You're Not Broken. You're Obsessed.
- Paige B.
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
There is a compulsion deep inside me to latch onto something with almost all of my being for a short time and then abandon it when another thing comes along, offering a greater sense of comfort. It’s obsessive, it’s involuntary, it’s just how it’s always been. My most common and feeble habit: obsessive desire for comfort and stability, reduced to a side effect of my astrological sign: April Taurus.
Accompanying the obsessive urges is an outrageous amount of guilt, followed by anxiety, that I may be lazy or unmotivated due to my unconventional approach to performance. After a few days of self-pity and poor emotional regulation, I return to myself with grace and understanding, and the pendulum eventually swings back in a more productive, enthusiastic, and diligent direction.
Obsession gnaws at the bone. Like an itch in your spirit, you’re trying to scratch at, but your hands aren’t capable of digging that deep inside yourself. There’s no choice but to reach out and latch onto something else; fixating on it, concealing something deeper. Regardless of the form obsession manifests, its presence is looming and inescapable.
The varying depictions of obsession and the audience’s perception in cinema have always intrigued me. Obsessive tendencies typically carry a negative connotation, unless they are regarding bettering your current circumstance. Nina Sayers in Black Swan is seen as fragile, deeply insecure, and yet undoubtedly disciplined. Here, the inability to find a balance outside of dance leads to her demise. In a similar vein, Marty Mauser from Marty Supreme is viewed as reckless and borderline sociopathic in his pursuit of greatness; that passion and hunger lead him to victory, no matter how small and personal it may be. These characters embody varying degrees of obsession, shaping our perception of whether they deserve their success based on the measures they took to achieve it.
I have created a list of fifteen of my favorite films that explore obsession, for when you’re feeling compulsive. Nothing pairs better with an uncontrollable, persistent, and intrusive preoccupation with a specific idea, desire, or feeling than a movie about that exact experience, testing your patience. Grab your favorite fixation food or drink of the week and get comfortable. The flavor of the week is: Obsession. Cin Cin!
www.RachelOrmont.com (2024)
A woman bred in captivity to serve an advertising agency becomes obsessed with the celebrity she was assigned to assess.
Starring: Betsy Brown & Chloe Cherry
Bugonia (2025)
Two men obsessed with conspiracy theories kidnap the CEO of a major company to see if she’s an alien.
Starring: Emma Stone & Jesse Plemons
In My Skin (2002)
After receiving an unexpected leg injury at a party, a woman becomes enamored with her own body, leading her to mutilate her own flesh.
Starring: Marina de Van
Lurker (2025)
A retail clerk gets the opportunity of a lifetime to join the entourage of a rising pop star, but the lines of their relationship begin to blur quite quickly.
Starring: Theodore Pellerin & Archie Madekwe
Fear (1996)
A young girl’s perfect boyfriend is everything she’s ever dreamed of, but as his mask slips over time, her love story turns into a nightmare.
Starring: Reese Witherspoon & Mark Wahlburg
Nightcrawler (2014)
A man desperate for work becomes a crime journalist in LA. As he obsesses over this new role and its opportunities, he plays both the observer and the subject of these crimes.
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal & Rene Russo
Misery (1990)
A nurse rescues a man after an accident, and the man happens to be her favorite writer. Taking him hostage in a cabin in Colorado, he must fight for his life to survive by bringing a book character back from the dead.
Starring: Kathy Bates & James Caan
Possession (1981)
A young woman mysteriously leaves her family. Determined to get answers, her husband starts following her around, only to find bizarre incidents that indicate something more than a possessed love affair.
Starring: Isabelle Adjani & Sam Neil
Blue Velvet (1986)
The discovery of a severed human in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.
Starring: Isabella Rosselini & Kyle MacLachlan
Dinner in America (2020)
A punk rocker and a young girl obsessed with a local band go on an unexpected journey together through the decaying suburbs of the American Midwest.
Starring: Kyle Gallner & Emily Skeggs
Ingrid Goes West (2017)
A woman becomes obsessed with a social media star and decides to drop everything to become her friend.
Starring: Aubrey Plaza & Elizabeth Olsen
Black Swan (2010)
A prima ballerina is determined to be cast in the lead role of Swan Lake; already consumed by dance, her dedication to the role begins to drive her mad.
Starring: Natalie Portman & Mila Kunis
Marty Supreme (2025)
A young man sets out to become the greatest ping pong player in the world, but his actions and ambitions might be too great to manage.
Starring: Timothee Chalamet & Gweneth Paltrow
A man makes a wish for his crush to love him more than anyone in the world. When he gets exactly what he asked for, he realizes he might’ve made a grave mistake.
Starring: Indee Navarette & Michael Johnston
A man left out of his family’s inheritance is determined to get his lick back; he’ll stop at nothing, no matter how many relatives stand in his way.
Starring: Glen Powell & Margaret Qualley
Do you rule over your obsessions, or do your obsessions rule over you? Fixating on people, places, and things, like many things, is okay in moderation, but when it begins to blur the line within your own reality, it may be time to refocus. Each of these films depicts the idea of obsession in different facets, exploring themes of self-discovery and destruction.
That itch inside of you that you wish to scratch is not an invitation for you to claw at yourself or your spirit. Like a looping thought, or a compulsive feeling, it’s simply out of your control. What is in your hands is how you cope with these sporadic moments, and what you choose to reach out and latch onto in these fits of desperation.
Movies are meant to make you feel, and these movies made me feel less bad about my habits and obsessions; I hope they give you some relief about your own, or worse. Til next time, stay flirty, stay thirsty, watch more movies together, make more movies together.
Cin Cin!
Paige B.
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