Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Ketrivie It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

Hulkeasexo it is the rare 'crazy' movie that actually has something to say.

Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Michael Ledo Sean (Ty Hickson) lives in Uncle Ron's trailer in the woods. He is attempting to make gold using an alchemist book. He is isolated and is brought supplies by Cortez (Amari Cheatom). Neither are likable characters. Sean goes off his meds and begins to see things...are they demons from his experiment or is he descending into madness.The film was basically a one man play and I was bored watching/hearing Sean chomp on chips, play with chemicals, light candles, and tend for a cat. It isn't until an hour into the film that anything exciting happens.Not for everyone. Not for me, although it may find a small niche.Guide: F-word. Male butt nudity

Sicknology I was expecting big things after Buzzard (2014) and Potrykus has not disappointed. It's much more than meets the eye in terms of the central theme and if you look at how the main character interacts with the objects around him, you can see what the real story is.

Joseph Godfrey An anxiety ridden man retreats to the woods with his cat in hopes of discovering how to turn any metal into gold. After attempts with elemental science, he quickly turns to alchemaic magic and summons the devil Belial who takes possession of the man.Dialogue is important to me - especially when scenery is limited. A good dialogue (for example from Toni Morrison to Quentin Tarantino) will capture the audience an hold them for hours without blinking. The dialogue in The Alchemist's Cookbook gave me time to check my Twitter account ... twice.I assumed this film could be an ad-lib or improvised performance, but I'm certain that isn't true. This is the first work I've watched from Joel Potrykus. He seems to be motivated by the horror genre which I would love to see in most writers. The problem is Potrykus' attempt to connect it with the real world. There are things in reality that one does not need an imagination to view as horrific - But the translation of mythology to realism eludes many people and (award-winner or not) Joel Potrykus is one of them.The Alchemist Cookbook seeks to rely on the performance of a single actor, that being Ty Hickson. I'm not familiar with Hickson but I want to guess his character is far removed from himself. While the acting isn't anything to scoff over (It's not easy pretending to be alone staring into a mirror while a camera is on you) - I have no idea who Sean is, what he does or did, or even why he's in the situation we find him in. Sean is a void. He's a man in the woods with a cat, so I had to figure him to be the proverbial "crazy cat-lady" that has vacated society because of her crippling obsessions.That being - There's a desperate need to understand how a crazy cat-lady got to be where she is. Who was Sean before he became a crazy cat-lady? How about something simple like, "What happened to your leg?".All in all - I didn't enjoy this movie. I wouldn't recommend it for anyone. But I felt I had to leave more than a simple "Don't Bother It's Terrible" review. Some people do that without explanation so I'll watch the film anyway to decide for myself. This movie, specifically, isn't horror - it's not drama - I don't know where to place it besides (maybe) a film school experiment.You've been warned.

Conor Bresnan The movie is, from the get-go, a tale about a man who's having a mental breakdown. Then some horror elements are introduced. But there isn't any push or pull for the viewer. We know none of this is real so the drama is lacking. Without any narrative drama we are left to follow a character who is given zero backstory and is grossly uninteresting. There are moments of great dialogue between the only two characters. Amari Cheatom is particularly good. In addition, there is some superb sound design for the horror surrounding us. The director wisely shows us little and leaves the horror all to our imagination and the sound design is the best element of that. But it's all for not as the story plods along at an uninteresting pace and ends up right where we suspected it would all along.