Reviewed by Amy Faulconbridge
Stars Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Jonah Hill, Rob Lowe, Tina Fey, Louis CK, Jeffrey Tambor,
Jason Bateman, Christopher Guest, Donna Sorbello | Written by Ricky Gervais & Matthew Robinson
UK cert 12 | UK RRP £19.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 96 min | Directed by Ricky Gervais & Matthew Robinson
The Invention of Lying opens with commentary from Gervais, as if checking the sound system: “Testing; testing; testing” – an entirely appropriate start for this film. He highlights the film’s setting: an alternate reality in which lying does not exist. Even the concept is alien: the inhabitants tell the truth constantly and without hesitation, but they also say whatever comes into their heads immediately and openly. The result is an extremely amusing stream of consciousness dialogue where waiters tell their customers that they are stupid and lovers tell each other that the thought of making love makes them feel sick.
Consumed by this often harsh reality is Mark Bellison (Gervais) a “loser” writing film scripts about the Black Plague. One day, Mark stumbles upon the ability to lie, and very quickly uses it to become rich and try to win the beautiful Anna (Garner), who writes him off because he isn’t her genetic equal. On the whole, Mark is honourable in his lying though, which Gervais and Robinson manage with humour: Mark tells his depressive neighbour Frank (Hill) that “suffocation is not a good idea” and his dying mother (Flanagan) that death is not an “eternity of nothingness”, but a happy place where everyone gets a mansion. Of course though, the doctors and nurses present believe every word, and Mark becomes an overnight hero with a direct line to the Man in the Sky.
The resulting Christian allegory is perhaps the most enjoyable element of the film: when Mark has to tell the world details of the afterlife, he writes them as 10 bullet points on the back of pizza boxes. He so obviously improvises about the details of the Man in the Sky’s rules that organised religion is satirised with a gusto perhaps only recently seen in Sacha Baren Cohen’s work. The fact that no one seriously questions Mark cleverly highlights the fallibility of their world: telling the truth and believing it entirely make you essentially stupid. Some truly brilliant cameo appearances from Hollywood heavyweights such as Ed Norton and Philip Seymour Hoffman prevent the film from being a little overbearing and when Mark reminisces about his father’s past, Shaun Williamson and Stephen Merchant execute the funniest scene of the entire film.
The Invention of Lying is a genuinely original idea, and Gervais and Robinson have done well to poke fun at themselves and the world without too much moralising. There are times when Gervais slips into David Brent mode a bit too easily: it would be refreshing to see him play a different character. It is a thoroughly enjoyable film though – just remember to take it at face value.
EXTRAS *** An "honest" making-of featurette; a featurette all about Kartl Pilkington, the whipping boy from the Gervais/Merchant podcasts, who has a role as an extra; Prequel: The Dawn of Lying, a short caveman film that was menat to run before the main feature; five deleted scenes; a gag reel; and four video podcasts that directors Ricky and Matt made while shooting the film. Sadly, there's no audio commentary – which, knowing Gervais, would have been very funny indeed.