The Invention of Lying has its moment of truth
The Invention of Lying (2009)
The creator of BBC's original The Office, Ricky Gervais, wrote and starred in this new romantic comedy The Invention of Lying (a.k.a. its original working title This Side of the Truth).
This is a story of an alternate universe where the concept of lying doesn't exist, and everyone says exactly what they are feeling and thinking, even if it is embarrassing or mean. That is, of course, until a small town nobody named Mark discovers that he can say things that are not true. This changes Marks life and leads him on a road to success as he effectively lies his way into fame and fortune, while the population remains none-the-wiser. Unfortunately for Mark, while his popularity and pocketbook grow, his luck is not as plentiful with the woman he loves.
Even though the story-line of this film dragged on a tad, I found it cute and it left me with a warm fuzzy feeling after it was over. There were enough touching moments to soften the toughest of movie watchers, and even provoked a tear from my boyfriend.
The humour was very adult and contained mature subject matter that would not be recommended for children, so make sure you leave your kids at home for this one unless you want to be bombarded with awkward questions afterwards. This shouldn't be too surprising, however, considering the movie falls under the category of “British Comedy.”
The star-studded cast makes this movie rather fun, including cameos from Jonah Hill, Rob Lowe, Tina Fey and Edward Norton. The familiar faces brought some lightness to balance a few scenes that were extremely emotional.
There was a heavy theme of religion that may be offensive to some and thought-provoking to others. It may come across to some that the writer is making a strong statement of personal beliefs in this story where “the truth” is so bluntly defined. The idea that a lie has a double-sided nature, resulting in good or bad, is another ongoing theme that keeps you thinking.
Overall this movie is worth watching in my opinion, but not necessarily in the theatre.
The creator of BBC's original The Office, Ricky Gervais, wrote and starred in this new romantic comedy The Invention of Lying (a.k.a. its original working title This Side of the Truth).
This is a story of an alternate universe where the concept of lying doesn't exist, and everyone says exactly what they are feeling and thinking, even if it is embarrassing or mean. That is, of course, until a small town nobody named Mark discovers that he can say things that are not true. This changes Marks life and leads him on a road to success as he effectively lies his way into fame and fortune, while the population remains none-the-wiser. Unfortunately for Mark, while his popularity and pocketbook grow, his luck is not as plentiful with the woman he loves.
Even though the story-line of this film dragged on a tad, I found it cute and it left me with a warm fuzzy feeling after it was over. There were enough touching moments to soften the toughest of movie watchers, and even provoked a tear from my boyfriend.
The humour was very adult and contained mature subject matter that would not be recommended for children, so make sure you leave your kids at home for this one unless you want to be bombarded with awkward questions afterwards. This shouldn't be too surprising, however, considering the movie falls under the category of “British Comedy.”
The star-studded cast makes this movie rather fun, including cameos from Jonah Hill, Rob Lowe, Tina Fey and Edward Norton. The familiar faces brought some lightness to balance a few scenes that were extremely emotional.
There was a heavy theme of religion that may be offensive to some and thought-provoking to others. It may come across to some that the writer is making a strong statement of personal beliefs in this story where “the truth” is so bluntly defined. The idea that a lie has a double-sided nature, resulting in good or bad, is another ongoing theme that keeps you thinking.
Overall this movie is worth watching in my opinion, but not necessarily in the theatre.
