I, Psychopath
Psychopaths… we usually only know them from Hollywood movies. We never expect them to enter our real life. But, the psychopath is closer than you think. Experts believe their number to be as high as one in a hundred. Most of them function incognito in high-powered professions…all the way to the very top.
But… it takes one to truly know one. In this intriguing documentary, Sam Vaknin, a self-proclaimed psychopath, goes in search of a diagnosis. In a scientific first, he allows himself to undergo testing to find out if he was born without a conscience. He knows he’s narcissistic and cannot empathize with others. By his own admission, he’s pompous, grandiose, repulsive and contradictory, ruthless and devoid of scruples, capricious and unfathomable… but he believes, he’s not a bad person. What he is is indifferent…he couldn’t care less. Unless, of course, the topic is himself.
Vaknin and his long-suffering but ever-loyal wife, Lidija, embark on a diagnostic road trip. But, it’s uncharted territory… deep into the mind and life of a psychopath. The 47-year-old convicted corporate criminal has agreed to take part in the pursuit of his own diagnosis… meeting the world’s experts in psychopathy in the hope that science will provide some answers for why he is like he is. These experts put Vaknin (and his wife) through a battery of rigorous psychological tests and neuro-scientific experiments.
Vaknin is shocked at the results. Sam, his wife, the scientists, the film-makers – will they ever be quite the same again? (Excerpt from cbc.ca)
Watch the full documentary now
if you have grown up, or work with a psychopath, this film makes sense.
Really great documentary. I could actually feel myself “fearing” that man! He’s the real deal. Thanks Vlatko!
.. sorry to confess this on the internet.my brother is somewhat a psychopath…random mood swings and aggressive beahviour.. constant bullying.
Not quite sure how effective this doc is.. but good insight.
-really
How old is your brother? Is he still in puberty? Because it sounds like he’s going through it.
hi Graham.. he’s hitting close to 30. think lack of finding work has somewhat to do with it.. but than again he’s abit immature for his age… can be quite psychopathic when he gets into one of those moods.
-really
Yeah it’s hard to know for sure what’s going on with him. His best bet is to consult a professional to figure out what’s going on if it’s affecting his life too negatively.
lidias into him 4 money,
i think she really loves him. she seems to believe there’s something in him that can be redeemed. possibly he has her manipulated. but i don’t think she’s in it for some kind of agenda.
“SELF-PROCLAMIED PSYCHOPATH??” come on this film is *******. I could go and proclaim I am a psychopath. Doesn’t mean I am one. Only a psychologist could suggest that. I’m not going to even bother watching this film.
I was Lydia. My ex psychopath’s ex-wife was Lydia. If you are a survivor you will see the cold emptiness that you saw in your ex’s eyes in Vaknin’s eyes. This film helps clarify a great deal. Thank you Ian and Dr. Hare.
I give incredible kudos to the filmmaker…his resolve and strength to make this film and empathize with him completely. It brought back a “chill” I have not been able to shake for the past 12 hours. Oh to have never known! – A NPD relationship surviror
well, i have yet to watch it but my problem with vaknin and his love of fame. He goes around telling everyone all the time how evil he is and I start to think I am being conned somehow.
What if he has studied psychopathy so much that this is just a lie and a ploy to get his narcissistic supply.
Just a thought. I will watch the doc and see if my opinion of the guy changes.
In the beginning at 6:27 where they say a psychopath can con you into thinking they are something they really are not. To me that is what Vaknin does over and over again.
I have to wonder that if he is so self aware of his own NPD why he does not seek help and healing for it due to the fact it is caused typically by deep wounding and abuse often by the individuals parents.
I have always heard that if an N could become self aware they could change.
Regardless he confuses me and creeps me out. I feel like he is trying to make himself an expert and own the online information regarding NPD. Maybe he is right, he is NPD and a psychopath.
Unbelievable. I began to feel sorry for Sam as he will never experience the spectrum of human emotion.
That “soothe, fix, love into healing” switch immediately went off in my brain.
The only difference between me and Lydja is that I found the power and courage to leave a psychopathic narcissist. I escaped hell and fled to Christ’s arms.
Sam is a psychopath. But who cares?
He is just like any other psychopath. There is nothing special about him. SAM thinks he’s exploiting us . . but in fact . . WE are exploiting HIM.
If he were a little smarter, he would have not gotten caught and stayed under the radar, so that he wouldn’t have been discovered.
Being famous for being disordered is REALLY ******!
That’s just my opinion. . .
Sarah, he was never caught, he chose to become a self proclaimed psychopath. The attention he gets from being a notable psychopath satisfies his narcissistic desires. He has you duped if you believe that you are exploiting him, his ulterior motive is obviously the attention he is receiving, and he is exploiting people in the fashion. If Sam was really lying about being a psychopath, being able to act one out would make him a psychopath anyway, as stated in the documentary.
No Sam, you have taught many people a lot about Psychopaths. I (We) have given you nothing. It is you that has been exploited.
It is soooo important for narcissists to get the attention of “the very people” they don’t respect or care about.
In fact, narcissists DO care VERY MUCH care about getting this valued attention from the people they don’t value.
Narcissists need US very much. If narcissists were stronger, & really were superior, they wouldn’t want or need our attention.
Chilling. My therapist thought that I would find this documentary interesting and seek some personal validation in watching the behavioral characteristics of a personality disordered individual. For nearly 30 years, I too, had been married to a man of similar traits. In my experience, my ex spouse’s behaviors would range from charming and attentive, to deliberate abuse and intentional character assassination . He never demonstrated any remorse. After 10+ years of therapy I consider myself a survivor. Throughout divorce trial and final judgement, he still attempts to bully, badger and harass me. He is unstoppable and relentless and he can never be rehabilitated. Thanks to my therapy, I have learned not to respond and engage with him.
The scariest part of this documentary is Lydia and how she accepts her spouse’s behavior. To her I say, “Look closely into his eyes, he feels nothing for you and you continue to feel for him. He will never change, but Lydia you can.”
sam is a mild mannered, civil version of my psychopathic ex.
but the coldness is there. the narcissism is there. the opportunism and manipulation–brought back memories.
*shudders*
Sam is becoming a caricature of himself.
A person with a personality disorder is a loser . . .
by DEFINITION. Sam has the disorder . . Sam is the loser.
Too bad someone can’t just put this lying criminal scumbag out of his misery. Makes perfect sense that he’s jewish.
Psychopaths are not miserable…their victims are.
Well This little narcissistic egoslime is just scared,little roach,who needs people so much….Without people he would die,without putting them down he would **** his pants from fear of normal life….And for Lidia…She needs to realise,that Love does exist and she don’t need this abusive loser,even if she dont find her”soul mate” she be treated so much better by other person
IF you are looking to escape a bad relationship or have left one and are trying to work out what happened.. Look at a book called “The People of the Lie” by M. Scott Peck..this is a classic in the field and is very, very helpful
it describes the “signs” of these kinds of people eg
obsessed with money.. give and then take back gifts..
lie but insist you have remembered wrong.. obsessed with appearances in the eyes of others..etc etc
a friend of mine has been greatly helped by this book..
it has helped her grow and recover tremendously
along with new found faith in Jesus Christ..
he’s really smart, he wants to prove to the world that he’s a psycho and he almost certainly knew what kind of tests they’d throw at him if his IQ was 185 as the narrator mentions.
well, i’m not sure it takes an IQ of 185 to see that he researched the diagnostic criteria for determining psychopathology. i mean, those things aren’t exactly bulletproof.
yeah, this guy’s an egomaniac, but so are most guys. big deal? just about ever girl i went to high school with dated a guy like this.
no, all this dude is, is a smart guy that found his hustle.
***
thanks for the documentaries. this site is absolutely wonderful and I tell everyone i know about it!
Whoops! got a little further in the documentary and things have changed. that’ll be the last time i comment before getting to the end. :)
I was involved with a narcissist on and off for 7 years. A few months after the extremely ugly ending of this extremely toxic relationship I was diagnosed with a life threatening disease. My advice to Lydia or anyone else invoved with a NPD is to run for your life.
One thing Sam said that really resonated for me was the part where narcissists operate more like slow poison as opposed arsonic or knifes. So true. Their effect is so insidious and you don’t see it when you’re caught in their twisted sphere.
I was involved with a psychopath for six years. I didn’t know he had been diagnosed earlier in his life. Let me tell you it was the worst hell on earth and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. The things they can get away with doing are so inhumane and insidious. I’m out now but, I still get stalked by this soulless monster sometimes. I no longer fear him. He just seems like an empty pathetic manipulator who is sadly now someone else’s problem. You’d never know to meet him casually that he is this way. In fact to everyone but, his nearest he is mr. charm and comes off quite pitifully. Not all psychopaths are successful at business either. Learn the red flags and do not fall for the charm ACT. They will suck everything good out of your life and then black mail you if you say anything with smearing YOUR reputation.
i think my sister is… she is very similar to this guy in so many scary ways… i nearly fell into depression when i was younger because of her continuous abussive behaviour…now luckily I don’t get to see her but still when i speak with her over the phone it gives me a sickening feeling.
could anyone else just tell the victim immediatly when they showed her walking before they told you which one?
I am a light psyco. I am cunning and manipulative and use SpeedSed teks and etc.
My condition was triggered a great deal by a company of a real mental psycho who was my friend. I still respect him big time– he made me realize life the way ir really is.
He was very direct, real, harsh, often aggressive and truthful at the same time. He could nail anyone by telling them their daemons, as if he could see right thru them.
And bwoy– he f**ked a LOT of chiks. That is one of chars of the psychopaths.
Disappointing film. It teaches noting about psychopathy, the study of it, or even Sam (the sufferer) himself. This is simply a poorly made documentary about the making of the film that you are currently watching.
I thought NPD and psychopaths are two different things but just have similar traits. That NPD was based on deep insecurity and includes a lot of boasting to make up for it and psychopaths just have bad wiring and don’t need to boast as much unless they think it will get them things.
I was in a relationship with a psychopath 9 years ago & when I tried to end it, he forced himself upon me. This person has caused hell for me & the resulting child ever since. Currently he is attempting to gain custody of my child, for a 2nd time. Because he is so cunning & charming & manipulative, the courts believe his lies. My son is intelligent & sees through him, experiences his lies & his bullying, but this psychopath cons the court into believing I am at fault by saying I’ve turned our son against him. Because of this, my son may well be forced to live with this psychopath & removed from the mother he loves dearly & has always lived with. This psychopath definately has no conscience, & neither has his solicitor.
Still Suffering: Don’t give up hope. Keep your head about you and fight for your life and for your son’s life. Don’t let him crush you or make you dispair; that’s part of what they intend to do. You have my sympathy and my prayers tonight. I feel so sorry for you. :-(
Charles B.
Many times I have little or no interest in others, but fake it in order to seem socially stable or acceptable. Does this make me a psychopath?
I also can make up a sugared truth and feel frustrated when I’m called out on my half-truths. We are all narcissistic to some degree, are we not? If we weren’t, we wouldn’t be able to operate in society. The idea of greed, is self-interest. In my opinion, this happens to be something that we are born with and probably manifests itself more aggressively in different personalities. Surely nurture has an affect as well.
Just a new thought in here.
“Vaknin”‘s is a changed name of Moroccan Jewish decent.
He said he was born and raised in Israel.
His accent can attest to that.
His real name could’ve been: “Ouakhnine”, or “Ouaknine”.
Try pronouncing it..! It’s quiet exotic and hard.
It is a typically Arabic sounding name (meaning: the cute one”), he preferred then not to use or talk about its/his real origins ..
I’ve live in his country for a while over 35 years ago, where Moroccan and other Mid-East Jews were discriminated against and treated as 2nd class citizens by Europeans Jews at the time.
It maybe that he is now positioning his stature as “special / disturbed / w/o conscience/” because of his “shameful” background and experiences as a child.
And not specifically because of abuse from his parents. But mostly because of “deep shame” ingrained within his soul and intellect!
This is a new subject to ponder in here, and that “Vaknin” and wife could at best clarify for us in depth.
to sarah999 no truer words were ever said ‘psychopaths are not miserable only their victims are’ Three children and 23 years later i finally escaped and thank god or i would be dead by now.
Dear Adele,
I hear you loud and clear! You were smart to save yourself.
A really good website is lovefraud.com
Take a look. It’ll validate EVERYTHING.
I think this guy just wants to be special. I have ran into so many people that play games, lie, cheat, etc. a lot of people just suck. There are just a lot of ******** now days.
I saw this document last night. It was not planned, but the outcome was so powerful. I realised very quickly that I have spent my life being a victim to psychopathic men. My father and several partners. I shared Sam’s wife’s personal traits of being a victim. Particularly when I remember the excuses I made and sometimes still make for the behaviour of these men. They really did make me feel I deserved it.
He may well be fooling everyone into believing he is a psychopath to gain fame and fortune, but doesn’t that ring true with psychopathic behaviour.
I learn’t so much from this documentary about the psychopaths in my life and the victim that I can be. It is obviously an area that warrants much more study.
Thank you so much for bringing this documentary to us. It left me feeling better prepared for the next time a psychopath identifies me as a victim. I am now wishing that I will realise who they are first.
hes not a psychopath hes just a wanker…..
agree with Bird. he’s just a wanker.
Yes he is a psychopath they are very common I have read his books he likes the narcissistic supply he gets they have no empathy and to me they are the real missing link. You see many of them in banking and Govenment and being adored by others they have a lack of feelings for anyone you are an object to them they hurt others because they can its that simple. I say they are psychic in that they can scan others very quickly looking for what makes you tick there is different degrees of this trait its not an illness and they are not sick to them they are normal its you that’s ill.
They view others as objects for them to do with as they please Sam’s ,mother I would say was the same and I think I read his wife had a father like this so she likes being with this type of man, many people do they find these people exciting and different and if you are brought up in a family run by one or two parents like this you get to know them and you learn never ever to trust them. Humans can not come to terms with the fact that we produce such humans, but we do it runs in families but not all the kids are affected with it but they suffer if they have parents or siblings who are.
There is a wide spectrum of this trait from narcissistic personalities to serial killers and they work in all types of jobs and some in very important jobs like rulers and leaders of countries. They are boring people really as they have little of interest inside of them but demand that you play their games.
Ask yourself why men leave their so called loved ones and join up to kill people they know nothing about but because they are told to by others whom they know nothing about says its okay, and when killed are treated as heroes and romanticised by those who coursed the wars in the first place and their loved ones get what? a flag and bit of bling and the ones that set the war get money and wealth? very psychopathic thinking and actions. You have heard many of these usually men but there is women saying things about the people who are dead as if they were nothing only there glory. One of the UK leaders was seen all the time in the war field with a snow white shirt on in the middle of men in uniform with the look in his eyes of the hero when if fact he would be to scared to go into the field, this man also sells arms to both sides and is now a very rich man of the back of the wars, that he thinks we should all forget now as she sets about another country, and he is not sorry he told us so.
They can not say anything kind or caring but really get their rocks off on rage and hate and killing as long as they are not doing this but you are for him as they see themselves as special. I find them evil and many are dangerous as they can scare you badly
this reminds a little bit ‘paths to freedom’ but as a documentary is really, really bad.
I visited Sam’s site & asked him for help on a narcissist I dealt with some time back. After watching this documentary & seeing how he views his ‘wife’ , I feel kind of sick that I actually thanked him for his advice.
ALL WOMEN ARE PSYCHOPATHS, NARCISSISTIC, IT’S ALL ABOUT ME!
SO WHATS YOUR POINT – ?????????
I grew up with a psychopathic father….violent, aggressive, pleading, sweet talking, abusive, & I can tell you…..you never ever get over it
I picked the girl immediately. She radiated easy victim. I’ve had this ability all my life. I avoid these type of people like the plague because just my being around them causes me to become angry and frustrated.
This makes perfect sense to me having dealt with a total psychopath of a boss for a year, last year. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever gone through. All of this is very true analogy, from the bullying on and off to no emotion to the temper tantrums and character assasinations. They are in such high positions because they are so good at lying. My boss was the biggest lier I’ve ever dealt with. Finally after 5 others formally complaining he was kicked out of his position. People that have the responsibility of managing others need to undergo this kind of psychological testing.
Reminds me of G Bush
My boyfriend is a psychopath just like the one shot in this video. His analysis from psychiatrists concluded that.
It’s funny because this Sam is from Israel and I am too!
My bf is very alike to him in many many ways – including acting as a normal person, people like him because he’s funny, and he can be very manipulative.
He has no empathy whatsoever to other people, except for me. He’s never agrresive verbily and not physically with me, and he’s notaggresive physically to other people unless there is a reason to.
There have been alot of encounters that my bf used physical force on other people, because they pissed him off, and in alot of these occations, these encounters were fatal. He almost killed them if no one stopped him.
So…he can be a killer very easily, if people piss him off too much on some spesific issues and if my bf wasn’t in a good mood in the first place.
And i’m so angry that they call his wife a victim! My bf is so loving and caring we are a perfect couple. And I never felt that it’s a one sided love. We are a perfect and normal couple,and I think that all couples should be like we are.
And we are together for almost 2 years, and we live together happily. (:
btw, all those people who say that they know a psychopath and that they’re the biggest liers…
If they were really so good at lying, you wouldn’t even know they lied.
Psychopaths aren’t doing anything without no reason. I think that the reason he made this video if to feed off of his narcessistic personality.
It’s true that psychopaths don’t feel any human emotion, especially not love, but my bf does.
It only means that Psyhcology isn’t a precise science at all.
Sam’s wife loves him very much. But you know, if she loves him that much, she should be able to be loved back. She said so herself that she doesn’t believe he doesn’t love her. I understand her very much.
Eventually, she knows him better than all those psychiatrists who analyzed him. She can go if she wants to, but she doesn’t. It means that she loves him. And obsessive about him.
Obsession is one of the charastarists of psychopaths.And I believe she’s VERY obsessive. People who are in a relationship with a psychopath aren’t very normal themselves.
Just like me, and I know it. I’m not so different than my bf.
btw, I read in the Israeli news that this person is arrested because he’s a suspect. They think he helped his father to kill someone.
It happened 2 months ago^
sorry to say it noname, but your psychopath boyfriend sounds like a complete twat and I hope he gets locked up for his crimes where he won’t be able to hurt any more innocent people. Due to his condition, he won’t care but at least he can’t hurt people. After being the victim of a psychopath I really don’t know how people can sympathise with them
and BTW, yo, they aren’t that good at lying. They don’t care which makes them good liers but carless liers hence why they get caught out all the time.
They are very good liars,because they have no conscience, they don’t care if you know they were lying, and don’t care whether they or caught. They just DON’T CARE!
My point I was trying to make exactly, thank you Sarah
If a man in a bar comes over to you and and spits on your face for no absolute reason, and laugh his head off as if he’s done something so hilarious, what you would have done?
My bf got a glass and shattered it on his face. He began dragging him towards a window (it was high), and he wanted to throw him off. But people stopped him. My bf is VERY patient, but some things he just cannot tolerate. My bf is never the one who starts fights.
He’s not a twat. If so, the people who got hurt from him are twats! Believe me, they got what they deserved.
And psychopaths are good liers because:
1. They’re very clever. My bf has an IQ of 187.
2. They’re manipulative in character.
I’m starting to think you are the psychopath, noname, and are making this up. Nice story.
Psycopaths aren’t people who like to lie, unless there is a reason to. XD Actually, they are one of the most honest people.
Oh well, I don’t really care if you believe me or notXD
Oh, and I just noticed, that’s really nice that someone deleted one of my posts here. I didn’t curse, nor did I insult someone. Someone deleted it just because they thought they know better than me and they don’t agree with me (?).
That’s really nice, really.
Noname,
No one in the world that has an IQ of 187.
and I KNOW you don’t care, that you’re caught
in a lie.
Hum. 187 would be like super-genius, wouldn’t it? It’s theoretically possible, but probably very few, I would guess. What does your BF do for a living, Noname? I hope you have at least the average IQ which would be enough to say goodbye to the psychopath, but it seems like you don’t, ironically.
I’ll have to check the news on this guy. I hope he gets all that he desirves.
Sarah99999 – says who? you? lol. Einstein has an IQ of one one hundred ninty something, and that Sam guy has an IQ of 185.
It is rare, but it’s possible.
My bf is a genius in spesific issues. In maths for example, he sucks ***. But on all other subject he’s kind of a genius, yes. He’s especially good at solving problems. Finding holes and weaknesses in all aspects in life. Including in people. He’s good with “building” ideas. That’s why he’s good at managment and telling people what to do.
People listen to him automatically. Even if they don’t like what he says, he can say things in a way that make people agree no matter what they thought before.
What’s he’s different from Sam is about his behaviour. My bf is distant and cold with other people, but he’s a generally a funny guy and easy to get along with. And people get always relied on him in some way, so they need him, even without realizing that.
And Charles, my English isn’t that good, (I’m still from Israel you know), are you saying that if my IQ was average my bf wouldn’t be with me or are you implying that my IQ is below average?
My IQ in my opinion, is slightly above average if you ask me.
btw, that Sam’s original name is very popular. There are alot of Shmuel Ben David in Israel. I mistoken between him and another 19 year old who has the same name. I didn’t read the whole article cuz I was lazy(: so sorry about that lol.
Wow, the story keeps getting more elaborate. And false. Please continue with your mildly entertaining story! Noname.
So, back to the question what would I do if someone came and spit on my face? Noone has ever done that to me because of the simple fact that I’m not an arrogant prick that attracts that sort of attention as your super genius boyfriend seems to attract all the time. If he was such a great person, people simply would not spit on his face hahaha
And one more thing I find fascinating is why anyone would read anything, let alone take advice from this con man?
I’m fed up with talking with ****** *** hole like yourself.
That man who spit on his face, didn’t know my bf. He was just near him and was probably drunk. He said to his friends, “Hey look at something cool”, saw my bf, and decided to spit on his face. If you were to read my post more accurately, I wouldn’t have to exlain that to you.
You would have been dying to be like my bf,just like everyone else who meets him. My bf has enough of jealous people revolving around him. No need for another one.
I really don’t know what your point is noname other than an attempt to tell a far fetched story that no one really cares about.
Wow these comments are facepalm worthy.
Edit: Whoever manages this site need to add the emotional icon app.
For now this will suffice
:(
Excellent comment Danica, you have put the other facepalm worthy commenters to shame
bunkum-the whole thing- medicalisation of a particular type of personality is pseudo-science of the highest order- it also infers that these conditions like all mental illnesses can be cured or treated by the pharmaceutical industry- to give angry, unfeeling ******** a medical label somehow excuses them from their behavior so that there is little chance to rehabilitate or punish them for their actions- the definition of psychopathy is basically the irrational angry ***** in all of us- an ancient and brutal survivalist instinct and a very interesting subject for discussion that has been hijacked by psychiatrists and the medical establishment-
all they seem to be able to is come up with three hundred new fancy terms for nutter and sell a load of poisonous drugs off the back of it.
consider the narcissism shown by the medics in the film- to claim “i know about madness” now that is truly “psychotic”
crazy is just crazy and everyone in this film is crazy especially his poor wife-
I’m sorry that I couldn’t pass on my point, as a woman who has a bf who has psychotic tendencies. It just heats me up, people like you, people who think they “know-it-all”.
I’ve seen that alot of people think it’s genetic. Well, it’s true to some extent, but most of the blame is on people. People like you, made my bf the way he is.
He’ve gone through alot in his life, that made him emotionless, seeing people as objects. Usually traumatic incidents turn people like that.
I don’t really know what he went through, because I never went through such things as he did, so I can’t say I understand him fully. But I understand him. I know it’s childish, but it just heats me up. I think that every person will get mad if someone says dirty things about his/her partner.
As a general rule, those that think they are NOT bad people, are usually bad people. Every psychopath or sociopath or politician, (lol!) thinks they are doing the right thing, even as they destroy others.
People that think they ARE, in fact bad people, are probably not. Humility is the most important step to being a productive citizen of any society.
einstein actually had an IQ of around 140ish i seem to remember- liam gallaghers is higher than einsteins at around 160-just shows you that iq scores are pretty meaningless like all pseudoscientific measurements of human mental capabilities- including the psychosis scale.i have a ridiculously high IQ score that has no reflection on how clever i am- if people quote their IQ score at you then they are usually adding 20 and covering up for the fact they dont have anything intelligent to say.
it seems rather than being an actual condition a “psychopath” is simply a label for psychologists and psychiatrists to label people they think they cant help , treat or rehabilitate- its the junk bin for people- it is its own definition in that its incurable or untreatable”- just a medical term for ” totally hateful ******* who probably needs locking up”
Oh, so if einstein has an IQ og 145, then it means that this Sam guy in this documentary has a higher IQ than Einstein in about 35-40 points.
Yeah well, that makes a lot of sense. (:
Sam Vaknin, the subject of this documentary, we are told, has a high IQ (185!!!), a sense of humor, an irresistible charm, a fake doctorate, and a submissive-codependent doll of a wife. I saw no sign of the first three. Sam is nothing short of loathsome, with a reptilian quality that would send shivers down any normal spine. He is a sadistic and robotically methodical verbal thug who exalts in his handiwork as he reduces everyone around him to stammering nervous wrecks. His wife, Lydia, is a tragic, heart-wrenching, truly lovable figure. What she sees in this physically and spiritually repulsive putrid shell of a human being is beyond me. The moments with her were the strongest in the movie and Walker made a bad call of not pivoting the film around her demure presence. I hope she doesn’t get her wish and have kids with Vaknin. She and her children deserve far better.
But I harbor grave suspicions regarding the director of this “gem”, Ian Walker. Clearly, there is no love lost between him and his protagonist, Vaknin. Equally clearly, we cannot trust him to be truthful and to avoid the kind of editing that borders on misleading the viewer.
Consider Sam’s allegedly forged academic degree. Whatever his shortcomings and repugnant traits, Sam is brutally and unflinchingly and invariably and unfailingly honest about himself, his disorder, and what a monster he is. Why would he lie about an irrelevant and minor topic like his academic degree? Throughout the film and in its closing 2 minutes Sam protests that he had attended a full-fledged university with campus, faculty and students; that he had submitted a doctoral dissertation (indeed, it can be found in the Library of Congress!); and that he has had to defend it. Walker than plucks a sentence out of context and adds it artificially to Vaknin’s previous protestations to create the (patently false!) impression that Vaknin admits to having a fake doctorate!!!
Or, consider this: Walker meticulously documents Vaknin’s abusive raging outbursts. On many occasions, it is crystal-clear that Vaknin is reacting to off-camera taunting and ill-treatment by Walker. Walker even admits in his PR material to having “poked this snake with a stick”. The film’s logo is an image of Walker decapitating Vaknin! But Walker never shows us what he did to Vaknin – only what Vaknin did to him, ostensibly unprovoked. Walker uses clever, one-sided editing to achieve a highly unethical result: a misrepresentation of what happened, for sure!
This is what I mean when I say that I cannot trust the seethingly hateful, resentful, and envious Walker to be an impartial guide to Vaknin’s circumstances, conduct, and psyche.
Shouldn’t documentary filmmakers harbor at least a modicum of sympathy and compassion in order to avoid the voyeuristic pornography that most exposes become? Walker failed to skirt this particular trap. Hence 7 stars instead of 10.
Shem Liran wrote:
“…with a reptilian quality that would send shivers down any normal spine. He is a sadistic and robotically methodical verbal thug who exalts in his handiwork as he reduces everyone around him to stammering nervous wrecks…”
Indeed. That seems to be an evolutionary quality that we humans have adapted; to, in a sense, “feel” these people out. Like a “spider-sense”, if you will.
Trust your instincts, not that “person’s” charm.
If a charming person approaches you and it “creeps” you out, run away. That’s what kept your ancestors alive.
Isn’t it funny how good looking people are never called creepers, yet if you took the same behaviour and knocked him down from a 9 to a 4 then he’s a bonafied freak who is out to harrass you.
Physically attracitve people are immune to being viewed as creepy. I have yet to encounter such.
Shem, I saw that post on the movie’s website. Interesting point, just no proof, poking a snake with a stick and a metaphorical cover doesn’t actually tell us the film maker did this or that. Interesting theory though. Robert Hare, the leading scientist on the subject of Psychopaths gave the film a very good review and said it portrayed an accurate image of the relationship between psychopath and the victim and how cold and cruel they are. If anything this film has opened alot of peoples eyes to the issue of psychopaths in society. As a victim of one in a workplace and having got out in one peace I can tell you its a relief to see there are people out there such as this film maker that care enough about the subject to make a documentary. The psychopath creates huge problems in the work place and society in general and I think people that apply for managerial and executive positions need to undergo the Robert Hare psychopathy test to show they are fit to manage people and make important decisions. We might find when the world of commerce and politics is run by healthy minds that care for other humans, that world will become a much less greedy and more peaceful world.
This jester is a nobody.
The book by Martha Stout on the Sociopath Next Door is also a good reference to check out. Sociopaths tend just to be delinquents with conduct disorders. True pyschopaths tend to be manipulative, cunning, domineering, controlling, totally cold, and are sometimes greedy and sadistic. When you get to know them they actually do meet one’s expectation of what evil looks and, more especially, behaves like too.
I spotted the victim (with the red hair blue jeans and purple long-sleaved top) right off too, with the shuffling shambling gate schlepping along with her arms poking out, her hips swaying, and leading with her pelvis. Figure she would be a gullible easily-played credulous rube too. A lot of those middle-class white girls make easy victims as they lack situational awareness. Don’t go fussing around in your purse for your keys and keep your head up and walk with a purpose like you are going somewhere.
PS
Am not a sociopath or psycopath myself, but have had bouts of ocd, anxiety, and depression and some folks consider me to be a paranoid narcisist.
The creator of this documentary did a brilliant job! He was brave too. He put his own reputation on the line. He was vulnerable, and in doing so, he displayed how psychopaths work, and how they are.
The subject of this movie tried to depict him as the sort of documentary maker that Michael Jackson had. He saved his psychic/psycho attacks for when the cameras were all off. This is exactly how psycho work. They hide their attacks brilliantly, space them out just right, and put just enough force in it where it’s not so obvious that it’s an attack, i.e. “Plausible deniability”, yet the cumulative damage hits deep and hard.
I saw the 1 woman stand out and I’m extremely empathic. I’ve had very close family that are Psychotic and I know the type very well, as I am often targetted by such, even though most people are not. I know it is very real. Psychos are everywhere, and when a target individual comes near one, they release their slow poison. Sometimes it is blatantly cruel and unusual, but usually it is a constant, well-timed, subtle barrage of quips and insults that gradually eat away at the victim’s guts.
Now consider all that I’ve written here, what sort of monster does such on purpose? They will continue to do it when the victim is on his death bed! They have no empathy and enjoy inflicting suffering.
Targets and victims are often extremely empathic, caring, loving, kind, good-hearted souls!!! The higher they fly, the more jealous and envious psychos are. The holy Bible says that the bats hate the light.
These are the traits of psychopaths, and another trait is that they seek, lie, cheat and kill their way to the top position of any social hiearchy, and that is why they are our congress, senate, president, and boss. Ever wonder why corporate policy seems so crazy? Ever wonder why in any well established chain-business, a system is in place that makes people work as hard as they can, as fast as they can, with as few breaks as possible, with as few benefits as is legally allowed, under intollerable conditions, with not enough help, where socializing is discouraged, and everyone feels like a slave? Psychopaths care nothing about people. They care only about profits. They make the laws, make the rules, and design how the whole corporate system works, how nations trade, how taxes are distributed, how wars are entered in to, and continued, and they own the media that presents their actions in a good light, and candy-coats their image, and avoids their horrific nature. The world is run by these types, and with the modern scientific advancements of nuclear, and medical sciences, its high time the common man, the ones with a moral conscience stand up and take the power for themselves!!!
But how? Wars are fought with guns. Power is guns, control of the police, and control of the media, and the psychos have it all, so what is the solution?
There is one solution and it began in 1844.
I feel that psychopaths are found in religion also, the place where everyone is supposed to be around ‘good people’, you just have to keep your eyes open.
I found this doco very interesting, but the music almost ruined it for me – get rid of the music while people are speaking please! The score is just grating..
so weird… when the experiment of how to tell who is vulnerable I zeroed in on the one they said was the victim. I have been victimized by these psychopaths too, boyfriends and my own father. To survive a childhood with my dad I learned to be manipulative. =( Not something I’m proud of but I do notice it. According to some online tests i’m histrionic, borderline, schizoid, dependant, and OCDP… lovely. Officially I’ve only been diagnozed with depression and score highly on risk of becoming a victim because of my high empathy. I’m quite the character!! lol I guess I have the N trait too!!
He was eye roll worthy. It was pretty obvious that he had at least studied the criteria of psychopathy. While he probably has some disorder, I don’t think he’s worth the hurrah that this movie made. Mental illness isn’t uncommon (as everyone’s heated debates and stories here have shown) and everyone feels the need to talk the damned subject to death. Why did I watch this? I have a degree in Psychology and thought that maybe something new would pop up in here. Nope. Just the same old ‘look at me’ persona that seems to be prevalent nowadays. As you may have guessed, I stopped being a psychologist because I can’t stand any more whining. There are people with genuine problems and the rest are just awful to deal with.
I found this documentary through a link in the Casey Anthony forum. Most people believe Casey murdered her child. I believe she neglected her to death (avoidant-left her in the pool or something) but then later has had a very ho-hum attitude about it all.
When you share traits with these people (I remember seeing Sam’s book somewhere and considering purchasing it–but I did not)…you tend to wonder, why am I like this?? Why don’t I give a fig about that person (when I “should”)?
I can remember clearly feeling NOTHING about anyone except me and sometimes the people who might admire me (but only if they admired me). It is strange to have this realization that I have been a Narcissist…and that throughout my life I alternated between Narcissist and victim. This film was helpful to me to show me how I am Casey, Sam and Lydia.
My Mother was a Narcissist too..so Lydia might consider In vitro fertilization instead of making offspring with Sam.
@Sunday:
That looks like Sam Vaknin rhetoric to me. Pretty strange comment.
rhetoric? I’ve confessed to sharing the non-feeling of narcissism and/or psychopathy. I imagine that is “strange” but I am not him..I only identify to a degree with him. Did you find my entire comment strange? Am I the only person to think Lydia is better off not having his children?
I’ve had kids, it’s hard enough with a ‘normal’ dad to raise them, who would want to have offspring with someone who could pass this possible mental attitude, what kind of father would he be? If he cannot show affection for you, then the children are doomed for a ‘dad’.