Obsessed
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The Story
Life couldn’t be better for Derek (Idris Elba), a successful young business man with a beautiful wife (Beyonce Knowles), a great son, a big promotion, and a brand new house. But Lisa (Ali Larter), the new secretarial temp in his office, is about to change all of that.
Determined to steal Derek for herself, the unbalanced Lisa manipulates her way into the role of his assistant, subtly sabotages his relationship with his wife Sharon, and finally corners him in the men’s room at an office party to try to seduce him.
Derek resists, but his hesitation to fully disclose everything to his wife threatens their relationship and all of Derek’s formerly happy existence. That little bit of secrecy is all Lisa needs to make her next move.
Content Issues
This is a movie about sexual infidelity, so we see plenty of sexual situations and hear lots of talk about it. Violence includes one brawl to the death, and strong language includes uses of both God’s and Jesus’ name for swearing.
Worldview Talking Points
This predictable little thriller might draw in a few teens because of the cast. Everyone knows Beyonce, and some will be curious to see “Heroes” star Ali Larter and “The Wire” star Idris Elba on the big screen. Others will just be curious about the sexual content played up in the trailer.
The film’s central message comes across as a warning to men to run away screaming when cornered by an eager adulteress—and to tell the truth about it to your wife, the police, maybe the newspaper.
That perspective is echoed in the Bible, of course, in the story of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife, as well as in Proverbs 7 where Solomon warns young men that death waits for them on the other side of the adulteress’s door.
A few of the following questions might help to stir up some conversation with your teen about these issues.
- Did you like the story told in “Obsessed”? Do you enjoy Beyonce more as an actress or a singer?
- Derek never really gave in to Lisa completely, but he could have made some much better choices. What were some of his mistakes along the way?
- What did it cost Derek not to take seriously the danger posed by Lisa’s advances and manipulations?
- Why do you think he didn’t make better choices or take the threat more seriously?
- Can you make wrong choices about sex and dating relationships even if you don’t give in fully to sexual temptation? How can “just flirting” or “just making out” lead to trouble? What’s the point of flirting or making out if you’re not going to have sex with that person?
- How would the story have been different if Derek had just refused to lie, period? Does lying ever make anything better? Why do you think God hates lying so much?
- Do movies like this really work as a warning to people to take the dangers of sexual temptation more seriously? Why or why not?
