Stylistically, "Secrets of Deception" was cobbled together in a way that resulted in a peculiar, disjointed timeframe. The filmmakers played loose with a pattern of mini-flashbacks that led to a confusing sequence of events in what should have been a straightforward, linear crime-of-passion narrative.

The protagonist, Jeff Schaefer, has money to burn, and his latest investment appears to be in his young wife, Kim. But when he suspects her of being unfaithful, he hires a hit team, then backs out of the deal at the last minute. This was another one of the confusing moments when the filmmakers skipped around in time. While Kim is not killed, her young lover has his throat slit, and the killer decides to blackmail Jeff.

The story unfolds through the confusing fragments due to either sloppy editing, a poorly conceived screenplay, or both. The cast was decent, but a major problem was that neither Jeff, Kim, nor the young lover were sympathetic characters. The only likeable character was Jeff's young daughter Brooke.

In good examples of film noir, there may be violence and the characters may be sleazy. But there is typically at least one character that offers a moral compass. In "Secrets of Deception," there were no redeeming values, especially in the film's dishonest ending that apparently gives Jeff Schaefer a second chance to deal with the mess of a life that he created for himself.

This was a really interesting film to watch and I'm super happy I made the time. Thanks for sharing your work Josh. Keep going!

People who rate this a 10 are clueless. But then again, most Americans are clueless.