Publication Date: 09-06-2026

Obsessed (2009) review

Dir. Steve Shill

By: Steve Pulaski

Rating: ★★★

Whereas most moviegoers were likely compelled to see Obsessed back in 2009 due to the presence of Beyoncé Knowles, I asked my mother to take me to the theater opening weekend in April — about six months before I started regularly writing film reviews — because I was such a fan of Ali Larter from the first two Final Destination films. Larter’s Clear Rivers was a quieter, more philosophical character than her contemporaries in both flicks, and her acting was also a cut above. I left that theater wholly satisfied by this PG-13 riff on the Fatal Attraction formula. 17 years later, it’s a relief to say the film still holds up for those looking for a pulpy diversion anchored by three compelling performances.

Within the first few scenes of Steve Shill’s movie, Larter’s Lisa Sheridan is introduced as the new sultry office temp(tress), who will be working for the suave, happily married Derek Charles (Idris Elba). Derek and his wife Sharon (Knowles) have a young boy, and he has been ascending rapidly up the ladder at his LA investment firm. But Sharon isn’t so keen on Derek’s new female assistant, perhaps because she knows the inner-machinations of how an office romance brews. After all, she was once in Lisa’s stiletto heels, from what we can infer.

Derek isn’t Michael Douglas’ Dan Gallagher. Whether it’s Lisa making a drunken pass in a bathroom stall at the office Christmas party, or cornering him in his own vehicle to reveal what’s underneath her trenchcoat (remember, it’s PG-13), Derek ardently refuses to engage. Frustrating to some is the fact that screenwriter David Loughery doesn’t pick a lane in which to explore this setup further. Lisa isn’t afforded any backstory. We don’t find out from where she came, or why she set her sights on Derek, other than she truly misinterpreted his initial, elevator gaze as something sensually tinged. Interracial politics aren’t explored one iota — something Elba later claimed most attracted him to the material — and did I mention that the film’s rating means we won’t get that sex scene we so often crave in erotic thrillers?

All of these omissions appear to be features, not bugs, at least from my vantage point. There’s nothing wrong with Elba’s morally good family man and Lakers fan — Magic Johnson is one of the film’s executive producers — refusing to take Lisa’s bait. The lack of concretion afforded to Lisa and her persistent, unrequited advances makes her seem more volatile and unpredictable. Just as Lisa’s actions start to turn obsessive with an unannounced appearance at a conference followed by a trip to the emergency room, Beyoncé’s role as a doting mother and a faithful wife evolves into one of a woman who will not dare be disrespected by another woman and damn sure not by her own husband. When Loughery’s script includes her into the story, the globally beloved singer rises to the occasion and absolutely steals the third act right out from under a (very good) Elba. The ensuing fisticuffs sequence between Beyoncé and Larter remains known for a reason, and the fight choreography and combative adrenaline between the two performers, who are acting against their own types in the process, is riveting to watch, no camp required.

Starring: Idris Elba, Beyoncé Knowles, Ali Larter, Bruce McGill, Jerry O’Connell, and Christine Lahti. Directed by: Steve Shill.