The Invention Of Lying (12A)
Verdict: To tell you the truth it's rubbish **
I'D like to start this review by saying Ricky Gervais's new film is one of the funniest and smartest comedies I've seen in a long time.
But given that it's set in a world where everyone always tells the truth, I'd better play by the rules, and admit it's a pile of old tonk.
Fact: There's good Gervais and bad Gervais. And this is him at his pompous worst - preachy, one-note and obsessed with smug celeb cameos. (Philip Seymour Hoffman, what the hell were you thinking?)
Ricky stars as Mark Bellison, a man who lives in a world where humans never evolved the ability to lie. But one day, in a flash of inspiration, Mark realises he can bend the truth - and can use this to get anything he wants. He lies his way to a higher salary to impress Jennifer Garner, who's his ideal woman even though she's got a pout like a botoxed platypus. (Truth hurts, Jen.)
Then, in an unexpected plot twist that ends up consuming half the movie, Mark comforts his mum on her deathbed by telling her there IS life after death - and so invents religion. (There was no religion before because there were no lies. That's, like, deep, yeah?)
If Gervais wants to bang the atheist drum, that's up to him. And Life Of Brian proved that comedies can take bold stances on big issues, and still be funny.
But Lyin' is no Brian - whether it's because the concept falls apart if you think about it for more than 10 seconds or because the sole gag gets boring after ten minutes. Worst of all is how Gervais has a pop at the dishonesty of the ad industry in a mid-film Coke commercial that's brutally honest about the drink's sugar content.
Because sneaky advertising's terrible, isn't it? Especially, say, the kind where people stuff their films with product placement for Budweiser and Pizza Hut. Eh, Rick?
OUT FRIDAY 2ND OCTOBER
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