Film Review: Sociopathia

In this indie serial killer thriller we meet Mara, a special effects artist whose fear of being alone leads her to risky situations and terrible actions. When a lover, even a one night stand, tries to leave her she takes desperate measures to keep them around and the only thing that seems to calm her is her growing collection of “dolls.” When Mara begins a relationship with Kat, the producer of a film she is working on, Mara enters into a massive internal struggle with her psychosis, which has external effects.

Sociopathia is really a solid independent film with a decent cast and strong characters. The story is pretty tight and well written and pulls a lot of influence from previous films, such as Maniac and Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer, while maintaining its own identity. Disappointingly, it is only part of a story as we get little information on Mara’s back-story, which could have deepened the story a bit by providing us with a catalyst for her fear of being alone. The movie also features some very good practical effects and the occasional too-noticeable digital enhancement, but overall the gore is impressive. Sociopathia also has a lot of good atmosphere aided by in-depth set design and its soundtrack, which features New England-based musical acts Courage Cloaks and J/Q, who are just a couple of the numerous New England connections this Baltimore production has.

Sociopathia is a good movie and an impressive example of super low budget filmmaking. Sociopathia is available now on VOD and DVD and I would recommend checking it out.

Sociopathia (2015); Directors: Ruby Larocca, Rich Mallery; Starring: Tammy Jean, Nicola Fiore, Asta Paredes