Review of Oculus (2014) by Nick A — 05 Sep 2014

A nice horror movie that places atmosphere and tension ahead of gore and cheap jump scares (although there are some of both). Oculus is a great concept that might wear out it's welcome. It's trippy editing style can sometimes get the best of it and it's ending seems like it's there to shock rather than serve the story.

That being said what's good in Oculus is still very good. It's one of the more unique horror films I've seen so far this decade. The performances (especially from Karen Gillan) are much better than I'd expect from a movie of this type and the horror itself comes from a much more psychological place (for the most part).

In many ways this feels like a movie not of it's era and that's a good thing. With some trimming, narrative focus, and less over emphasis on it's editing style this could have been a truly exceptional film.

Instead it's going to have to settle for "good".