The film isHitchcockianthrough and through, both stylistically and thematically.
What Is ‘Obsession’ About?
Wracked with guilt, Michael lives in the shadow of his family’s ghosts for over a decade.
Image by Zanda Rice
He is immediately transfixed by her, and asks her to lunch.
The two begin seeing each other, and here is where the obvious parallels betweenObsessionandVertigoare the most obvious.
De Palma, for better or worse, has always embraced camp in his films.
Image via Paramount Pictures
Similar to Hitchcock, De Palma doesn’t indulge in sentimentality.
Obsessionsees De Palma exploring how grief could potentially unlock some really unnerving aspects of one’s personality.
Michael’s humanity has been lost following the guilt and grief of losing his family.
Image via Paramount Pictures
What’s brilliant aboutObsessionis that it keeps you guessing as to who the villain of the story really is.
Any outcome is unsurprising considering how the film keeps its audience at a chilly arm’s length.
This relentlessly bleak Paul Schrader film showcases some of Dafoe’s finest moments as an actor.
Despite the film’s deceptively happy ending, there are underlying insinuations that remain disturbing.
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