Like last year's Companion, I think it is a good thing that there are more films releasing lately dealing with gendered violence, emotional manipulation, and the very real societal consequences of 'nice guy' male loneliness, insecurity, and entitlement to women's bodies. As a horror film, it is a decent debut for such a young director on a shoestring budget, but did leave me wanting for more given the promising Invasion of the Body Snatchers meets Wishmaster meets social critique premise.
I did like some parts: Bear's ongoing abusive behavior while fully aware of the situation ("is it really so bad being with me"), the Get Out-like moments of the real Nikki seeping through, the phonecall ("do you want to talk to Nikki?"), and the Pearl-like credits scene were all effective. Obsession also does fairly well at mixing horror and comedic timing, not unlike Zach Cregger's recent Weapons and Barbarian or Wes Craven stuff, even if the comedy is sometimes a bit too stark in contrast with the implications of the film (particularly the explicit sex scene indicating what is essentially an ongoing cycle of sexual violence perpetuated on a female hostage).
On the other hand, horror elements in this film constitute either jump scares emphasized with loud sound or music cues, or uncanny behavior (e.g., the classic watching you sleep from the shadows in the corner bit), rather than through psychological or existential developments. Most characters and dialog are awkwardly built around shocking moments (the cat shrine, the lunch box, ...) that don't feel like they are the organic consequences of Bear's 'wish gone wrong.' In the end, Obsession is essentially a continuous series of social media-optimized 'she's so crazy' moments, whereas, personally, I would have preferred it if the consequences of his wish appear more gradual; the cracks slowly showing as the reality of Nikki's entrapment and Bear's role as 'nice guy' manipulative predator shine through.
Finally, for a film that is so on-the-nose with its themes, like Companion, to me it also appeared quite superficial in its tackling of the politics of male entitlement? Maybe because it is a male-directed film, but in the end, Bear is unfortunately still depicted throughout the film as much of a villain as he is a victim of the wish gone wrong or a guy that just can't handle a woman's behavior; like The Drama or even Die My Love.
If Obsession is this on the nose anyway, why not go all-in and double down on Bear's cowardness? Hell, make him consider suicide only to attempt to kill her, and have the real Nikki in a moment of lucidness recapture her agency by using the wish mechanic herself right there--bring back the 'good for her' cinematic universe. I get that in reality, the world is full of women who are in hostage situations unable to get out, but as it stands now, this is not fully the core of the story and Nikki is seemingly nothing more than a prop in this film to be exploited (ultimately left physically mutilated, traumatized, surrounded by the bodies of her dead friends killed at her own physical hands) with the severity of her situation overshadowed by comedic horror moments and an unnecessarily ambiguous characterization of Bear.