On the surface, writer/director Patrick Adam Peña's Microdosing should be a fairly easy film to describe. The film stars Peña himself as Ignacio, an anxiety-ridden who starts to microdose mushrooms in an effort to manage his anxiety. However, when the mushrooms he chooses prove to be an alien fungus, well, things are about to get interesting. 

See what I mean?

Simple story, really. Kind of. 

The reality is that the low-budget indie horror film is quite a bit more than it seems on the surface. While it's not a film for everyone, those who embrace Peña's unique vision will find themselves having a pretty terrific time. 

Microdosing is worth watching for Peña himself, a performance that glistens with psychedelia and a performance that leaves you wanting more even after the film's closing credits start scrolling by. Faleena also shines as Nancy as Peña has assembled a small but quality ensemble clearly in touch with his artistic vision for the film. 

Microdosing will be having a couple of upcoming screenings in the Washington State Area - June 18th at 12pm in Seattle at The Grand Illusion and June 24th at 9pm at Tacoma's The Grand Cinema. I've got to tell you that while I've got a pretty impressive set-up at home for watching films, this is definitely a film I'd watch on the big screen if I had the opportunity. 

The film features has a kickin' original theme from Eros Cartechini and inspired lensing from Peña and Scott Seagren. Seagren also has a nice appearance in the film as Agent Green. 

Microdosing is most impressive with its visual effects from Peña along with Ashley Besh's work creating "Terry." You'll have to watch the film - I'm not spoiling it, but this is absolutely all terrific and gets more terrific the deeper one goes into the film. 

If you don't know the basics of "microdosing," you might want to Google it a bit first just so you'll not have your sensibilities rocked. While Microdosing is unrated, it's not a film for the kiddos and I'm guessing Florida libraries won't be carrying the DVD or blu-ray anytime soon. That said, Microdosing is a terrific example of how creativity, inspiration, and a talented cast and crew can bring a low-budget indie flick to life. For those into the more experimental side of indie cinema, Microdosing is definitely a film to watch for whether at an indie fest or in a future streaming release.

Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic