Sony Pictures | 2009 | 108 mins | Rated PG-13
At first glance, Obsessed seemed like a great opportunity for pop diva Beyoncé Knowles to stretch her acting wings and play something other than, well, a pop diva. We get to see her bare her claws both literally and metaphorically in a fight for her man. Unfortunately, Obsessed, directed by Steve Shill, plays out like a movie of the week on Lifetime Television. Maybe that is due to the fact that Shill has spent years directing countless television shows. It seems like Obsessed wants to be Fatal Attraction light for the 21st century but Shill and screenwriter David Loughery (Star Trek V: The Final Frontier) have created something so dull and shockingly unsexy, the two films aren’t in the same category by a long shot.
Derek (Idris Elba) and Sharon (Beyoncé Knowles) Charles are happily married and just moved into a luxurious new home, have an infant son and Derek is on the verge of huge success at the L.A. financial firm where he works. A new office temp named Lisa (Ali Larter), finds herself instantly attracted to Derek and manages to create a situation where the two are forced to work closely together. Initially Derek ignores Lisa’s harmless flirting but things quickly escalate into stalking. As a result, Derek is forced to tell his wife, who immediately goes in to action; defending her husband’s honor until the bitter end.
Much of Obsessed just doesn’t make any sense. However, the biggest problem with the film is the character of Lisa. Clearly modeled after the Glen Close character in Fatal Attraction, Larter just doesn’t have the chops to pull it off. She plays the character as such a psychological mess, she never makes one cohesive point. On top of that, we’re never given the slightest clue what has motivated her to be so obsessed with Derek. As a result, she comes across like countless other movie vamps with ruby red lips, stalking around in high heels. Larter overplays the sex kitten stuff to the point of camp, which eventually waters down her believability as a villain. If the central figure of fear becomes a joke, a movie is pretty much toast.
Obsessed had a shot at being an interesting look at non-mutual attraction between people of a different color–sort of like a Blaxplotation movie for the 21st century–but instead, the film lands with a thud. A purely conventional thriller that lets the audience know what’s going to happen almost from the opening scene, Obsessed will likely only appeal to the most ardent of Beyoncé Knowles fans.
Obsessed comes to Blu-ray with a solid 1080p transfer framed in its original 2.39:1 aspect ratio. The image shows solid depth and top-notch detail across the entire field-of-view. Several overhead cityscape shots showcase extraordinary detail in faraway objects, particularly in buildings and roadways. The transfer allows the beautiful interior of the Charles’ home — the hardwood floors and other wooden accents in particular — to stand out nicely. The image does take on a rather warm appearance in such scenes, and flesh tones often follow suit by exhibiting a slightly red push. By contrast, the office scenes take on a cold, steely gray and blue appearance, the contrast between the two primary locations clear in thematic intent. On occasion, the image goes a bit soft. Blacks also look deep and dark but occasionally drown out fine details. Nevertheless, the transfer is clean and a subtle layer of grain offers a cinematic appearance; Obsessed looks very good on Blu-ray.
Obsessed has a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Since this is a dialogue driven film, the track does what’s required of it admirably. The track features several popular songs, each offering up a crystal-clear reproduction in both the instrumental accompaniments and the lyrics. There are a few instances where the track delivers a rather impressive, environmental atmosphere; an establishing nighttime shot of the Charles’ home is accompanied by the sound of crickets in the background and a few small audible details in the office scenes create a mostly realistic aural environment. The rear speakers serve up the occasional discrete effect, perhaps most notably during the climax. Obsessed’s lossless soundtrack accomplishes all that is required of it.
Obsessed has a couple of fairly bland special features:
• Playing Nicely Together (1080p, 15:37) is a “making-of” piece that explores the film’s origins, the script, the themes, the performances, etc.
• Girl Fight! (1080p, 11:13) looks at the process to bring the film’s climax to the big screen.
• Obsessed: Dressed to Kill (1080p, 9:30) examines the sets and costumes in the film.
• BD-Live (Blu-ray profile 2.0) functionality.
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