The Invention of Lying - James A. King (Poofterliscious)

Don’t buy a ticket for Invention of Lying. If you sneak in, then stay only for the first ½ hour. This is the amount of time it takes to know the premise—nobody has ever lied until loser Ricky Gervais figures it out—and enjoy scenes like the Coke ad, where the only pitch they can come up with in a truth-only society is “we’re famous” (or even better, Pepsi’s add, “When you can’t get Coke”) Genuine chuckles for scenes like that. But by the half-hour mark, the premise has staled and you’re looking for the nearest exit as a biblically-bearded Gervais gives his ten commandments on pizza boxes. Get out of there.

For those of you too proud to admit the $10 mistake of purchasing a ticket for this film, or are in a situation like those teenage vandals that were under court order to watch Saving Private Ryan, fantasize about yourself in other, cooler movies. Here are some suggestions:

#1 You are a sea captain—grizzled and knowing. Your ship has just capsized off of Maricaibo and you are gasping for air as your head emerges above the frothy tide.

#2 You are a detective—bottle in hand, gun in pocket. Long legs and a mouth full of trouble have just walked in your door. You know you should say, “Get lost,” but you don’t.

#3 You are Forrest Gump—the sequel. Bubba Gump Shrimp has busted and you’ve taken to the bottle. You think you see Lt. Dan on the rain soaked streets of New Orleans as you stumble home to your bungalow. Adventures ensue.

Of course, as Invention of Lying shows, an interesting storyline is only a small piece of a quality flick. Gervais has an engaging idea and asks interesting questions about the necessity of dishonesty, but his reach exceeds his grasp. Big questions in a small movie spread the content too thin, precluding both entertainment and thought. We’ve seen this failing before in Robin William’s well intentioned “laugh/cry” movies like Jakob the Liar, Patch Adams, etc. Of course we’ve also seen comedy movies tackle serious issues/questions with great reult, as in Benigni’s Life is Beautiful. So what Gervais tries to do is not impossible, but rather inadvisable when you have to sacrifice entertainment, fun, and overall coherency to do so. My sea captain—grizzled and knowing— won’t be slipping on any banana peals.