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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Willie Oleson" data-source="post: 442217" data-attributes="member: 8">Obsession (2026)[ATTACH=full]59298[/ATTACH]The internet loves this film so....I took the bait. I must say, if this is what constitutes a "Masterpiece!" or "a film that redefines the art of cinema!" then we're setting the bar pretty low.The story isn't even plain-ordinary good, let alone orginal, but it's still possible to bring that to life in a fascinating and/or entertaining way.After only 20 minutes I had to rewind a few scenes because I was continuously zoning out, and the reason is very simple: OBSESSION is from the Modern School Of Realistic Acting. Mark Kermode calls it mumblecore but not in the context of this film (he loves it).At least half of the spoken sentences in the script of this film are incomplete, and I don't mean "interrupted by the dialogue of another actor", no, it just starts and then stops midway.There's also a lot stutter, does that make it more relatable these days? And more importantly, should  it?Sorry, but I find this kind of barbarically underdeveloped dialogue insufferable, especially when it's done intentionally.Visually it's a mind-numbing pap of yellow and beige and darkness, sometimes a character is only a black silhouette but that's not really how shadows work in a relatively bright setting.After one hour or so I felt it was time for a generous quality nap, and when I woke up I thought, sh*t, I have to watch the rest of that film. But I did it.Every now and then the film comes to life when the performances are hammy and loud (especially loud) enhanced by a plethora of f-bombs.The reviews also promised me lots of painfully awkward scenes - which may have been the main draw for me - but since I didn't believe in these undercooked characters, let alone the lifeless supporting characters, it comes across as histrionics rather than delightfully toe-curling awkwardness.I think OBSESSION is a film that has a vague idea of what it wants to achieve but doesn't make any effort to set things up properly. There's a little bit of Stepford Wives in it, and two scenes based on The Exorcist. There's also the classic dilemma of being loved in an unnatural way, similar to the human/robot love stories, but that only happens when too much has already spiralled out of control therefore that dilemma doesn't feel genuine.The only moment that I really liked is when the male character goes back to the shop to buy another One Wish Willow and then it kinda looks as if that part of the story had never happened - "what is a One Wish Willow?" - but it was a joke because they were displayed in another part of the shop.But it's also got breaking-the-fourth-wall humour when a character becomes aware of the film score, à la The Naked Gun.There are several deep analyses videos on youtube ("it's darker then you think!") even though the film literally explains and over-explains what's wrong with this-or-that situation.Every now and then the victim becomes aware of her predicament, which actually betrays the power of the wish-plot, and then the problem isn't her dangerous love but the fact that the wish has taken away her agency, like a Fatal Attraction  MeToo'd for the modern ages. That doesn't have to be a bad thing, but it's just one of several things that's been randomly thrown into the mix and it fails to have a significant impact.Being so obviously disenchanted with this film I didn't think the ending could   disappoint, but it did.</blockquote>

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