Can the residents of Lowell handle the truth?

I believe we can and so do some other key people in this city. Deb Belanger, the energetic and spunky face of the Merrimack Valley is working her magic as you read this blog. The exec director of the Great Merrimack Valley CVB is using her charm and street smarts to convince Hollywood honchos to hold the premiere of This Side of the Truth in Lowell.

You go Deb! We're with you all the way!

Ricky Gervais, a Brit who has an affinity for chicken and mash, wrote, directed and stared in a comedy about a world where no one can lie except him. The flick was shot in and around our 'hood. The Dub, Lowell Memorial Auditorium, C-stones, La Boniche and some other haunts all were locations used for scenes.

TSOT is set to be released in theaters nation wide on Sept. 25. Deb has been on the horn with the Mass Film Office and even e-mailed uber producer Lynda Obst. At least we know someone is working on behalf of the Mill City.

Check out tomorrow's Sun for a full story on the premiere.

In other local movie gossip, an old college pal of mine tipped me off that a movie will be filmed in Lowell within the next couple of weeks. He works for a production company out of NYC and has some inside info. We haven't been able to confirm anything yet but...could this be the Micky Ward flick we all have been talking about for a minute now?