Writer/Director/Editor Curry Barker is officially in the business of scaring people with the impending release of Obsession, but the idea of anyone else tackling the film’s editing terrified him.
The Monkey’s Paw scenario that sees lovelorn Bear (Michael Johnston, “Teen Wolf”) dealing with a nightmarish vision of love when his wish for crush Nikki (Inde Navarrette, “Superman & Lois”) to fall madly in love with him comes true also brings no shortage of unnerving tension, shocking moments, and bone-chilling scares.
Barker draws out the tension and awkward social encounters to a palpably discomforting degree, which is by design.
It’s those uncomfortable, pregnant pauses and unique tone that convinced Barker he was the only one who could execute his vision when it came to editing.
Barker tells Bloody Disgusting, “It was one of those things where, even on set, I was nervous that if anyone else touched this, it wouldn’t be what I want it to be, and nervous that even if I were to cut it, that people wouldn’t get it and that I would have to cut some of my moments out. It’s always a thought in your head. You’re like, ‘No, trust me. It’s cool. It’s going to be unnerving if you just let me hold on it for this much longer.’ It was defending that.“
The rising filmmaker credits his sketch comedy background for developing his instincts when it comes to timing out the scares and really messing with the heads of his characters. “When you edit for years and years, there’s a certain rhythm that you kind of pick up, where you’re like, ‘Then it should cut to this person, and then it should hold on this,‘ and you can almost close your eyes and feel it, and then be like, ‘Okay, and then it should cut.‘ If you can close your eyes and see the scene, when do you think it cuts to the next shot? When you feel that, you probably should cut, right?“
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“But it’s something you pick up over years and years,” he continues, “but also comedy really lends itself to horror. I think it’s because, as a comedian, you’re constantly studying the human condition. You’re constantly studying psychology, why people react the way they react, and why they talk the way they talk, and so when you’re constantly thinking about that, it really lends itself well to creating a story that’s very psychological.“
It also helps that the comedian-turned-horror-filmmaker is a fan of the genre, using that familiarity to navigate and avoid common horror tropes.
“I just think about the movies that I like, and if I roll my eyes because I’m like, ‘Why would they do that?‘ or ‘What made her choose to do that?‘ I’m constantly trying not to have that in my films.“
Inde Navarrette commands the screen as Freaky Nikki, the inhuman entity holding Bear’s crush hostage in her own body. When asked whether there were deeper conversations or backstories about the entity informing Navarrette’s riveting performance, Barker explains that he instead wanted to ground the supernatural in as much reality as possible.
“I actually just told her to play crazy, jealous girlfriend. Most of the time, it wasn’t like, ‘Play this demonic entity.’ It was like, ‘In the circumstances that you love him so much that you’re watching him sleep, play this out. Why are you watching him sleep? Because you love him that much, and why are you wearing his sweater, because it smells like him?‘ There’s a because for everything. I try to make a because for everything, and hopefully for an actor, that becomes easier when you can kind of justify the things that you’re doing. She doesn’t just go on a killing spree, and it becomes like a slasher film. It’s just not like that.“
Bear is arguably the much trickier role to cast, as the sweet romantic hopeful who’s ultimately responsible for what’s happening. Michael Johnston has the tough task of ensuring audience allegiances despite his character’s duplicity.
Barker had a specific approach to finding his Bear, but found himself immediately won over by Johnston’s portrayal. “The first way you attack it is finding someone who plays that awkward, but kind of charming, really, really well. He played this awkwardness really well right off the get, and he has this voice, like a very specific voice. He does a lot of voiceover work, and I didn’t know that until after, but he has a very specific voice that I clung onto. Then, I discovered this darkness in him, under his eyes, that he was so good at playing.
“Oh. This is Bear. So, he plays the innocence of doing the wrong thing, and he plays the innocence of that, and so it was like, boom.“
Prepare to meet your new horror Obsession when it releases in theaters on May 15.
