Anna R
This movie read like it might have an interesting plot, but the reality is that it was just the most unbelievable idea, possible.
You don't have to have to have a psych degree to get the basic concept that a person with antisocial personality disorder (formerly known as a sociopath) cannot be cured in mere weeks, by self- journaling and attending group therapy. Further, the idea that you'd measure results through brain scans, is even more outrageous. You cannot test for any mental health issues this way. If it was set in the future, perhaps the filmmakers might have pulled this off.
Second, the acting was terrible. The only time it became anything but laughable was during very disturbing, and sexually violent scenes, all against women. The lead, male actor saved this film from being turned off completely within the first 30 minutes. He did the best with what he had, clearly- which was a complete mess.
The film used very real characterizations of serial killers/potential serial killers, to build this character, butchering it, by combining different types. My work involves serial killers, so I have a bit more of an eye, but don't think it requires as much, to realize how off this is. The killer in this movie, is shown to portray, and struggle with, the fate of the killer we've all grown to know- the one who keeps and tortures his victims and is unable to experience empathy, while being methodically careful.
It then throws in the "accidental" killer- who kills to keep a secret and evade the threat of losing it all (success, freedom, etc). The frat boy that rapes and then kills the girl, to keep her quiet, staging an accident to avoid detection. Who "didn't want to do kill", but the "victim made me do it". Who has nightmares of the crime and/or getting caught. He kills someone he knows, unplanned. He's usually a suspect, even in a carefully staged suicide. We are supposed to believe that this type of killer is one who perpetrates, repeatedly, when that profile is a third kind- only financially motivated, usually. Or the black widows with a lover and debt.
Neither is the same profile of the first killer, who wants to show off the body of his victims, dead, and humiliate them, sometimes even revisiting the body, for pleasure. This killer almost always comes from a childhood of trauma, but we are expected to believe the killer (from a generation of latchkey kids) became this way by being left home alone at the age of NINE. It's laughable in so many ways.
Last, the idea that such a person would come across the sister of his victim, even if by targeting her, and the sister (and father) would both suspect him of the death that we are to believe was so good it fooled all law enforcement persons involved, Coroner, and part of an ongoing pattern. Her reaction to not going to Law Enforcement, the indescribably subtle "clues" that got her there, and "plan" to solve the murder, all make it even more ridiculous. The best part is trying to believe that such a study would have been able to produce legitimate participants to begin with. Sure, let me get professional help with my homicidal impulses and behavior but please don't tell anyone! It's for SCIENCE.
The finality of it all, simply tells us (SPOILER ALERT) what anyone with half a brain should already know: The "sociopath" participant never changed, and her somehow-funded, joke of a study was one that would have never made it past the IRB, let alone have been successful.
Watch only if you want to roll your eyes for 111 minutes, minus the few minutes watching disturbing rape/murder scenes, accompanied by an unbelievable dialogue of a killer who can't decide which profile he is. I'm a B movie lover, with a low bar when it comes to film. I'm almost always in the 2% who liked a movie with a 52% rating. 51% is my standard to watch a movie, to begin with. You have to really mess up to get one star from me. I can't remember watching a one star movie, even, let alone leaving less than 3 stars.
I charge $50/hr to consult and could've corrected this script for less than a few hundred dollars. How does anyone move forward with a budget for a film without first do the necessary research for a script?
I'm no writer but would never attempt a script, written about something I was unfamiliar with, without first doing enough reading on the subject to become a slight expert on the topic. That feels like it shouldn't be said. Writers, take note for the future. I'm not offering the formula for success but I'm certainly providing the recipe to avoid another disaster like this one.
Rated 1/5 Stars •
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
07/31/23
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