Disc Reviews

When it comes to horror films about relationships, we’ve all gotten used to the same old story where a jilted ex-lover isn’t ready to let things go and violence and mayhem ensues. What is actually refreshing about Sociopathia is that we get a love story mixed with some graphic horror while seeing the story unfold through the eyes of a mentally unhinged young woman.  While Sociopathia may not be in the same league as Fatal Attraction, it is still a film worth watching for those who are fans of trashy, exploitive horror films.  And with Valentine’s Day right around the corner, this maybe the feel-good flick you single folks may be looking for to validate your single life.

Mara (Tammy Jean) is a single lesbian who is struggling in the dating world while also juggling her career as a film effects artist.  It’s very early on that we see Mara isn’t right in the head after we see her kill her lover and then go on to treat her in a very doll-like fashion, all while continuing to converse with the corpse as though she were still alive.  While this is effective in showing us how unstable Mara is, this turns out to be a case of too much too soon.  Once we’ve seen how far off the deep end she is, there really isn’t anywhere else for this character to go.

"Most women like a man with a bad reputation. Mind you, I'm not really bad. It's just I'm not troubled by my wicked thoughts. In fact I rather enjoy them. It's all perfectly natural. Man may have evolved from the trees, but his eyes still swing from limb to limb."

Years before he became the iconic suave British secret agent with the license to kill, Roger Moore might just have put himself in the running through his six-year run on British television’s The Saint. The show was part of the British Invasion of spy shows that came close on the heels of the first James Bond film Dr. No. Moore played Simon Templar, known throughout the globe as The Saint. While Templar wasn't really a spy, he acted like one most of the time, and the series managed to cover most of the conventions of the genre. There was always a pretty girl or two for Templar to either romance or rescue...often both. Like Bond, Templar was a globetrotter. Episodes took place all over the world. One episode might be in New York City, another in London, while the next two weeks took us from Rome to Paris by way of Monte Carlo.

When it comes to British gangster films (or just about any gangster film), you pretty much know what you are getting into: a lot of tough-guy moments filled with violence and characters living their life of excess.  To be honest, going into the film all I knew about the Kray brothers is that they were gangsters in the UK back in the 60’s, and I was pretty sure there was a Charlie Sheen film at one point about them.  With a big-budget American release Legendary, which is also about the Kray brothers, you would hope that the UK version would be able to hold its own and knock this one out of the park. 

We are first introduced to Ronnie (Simon Cotton) and Reggie (Kevin Leslie) Kray when they are nothing more than a pair of street thugs who like to fight.  They realize they can use their ability to inflict pain and turn it into a business, and the brothers start to run a protection racket in their neighborhood.  Very early on we see Reggie is the smooth negotiator of the two, and Ronnie is the loose cannon who has an unhealthy passion for violence.

"And then there's Maude."

In football there's always a lot of talk about coaching trees. You know the idea. Some great mastermind who saw his assistants go on to have success of their own and who passed that lucky charm down to others for, perhaps, generations. All In The Family would be the television equivalent to a coach with a long tree. There were an incredible number of spinoffs that lead to other spinoffs. Archie's neighbors The Jeffersons moved on up to the East Side and had their own several years of success. That show saw maid Florence had her spinoff from that show called Checking In. Meanwhile Archie's daughter had her Gloria series, and after Edith's death Archie settled into Archie Bunker's Place. Even the Bunker home had a spinoff called 704 Houser Street when a new family moved in.

Tragedy has a way of taking a toll on us in a way that is far more devastating than a physical injury.  Some tragedies occur, and they go on to haunt us till we have passed on from this mortal realm.  Meadowland is a small film that dares to take a peek at the dangerous repercussions that can follow depression when not properly treated.  Sure, we’ve seen films before that show the aftermath of a family who has tragically lost a child, but Meadowland is a film that isn’t afraid to show us the ugliness of depression and the things people are willing to do in an attempt to be who they were once again before the tragedy ever took hold.

Phil (Luke Wilson) and Sarah (Olivia Wilde) are the husband and wife who seem to have the perfect life.  Phil is an officer for the NYPD and Sarah is a public school teacher, both responsible adults who are caretakers of the community in their own unique ways, so the thought of them having their son kidnapped seems all the more unthinkable.  His disappearance is nothing dramatic but simply losing sight of him as used the restroom while making a pit stop for gas.  It’s an unthinkable nightmare I can imagine so many parents have thought about and hopefully never have to endure.