That Poor Girl

I watched "Obsession" the other day. I won't go into spoilers here (this is more of a baseline thing, I think), because I truly think that if you're down for horror with an incredibly dark sense of humor that you should see it. However, in my somewhat empty late night showing, I couldn't help but repeat the words "this/that poor girl."

The idea of one's consent and bodily autonomy in fiction being taken away from them isn't a new one. From brainwashing to hypnotism to a character coming back wrong, there are multiple ways to explore how a character would feel if that base notion was taken away from them. However, with "Obsession," I couldn't help but notice how...natural it all felt? Like, the characters and how they interact and how they play off of each other (to great credit towards the cast and direction). They react like people I know would react, or people I've met would react. They speak like people I would know speak, with all of the sarcastic humor of 20-somethings trying to figure out their lives and who they want to become.

But for one, that exploration is taken away. It's done in a desperate manner, to delay or disrupt the idea of being rejected. No longer is she allowed to understand or even control her fate; she is now what he thought he wanted her to be.

I wonder sometimes if there are people out there who--if they had a One Wish Willow--would have done the same to me. To change me, to shape me into something more palatable to their perception of me. Would I try to fight every bit of it? Would I even be aware?

Could I fight back and assert myself as I've seen many of my favorite characters do in my life?

I don't know. Maybe it's all just rambling in this headspace of mine, even when I'm not nearly as ascendant as I was when I started this lil' blog.

It's nice to put down some thoughts, though.

Seriously, watch "Obsession," it's brutal at times, but it's so good--