How wonderfully weird this monkey paw curls. The premise of Obsession is easy to explain as a careful-what-you-wish-for tale of terror, but it’s absurd to reduce it to such simplicity. What makes the skin crawl in such a movie is not the concept of wishes, but the unease of being in a possessive relationship that quickly festers into the realm of the disturbing. One moment you’re having a nice date with the one you love, and the next you’re trying to avert a public meltdown that threatens to grow violent. And, wow, does it get gruesome.

The mistake of a wish is made by Bear (Michael Johnston), a music store employee with little going on in his life. He lives alone, his cat has died, and he’s terrified about asking out his best friend Nikki (Inde Navarrette). Desperate in the dark, he scrolls through her social media and debates when to ask her the big question of going steady. A fumbling of trying to use an old nickname leads him to indulge a wish-granting willow he purchased from a mystic shop. Hardly thinking it would work, he wishes for Nikki to love him more than anybody else in the world. It works immediately, and Nikki’s attitude changes from being pissed to flirty. Even someone as craving for Nikki’s attention can sense something is off and doesn’t feel right about this change in relationship status.

So much of this horror scenario relies on how well Navarrette can pull off a deeply disturbed woman whose undying love makes every moment with her intense. In the foreground, she has an awkward presence with her eerie grin and needy eyes. But in the background, she is even more terrifying, whether in dark silhouette or blending into the background. You want to leave her gaze, but can’t look away for fear of what will happen when you do. Navarrette’s performance is so extreme that there are several moments of whiplash, with her quick reversion almost comical as she goes from screaming to a sweet “okay” when she gets her way. There are also a few moments where the real Nikki tries to scream for help, but is quickly beaten back inside by an aggressive version of herself. This character is so fascinating that the film would’ve benefited from seeing more of her perspective rather than through the fearful and regretful eyes of Bear.

There is no escape for Bear, even with his most devoted friends taking note of the strange situation. Bear’s friend, Ian (Cooper Tomlinson), tries to stage a boys’ night to get Bear out of Nikki’s creepy grip, but it fails. Bear’s other friend and secret crush, Sarah (Megan Lawless), can do more than provide small comforts to Bear as she struggles to get into a good college. One could hardly blame them for keeping a distance from Nikki. Any attempt to steer Bear away is met with the most awkward expressions and the most uncomfortable atmosphere, where Nikki isn’t above getting violent. This eventually leads to a gnarly conclusion of brutal displays, including an unforgettable moment involving a brick that proceeds almost as long as Nikki’s uncomfortable laughter.

The atmosphere and performances go a long way in making the many horror movie hallmarks less routine. The movie starts with Bear’s cat dying, and if you thought that cat’s suffering was over, you’d be wrong. Nikki’s obsession extends into the realm of home decor and scatological measures to keep her man under stricter lock and key, to the point where she duct-tapes the door shut. There are, of course, some rules to the wishes, but it’s never treated as a long road of revelations that distract from the greater social commentary. That said, it would have been intriguing to see more of the byproducts from Bear’s ill-thought-out wish than just reveling in the mess he has made by thinking less about others. That selfish desire amid isolation is given only a handful of bitter moments of realization before the film returns to Nikki’s toxic relationship rampage, marvelous as that carnage may be.

Obsession is horrific in all the best ways for updating a familiar premise into a relationship horror anchored by haunting shots and top-tier acting. Before becoming the obsessed version Bear desires, Nikki brings up a novel she is writing and explains that it’s not a love story but a romance. Bear can’t see the difference and ultimately learns the hard way how different these concepts can be. You can crave somebody else’s devotion all you want, but forcing that romance won’t make it love. It’s something to think about when scrolling through social media and coming across that one person you speculated was out of your league. Maybe it was not meant to be, and maybe awkward flirting shouldn’t be given a do-over, lest we end up with somebody whom we’re terrified to leave for a moment. It’s a horror romance in all the best/worst ways, sure to make you think twice if that crush you have will crush somebody’s skull when manipulated to your wishes.

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