Conspiracies, Evil Governments and Co.: The World Premiere of Phil Leirness’s Documentary „The Truth Is Out There“

Conspiracy theorists: Hardly ever taken seriously and often viewed as slightly eccentric. Or right away as completely nuts. Just like the embodiment of skepticism – FBI agent Dana Scully from The X-Files – once said to Mulder in an episode about the infamous Area 51: “How do we know that he’s not just another crackpot whose encyclopedic knowledge of extraterrestrial life isn’t derived exclusively from reruns of Star Trek?” Well, that question is certainly justified. How do we know that? Or how can we really be sure that they are crackpots at all? Independent writer and director Phil Leirness sets out to seek answers to these questions in his documentary The Truth Is Out There – after all, there is a very good reason why the movie title is referencing a famous quote from the popular TV show mentioned above. Just last Saturday the film celebrated its world premiere in London. TheJunction got an exclusive opportunity to watch the film before its release and is offering you some insights from the depths of the conspiracy world.

Dean Haglund, Tom Braidwood and Bruce Harwood – a.k.a. the Lone Gunmen from The X-Files

Source: Phil Leirness and Rational Exuberance

In the documentary we encounter a huge variety of topics and people – be it UFO experts, angel whisperers, actors such as Eric Roberts and Tucker Smallwood, the Illuminati, conspiracies concerning 911, ghostbusters or the swine flu. You get to hear some of the strangest theories you might have ever heard without knowing whether to laugh or cry. But no matter how you might feel: In any case you will be amazed. One minute there are bizarre ideas to learn from, then the mood suddenly turns philosophical and you do not even notice anymore that you are paying full attention and simply cannot stop listening. During the whole time Dean Haglund, known as one of the Lone Gunmen from The X-Files, serves as the filmic arc and red thread.  In The Truth Is Out There he embraces imagination without any boundaries and meets up with people from all over the world to interview them. Vancouver, California and Texas play important roles just like London, Twin Peaks and Berlin. In-between you also learn a lot about Haglund’s personal life: For instance the audience gets to see how much passion he puts into drawing and painting. Moreover, you learn a lot about him during his conversations with psychotherapist Dr. Nicki Monti who appears in the documentary time and time again. It is exactly the depth of these talks that leads the audience to great food for thought and makes them think about their own belief systems and attitudes.

Dean Haglund with one of his paintings

Source: Phil Leirness and Rational Exuberance

Director Leirness is able to always keep a certain distance throughout the whole movie. He leads his viewers into the world of conspiracies and offers them versatile insights: No matter whether the camera is focusing on a lady fond of esotericism and claiming to communicate with aliens or on an author with a Ph.D. – never ever does he make fun of the interview partners. He leaves it up to the audience to make up their minds. And regardless of the colorful mix of conspiracy theories, the film quickly takes a different turn. With each new interview the documentary is revolving less and less around peculiar ideas and theories and focusing more on very existential questions. It almost becomes postmodern: Is there any universal truth at all to explain everything? Are conspiracy theories simply symbolic of the very human need to try to explain the unexplainable? Or are they merely a distraction from our actual lives? There are so many questions that this documentary poses without trying too hard or appearing insincere. It wants to both entertain and inspire – which it does perfectly. All in all, the The Truth Is Out There is a call to all eager for more knowledge and new insights: They should dare to think beyond current boundaries and not let anyone limit their power of imagination. It is not THE truth that is out there, but rather several truths that wait to be discovered.