Well, here it is – my first negative review. I wasn’t really a fan of this movie. I went in with a lot of expectations, because from the reviews I’ve seen, it sounded like it was pretty good. It’s got great reviews from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Twelve out of the currently thirteen reviews there for it are positive. I guess I just expected too much. I blame you, Rotten Tomatoes!

Oculus is the story of two kids (now grown adults) whose parents were killed right in front of them. The girl, Kaylie, is convinced that it was because of an antique mirror that her dad had purchased. So she hunts the mirror down to prove it. Ok, now that right there… seriously, who in their right mind does that? If you thought your parents died because they were affected by this thing – why on earth would you go FIND it? I would stay as far away from the thing as I could and hope to never see it again.

That is just the beginning. I mean, does not the premise basically give away almost all of the movie? I kept hoping there would be a twist at the end. SPOILER ALERT: There’s not. The movie plays out exactly the way you expect it to. The way the movie plays out is kind of different, I guess – seeing what happens when they were kids alongside what happens to them as adults. But it doesn’t even come close to saving the movie. There’s no worry about spoilers here, because from almost the very beginning (even from the trailer, you might say) this movie spoils itself. I wouldn’t waste your time with this one – you’ll see almost everything coming from a mile away.

I’m not sure, but this could possibly end up being my favorite film of the festival this year. It’s definitely in the top three. It’s funny, because The Trouble With The Truth is a simple movie, but also quite complicated. The majority of the movie is basically a conversation between a couple that was married for 14 years and then divorced. The opening sequence introduces their daughter, but her role is actually a pretty small one.

Here’s what I loved about this film: the title. It’s exactly what the movie is about. This is a film about raw honesty. You’ve had those conversations that go into the late hours of the night, right? I know I have. I’m pretty sure we all have. This movie is about those conversations. It revolves around one of those conversations. It takes the complicatedness (yes, I know that might not be a word) of life and hashes it out in one of those conversations. I have to say, I kind of love those kind of conversations.

Here’s the part where I go off on a tangent. There’s honestly not a lot to say about the film itself. There’s not much I can say without giving away spoilers or something. But the reason we all end up liking movies tends to be a lot about how much we relate them to ourselves. I mean, sure there are the entertaining action superhero films or the great comedies that make you laugh. But I believe the best films are the ones that move you. The ones that you can relate to. The ones that you liken back to life and your version of it. For me, this movie did that in spades. I believe strongly in being real with people. It’s one of the things I strive for most, being honest and transparent about who I am. If you know me, you know me. That’s why I love those kinds of conversations.

Watching this movie you are watching a conversation between two fictional people. But there’s a reason we like story telling… our lives are stories too, that are meant to be shared with other people. That’s what this movie is about – our stories and sharing them honestly with each other. Even if life’s messy. That’s “the trouble with the truth”.

Well, the biggest part of the Phoenix Film Festival is officially over. The entire festival isn’t over yet, as there are still movies to be shown throughout this week. But the weekend is by far the biggest event, and most of the filmmakers tend to go home after the awards on Sunday night. The rest of the week features a few new films, but most are award winners or festival choice that are repeat showings from the weekend.

As expected, it was a big weekend. Friday night I managed to catch three films: SOS: Save Our Skins, Teddy Bears, and God’s Pocket. Even though it had some problems, I think Teddy Bears was my favorite of the evening. It had some talented (and well-known) actors and featured interesting interaction among the characters. I also enjoyed God’s Pocket, one of the late Philip Seymour Hoffman’s last films. You can check out my review of it here.

Saturday was a full day of movies. I made it to the theater in time to catch The Shower, Little Hope Was Arson, The Joe Show, and The Sacrament. I was glad to have a gap of free time after The Shower and stayed for the Q&A session. (I missed all of these on Friday because my showtimes were so close together!) Not only was The Shower a fun movie, but I got the opportunity to talk to the director and cast for quite a while this weekend. They were such a fun crew, and it was interesting to hear all of their stories of filmmaking (including how they used a $1200 DSLR to shoot the film and how the director’s wife went into labor while in the makeup chair!). I enjoyed spending some time with them over the weekend. Check out my review of The Shower and go see this movie if you get the opportunity. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens with it in the future. Here’s a photo of me with the guys from the film:

Somehow I managed to make it out of bed on Sunday morning to head back to the theater for Jake Squared. Honestly, this was the only movie so far out of the festival that I didn’t really like. I think the lead actor did a great job, seeing as he had some challenging roles in the film. But ultimately, what seemed meant to be existential just played out as kind of a narcissistic mess, in my opinion. The title character wasn’t all that likable, and the movie seemed almost pointless and hard to understand at first. It got better, but still didn’t quite make me care enough by the end.

Sunday afternoon I headed over to the party pavilion to check out Geek Day. I enjoyed networking there, talking to people from Gangplank, Phoenix Comicon, and The Transporter Room. The latter is a really cool idea that I’d actually heard about previously on reddit. The plan is to have a geek-themed bar, in short. And since I’m a geek that loves craft beer, of course I love this concept. These guys have great ideas, and I’m looking forward to seeing what happens with them.

I finished out my movie watching on Sunday with Billy Club and then Dom Hemingway. Billy Club was a great horror flick with a baseball setting. You can read my full review of it here. By the time I got to Dom Hemingway (with an expectedly great performance by Jude Law), I was starting to crash from such a busy weekend of movies and networking, but I made it through and even stuck around for the Copper Wing awards ceremony. Once again, I ran into the guys from The Shower and grabbed a beer with them. We watched the awards ceremony and by the time it was over, I was ready to crash.

Thank you, Phoenix Film Festival, for a wonderful weekend of networking and great films! I’m looking forward to checking out a few more this week, and then I can’t wait to see what is in store for next year.