Obsession - Backrooms - Fractured
The following “reviews” are going to be very short and contain minor spoilers, except for my Fractured section since I don’t respect it.
Obsession (2025) 9.5 - 10
There’s a reason this movie with a ~$750k budget has made over (last I heard) $220 million and all through word of mouth. I learned about Obsession through a few different youtubers, who don’t cover movies, talking about how good it was. So I pulled the trigger, going in blind, and was not disappointed.
I find it almost pretentious to give any form of media a 10 because its sort of implies that the media is perfect (despite any possible flaws; the sum of its parts becomes a masterpiece) but, similar to rating people, everyone has preferences. Someone else’s 7/8 could be your 10 and vice versa.
Regardless, I really enjoyed this movie and how uncomfortable I felt for the majority of the film. I really enjoyed the ramping up of uncomfortability until a certain phone call in which the movie goes kind of crazy and doesn’t let go until the end.
There aren’t too many jumpscares, but the ones present are earned and never felt cheap. I remember turning off “The Thing (2011)” because it had 2 cheap jumpscares at the start that felt unearned and made me question why should I waste an hour+ of my day watching anymore of this.
Even though the movie may not have an original plot, the execution makes it perfect for me and instant horror classic. I believe the last horror movie that really griped me like this and had me thinking about it long after viewing was “It Follows (2015)”.
Lastly, like many other horror movies, you have a character who takes actions that you dislike. Poor scripts will take me out of the movie because I just think how unrealistic things are or how I can’t empathize why they did something. Things like groups separating or making 60 IQ decisions to progress the plot.
Our main character, Bear, actions (and inaction) makes me dislike him since I wouldn’t have done many things he did (or didn’t do) but it doesn’t take me out of the movie because it fits his character perfectly, from start to finish.
Backrooms ~6.5
I haven’t watched all of the media by Kane Pixels on Youtube covering his version of the backrooms, but what I’ve seen I have enjoyed. Translating this to the big screen didn’t quite do it for me to the same degree.
The movie is fine and I didn’t waste me time seeing it, but it’s probably a movie I’ll never rewatch. Many of my favorites I have seen multiple times, mostly through sharing it with someone who hasn’t watched, and I can’t see myself telling someone they have to watch this. I wouldn’t dissuade either though.
I’m not privy to knowing how much of the shortcomings fall upon Kane, but a Deadline article claims he was 100% in control. And shortcomings might be a strong word as it implies faults and not just (unprofessional) opinions on the matter, but this is my blog so it stays in. Perhaps it’s just the growing pains of working in Hollywood with teams of people and not just yourself using Blender.
I’m still quite curious to see Kanes next project, but not nearly to the same degree as I am for Obsession’s Clive Barker Curry Barker. Assuming I have the free time, I will go see Barkers next movie “Anything But Ghosts” opening weekend, going in blind. For Kane I will at least wait for 1 or 2 reviewers I respect talk about it first.
Fractured (2019) ~3.5 (YES, Spoilers)
To get things I did like out of the way, the movie was shot very well and, outside the kid, the acting seemed fine to me.
Another youtuber recommendation, one who covers horror films, who did a tier list for twists. This movie had an “S” tier twist and was talked about in high praise besides the twist. Now some of the movies rankings I agreed with, more than half I didn’t quite know, and one I found egregious.
Spoilers for Shutter Island
Putting “Shutter Island (2010)” SPOILERS in “F” tier just because the twist is related to someones mental illness (of which I have even seen good fan theories talking about how he might not be crazy). I could understand not liking mental illness as plot explanations but does Shutter Island not get a pass?
Also doesn’t Fractured not have an unreliable protagonist? Does this not fall under mental illness anyway???
Back to Fractured
Even so, I decided to give fracture a blind watch and it was a struggle for me. I didn’t like our protagonist (which can be done well - but were we suppose to like this guy?) and many of his actions took me out of the moment. Even the start of the movie scenes that I’m pretty sure were to be taken seriously had me laughing out loud.
Even if you want to excuse crazy actions made by a crazy guy (which I don’t), we also have other characters who act in ways that wouldn’t happen. Those cops going from handing an drug OD’er to the hospital, to investigating a missing wife, to hospital kidnapping conspiracy.
Now the therapist doing an impromptu session with our protagonist after reviewing his case file would make sense if the conspiracy was true. But because of the last 3 minutes of the movie, we know the protag is just crazy and blocking out what he did. Why would the therapist or the cops follow up to the gas station?
The movie wouldn’t be perfect but I would’ve enjoyed it better if the last 3 minutes was taken out or at least left ambiguous.
Conclusion
Well those are my thoughts. I won’t be doing many movies here but these were on my mind. Especially the contrast between characters taking actions I wouldn’t take but either taking me out of the movie or fully fitting how this character would behave in this world.
How a good day, good night, and all that jazz.