SPOILER ALERT: This text comprises spoilers for “Obsession,” now enjoying in theaters.
Twenty-six year-old director Curry Barker began his filmmaking profession by posting short-form movies on TikTok, YouTube and different social media platforms. That led him to taking pictures an hour-long, twisty horror film known as “Milk & Serial” that put him on the map after he launched it without cost on YouTube. Now, Barker is bringing his first-ever full-length movie to theaters this weekend with “Obsession” from Focus Options.
“Obsession,” which obtained rave critiques out of the Toronto Movie Pageant final 12 months, follows a easy premise: a man needs for his childhood crush to fall in love with him. Nevertheless, issues shortly take a supernaturally darkish flip. Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette star as the principle couple, Bear and Nikki, who fall sufferer to the One Want Willow, a wish-granting toy with terrifying outcomes. After Bear makes his want, Nikki turns into unhealthily obsessive about him. She watches him whereas he sleeps, barricades her door so he can’t depart and threatens to kill herself so he’ll keep together with her. In a surprisingly gory scene, she kills Bear’s feminine co-worker by slamming her head right into a steering wheel after Nikki grows jealous.
Afraid of Nikki, Bear learns that there’s no strategy to undo his want except he dies. In the long run, he overdoses in Nikki’s arms as she snaps out of her want and realizes the horror round her. If that sounds darkish, Barker initially had an much more morbid ending the place Nikki kills herself within the remaining moments of the film. With Selection, Barker discusses making his theatrical debut, the alternate ending and his subsequent two films “Anything but Ghosts,” with Aaron Paul and Bryce Dallas Howard, and A24’s “Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”
©Focus Options/Courtesy Everett Assortment
The place did you first get the concept for “Obsession”?
I used to be toying round with this concept of “Obsession” for some time. I used to be intrigued by the concept of of a man being obsessive about a woman, or a woman being obsessive about a man, and that going completely bonkers. However I hadn’t cracked the story actually but, after which as soon as I found the want component of it, I spotted that was my approach in. It’s a couple of man who makes a want that the lady was obsessive about him, after which she turns into loopy and it will get worse and worse. I used to be form of shocked at how little that had really been achieved.
That is nonetheless grounded however has extra of a supernatural component than “Milk and Serial.” Why was that one thing you wished to discover?
It’s thrilling to dive right into a extra supernatural component, however the factor that excites me about it’s to do it from a special angle. I prefer to put abnormal folks in a unprecedented state of affairs that couldn’t presumably occur in actual life set in our actual world. That excites me as a result of then the chances are infinite. What should you did a ghost film, however it was set in the true world? On this case, it’s a wish-gone-wrong film, however you set it in the true world the place the implications and characters really feel actual. That was an angle I hadn’t actually seen. I need to do fantastical issues, however I simply need to floor them in the true world. I would like the principles of life to nonetheless apply. If I have been to do a superhero film, it might really feel so grounded. The response ought to really feel very real. In the event you’re studying to fly, what does that really really feel like? What psychological issues are going via your head whenever you determine that out? What number of buddies would you name? That’s thrilling to me.
Is taking pictures a superhero film in your filmmaking bucket record?
I imply, it’s not like I’m racing to do it. If the correct alternative introduced itself and it was one thing I might actually sink my tooth into, I might do something. It additionally would matter how far they’d enable me to go together with it. What would my inventive management be? I simply need to be a storyteller and inform good tales the place characters change and so they study one thing, and perhaps we study one thing too.
Was it at all times your objective to go from making short-form movies on the web to directing a characteristic? Was there ever a pinch-me second for you when you wrapped taking pictures?
Yeah, it’s a dream come true. I at all times aspired to be within the conventional world. After we first moved out, we simply wished to get our foot within the door. Now, I’m doing it. It’s completely insane how shortly it occurred to me as a result of it was form of an in a single day factor with TIFF at the very least, and my life has actually not been the identical since. One of many pinch-me moments was not too long ago once I’m strolling down the road and I see the “Obsession” billboard subsequent to the carwash that I at all times get my automotive washed at. I keep in mind my agent taking a look at me after TIFF — that is somebody who’s had purchasers which have made it and who is aware of this business is like — saying to me, “Your life is never going to be the same. Your life just changed.” I used to be listening to him and taking that in, but in addition being, like, we’ll see. It’s an excessive amount of for a human to understand at the moment.
Do you’ve gotten an evidence for a way the One Want Willow works and what really occurred to Nikki?
As a author, it’s solely essential to bear in mind the main points that matter for the story. I solely have to know as a lot as what’s going to assist me push the story ahead and no matter is essential for the viewers and characters to know. All the things else, it’s form of enjoyable that it lives on this ambiguous world. What I’ve additionally realized from doing web content material from lots is that folks will let you know what the solutions are. It’s virtually like they’ll do the be just right for you should you allow them to. With my quick movie “The Chair,” there are such a lot of theories folks have provide you with, and I’m form of simply “yes and-ing” it, as a result of why not? If it’s within the film, I might in all probability let you know the reply as a result of it pertains to the story, however the second you begin asking questions for issues that the film by no means actually dives into, the lore doesn’t matter an excessive amount of. However I get it as a result of it does matter to folks. I feel at some point, if I wished to, I might provide you with all the principles. I don’t know the place Nikki is. She’s in some kind of purgatory. She’s being held someplace, and it’s not good.
Was that at all times the ending you had in thoughts? Secure to say, it was by no means going to be a cheerful ending for Bear and Nikki?
Yeah, positively. Bear and Nikki get their endings, and every little thing’s form of wrapped up on the finish. The one factor that’s totally different is there was an alternate ending the place Nikki does kill herself.
Why didn’t you utilize that ending?
It was within the script, that’s what was presupposed to occur. She initially awoke, like she does within the film, with the gun already in her mouth, as a result of you possibly can see that she’s about to do it. She wakes up and sees this gun, and she or he’s like, “Oh my God, where am I? What was I about to do?” She appears to be like round, sees Bear and pushes him off of her. She realizes that is the primary time she’s had any management over herself shortly. She places the gun in her mouth once more and ends all of it due to the horror that she’s been via. We simply determined that it was extra brutal if she stays alive.
What did you study going out of your quick movie “Milk & Serial” to directing this feature-length movie?
That is the primary characteristic that I ever edited. It’s a much bigger venture than enhancing shorts. Telling a narrative and holding the viewers’s consideration for that lengthy is a special beast than holding the eye of an viewers for, 10, 20, half-hour. I used to be rising that muscle. This film felt like a bunch of children getting collectively and doing one thing and hoping that the adults don’t come house and inform us that we’ve got to cease. I actually felt like we have been getting away with homicide. I assumed somebody was going to inform us we’ve got to tone it down or there have been guidelines we needed to comply with. We have been all actually comfortable that by no means occurred. We constructed the home, we put wallpaper up. Having a schedule was very totally different, like Monday via Friday, 12-hour days was so totally different than the “Milk and Serial.”
I used to be studying that the one rule you needed to comply with was to chop again on the variety of head smashes within the automotive scene to keep away from an NC-17 ranking.
Yeah, I used to be so upset about that initially and scared that it was going to alter the integrity of the scene. I used to be scared to the touch it, as a result of I had already seen the response at TIFF. I didn’t need to mess up no matter good is occurring right here. Nevertheless it was wonderful. I feel the integrity of the scene remains to be there. No matter we have been in a position to do, it really works.
Had been there every other adjustments you needed to make?
Simply issues that have been both notes from the producers, like runtime. I feel this film was operating just a little lengthy, so I minimize some issues down. I might like to at some point do a director’s minimize. There are such a lot of issues that haven’t been seen that that might add to an extended minimize of this film. That might be actually thrilling.
We want the total head-smash minimize.
Put these again in. Put in that alternate ending. We shot it, that was the unique ending. Put again in her monologue on the automotive, the place she talks about love and romance. Let this film breathe just a bit bit extra. It will be enjoyable to experiment and do a brand new minimize of it.
Your subsequent movie, “Anything but Ghosts,” has an excellent greater solid than this one. What stage is that movie at?
We simply wrapped, looks like solely two weeks in the past. It’s been a curler coaster, man. I haven’t had a time off in, like, 4 months. It’s been insane, like a continuous practice, however I adore it. That is what my agent meant when he checked out me and stated my life goes to alter. I’m so enthusiastic about “Anything but Ghosts.” It’s very totally different than “Obsession,” and that’s thrilling for me as a director to do one thing that’s not precisely the identical, however it does share tonality. It’s nonetheless set within the grounded world. It ought to really feel like, what would you do should you found ghosts have been actual? How would you react, and the way would that emotionally have an effect on you? These guys are con artists, and so they don’t even consider in ghosts. They name themselves ghost hunters, however they’re simply glorified magicians.
You’ve labored with gifted folks earlier than, however “Anything but Ghosts” options Aaron Paul and Bryce Dallas Howard, which is a few large star energy. What was it like directing them?
I used to be nervous at first, as a result of I’ve very particular concepts of what the scene appears to be like like for me. I didn’t know what Aaron Paul’s or Bryce Dallas Howard’s course of was going to be. I instructed my dad I used to be nervous to direct these actually respectable actors, however he stated, “They want to be directed and you’re going to let them down if you don’t give them direction.” That actually meant lots to me. They need to be guided by me. The explanation they stated sure is as a result of they appreciated me and “Obsession.” After assembly Aaron and Bryce, they’re actually each essentially the most candy folks I’ve ever met in Hollywood. They have been really easy to work with and giving suggestions and notes. They’re so gifted that I discovered myself having much less to say as a result of they’d learn the fabric and actually understood it on such a deep degree.
You’re additionally performing in that one. Do you see your self persevering with to behave within the movies you direct?
Cooper and I are the 2 primary characters of this. You’ll see quite a lot of my face in that one. It was fairly a problem to be in entrance of the digital camera and behind the digital camera. However I’m not going to pressure myself into films only for the sake of it. If I see a personality that I feel I might play very well, then I would give it a go, however the film is at all times going to be crucial to me.
What are you able to say about your upcoming tackle “Texas Chainsaw Massacre”?
It’s gonna be grounded, brutal, uncooked. It needs to be very, very uncomfortable. I simply need to nail the tone. I need to make you care in regards to the characters that we’re on the journey with. I need to give a deeper story to whoever is on this street journey. Similar to Bear, Nikki and Sarah are characters that you just by no means knew earlier than — I imply, everyone knows Leatherface and the Sawyers — however what are the characters that I can invent that we will develop to care about. In the event that they do die brutally, we’ll really be unhappy that they died. It was one thing that I had voiced to my workforce that I used to be actually enthusiastic about. I knew A24 had simply gotten the rights to it, and I used to be like, “As far as IP goes, that’s something I would love to tackle.” It was a match made in heaven and all the celebrities aligning without delay for me to to get that one.
