin multiple times.

The violent moments in this movie are brief, but when they hit, they are devastating. The car scene completely rocked me. Bear and Sarah are sitting in the car having a quiet moment of peace, about to open her college acceptance letter. Just as you get lulled into a false sense of relaxation, Nikki yeets herself straight through the driver's side window. She grabs Sarah, pulls out a brick she literally brought from home, and repeatedly smashes her face into it on the steering wheel.

My jaw was on the floor right next to Sarah's. I was making uncontrollable noises in my living room. And instead of fighting back or calling the police, Bear just sits there like a helpless, terrified mess while Nikki blames him for the entire murder and tells him he needs to fix it. Naturally, he just goes along with it.