Review of Oculus (2014) by Jesse O — 03 Sep 2014

Quite a good horror film all things considered. It knows how to build suspense and dread in the way all horror movies should. I'm not gonna sit here and say that this is the most inventive horror film in ages, that would probably be Pontypool, but I think the way the film is put together, and edited, feels fresh and different from what you would normally expect.

The film tells two parallel story. The first is of what happened when Kaylie and Tim where children and everything that led to, somewhat spoiler as this is said very early on in the film, Tim and Kaylie's dad to murder their mother.

The other story is that of Tim and Kaylie as adults, going back to their house, and trying to destroy the mirror that, they, or at least Kaylie, felt took control of their father and made him kill their mom.

It starts off fairly normally, but as the film progresses the two timelines start to intertwine more and more, to the point where one scene from Tim and Kaylie, as adults, would transition seamlessly to a scene when they were kids.

I think it could be a little jarring for some people, but I think it fit with the theme, and tone, the film was searching for. It gives it a surreal feeling, like it very well could be the mirror playing tricks on Tim and Kaylie and making them see, or relive, things from their childhood.

I wouldn't say the film has a great deal of scares, that's not to say it doesn't have them, but the film, I believe, is concerned more about the effects this experience has had on Kaylie and Tim and how both of them take very different paths after the events when they were children.

Tim tries to rationalize everything through logic and common sense, whereas Kaylie becomes obsessed with the idea that the mirror is the cause of everything that's happened to their family, and countless others throughout the years.

Of course, Tim comes to join Kaylie's side eventually, so that doesn't last very long, but it makes for an interesting dynamic. The film uses atmosphere and tension to build up this sense of impending doom, like something could just come out of nowhere.

Reminds me of the first Paranormal Activity, though this one isn't as good as that. The problem is that, while Paranormal Activity kept improving with each scene, as this film got near the end you could tell that it somewhat ran out of steam.

That's not to say the film's third act is bad, though some hated the ending, but it doesn't compare to what came before it. I was fine with the ending myself, but I can see how others came to hate it.

The acting is pretty solid, so no complaints there. This is a pretty damn good horror movie in all. It has its flaws, but there's something fresh about this film, despite its lack of originality. It's got effective atmosphere, good pacing, and solid acting.

This has all the makings of a decent rental. It's also probably the start of a franchise and I'm fine with this as long as they don't make it a yearly thing and destroy it in 4 years like what was done with Saw and Paranormal Activity.