The Official "Invention of Lying" Thread

[UnderpantMarks]

then she goes and just says 'you've got a pug nosed face' or whatever, and I was sat there thinking 'just go find some other woman...'

But everyone would say that to him in the universe were everyone tells the truth so he's kinda buggered.

[DontAccuseMe]

then she goes and just says 'you've got a pug nosed face' or whatever, and I was sat there thinking 'just go find some other woman...'

But everyone would say that to him in the universe were everyone tells the truth so he's kinda buggered.

Well, not necessarily, considering the idea of the film is "people say whatever pops into their head" it should be assumed that she would at least respond about what he just said rather than just randomly insult him. If it's literally just people spout random truths about people then presumably the whole world would just constantly walk around listing characteristics of their peers.

[BritishHobo]

then she goes and just says 'you've got a pug nosed face' or whatever, and I was sat there thinking 'just go find some other woman...'

But everyone would say that to him in the universe were everyone tells the truth so he's kinda buggered.

Well, not necessarily, considering the idea of the film is "people say whatever pops into their head" it should be assumed that she would at least respond about what he just said rather than just randomly insult him. If it's literally just people spout random truths about people then presumably the whole world would just constantly walk around listing characteristics of their peers.

Aye. I mean, thinking about it, if she had grown to like him for being nice, or funny, or whatever, it wouldn't stary from the premise at all for her (or someone else) to respond to his speech with 'I think you're really nice/funny/etc.', since they tell the truth good or bad, not just insults. Like how that other bloke (I forget his name) wanted to go to dinner with her rather than just saying 'you're a bit of a vapid bitch'.

P'raps this could be considered reading into it a lil' bit too much.

[shawnadancing]

I've watched it a few more times since they've been showing it a lot on HBO.... Here's a random thing that bugs me.

When Mark calls Anna & asks her on a second date, she says "I have to go." She doesn't HAVE to, that was a lie because all she was doing was reading a magazine in bed. She should have said she WANTS to go.

*phew*

[Steven]

Just started thinking about this film, one of the worst I've ever seen.

[Calum]

still not seen it, but when people talk about the scene with barry and steve as one of the best in the film, i know it's going to be absolutely dire.

[Spuddy]

Although it's a shit movie, I really do love Gerv', thus cannot help but love the film...honestly.

[Bent Pianist]

I've watched it a few more times since they've been showing it a lot on HBO.... Here's a random thing that bugs me.

When Mark calls Anna & asks her on a second date, she says "I have to go." She doesn't HAVE to, that was a lie because all she was doing was reading a magazine in bed. She should have said she WANTS to go.

*phew*

Ricky says to his Louis CK friend something like "I'm black" and the guy says "I KNEW it!". Also Tina Fey calls him a fat faggot. I'm sure there's a lot more too, picking up on them all is probably more fun than watching the film.

[ike]

Yeah, the Tina Fey scene is my least favourite in the movie. Mainly for the "Fat faggot" line, partly because of the fact that he isn't gay or a "faggot" and she knows this so that is essentially a 'lie' and therefore doesn't fit the movie's concept, but mostly because it's just... Not funny, at all. It reeks too much of typical American humour (Something which has blatantly infected the entire movie), and Tiny Fey's acting is just awful.

[unposh74]

I thought the best thing about this movie was the idea behind it. The ability to lie being a sort of super power is clever and then putting it in action as a compassionate gesture which then becomes the source of religion, well that's ingenious and subtle. Really great concept. But the execution of it lacks visual detail: in some scenes the production values don't reach spare and stylized (which seems to be what they were going for) but instead are just kind of empty and unrealized.

I enjoyed parts of the movie because I enjoy Ricky's humor so much, but I think this film would have benefited from a lot more work on the script and on how the thing was going to look. It's almost like he fell in love with the ideas enough to commit to making the movie but the actual process of making it didn't engage him as much. I suspect if Stephen had developed it with him it would have been richer and stronger.

[Christina]

The whole world in which the film was set was terribly, terribly wrong.

[BritishHobo]

still not seen it, but when people talk about the scene with barry and steve as one of the best in the film, i know it's going to be absolutely dire.

I dunno if it was the fact that it was just such a fast-paced scene in the middle of the movie, or that I was just so surprised to see Steve and 'Barry', but I loved that scene during the movie... onnly, watching it on it's own on YouTube, it's really not that funny... maybe the movie needs a rewatch from me.

[Nicola]

I dunno if it was the fact that it was just such a fast-paced scene in the middle of the movie, or that I was just so surprised to see Steve and 'Barry', but I loved that scene during the movie...

Yeah it's kind of the same with me. I was so shocked to see Steve and Barry in that scene that I immediately got more excited about the movie at the time. I don't know if it was my favorite scene, but it was definitely the most memorable.

[LoveSmerch]

I cried when I saw the film. Twice.

I genuinely think it's a brilliant film, albeit with a somewhat reused rom-com feel to it, but aren't we all suckers for those?

The whole 'speaking nothing but the truth' and the man in the sky, I think it a great concept and a great social 'experiment' if you could call it that. I saw this film before I was into Ricky - or, when I'd just seen one or two of his stand up shows and thought I'd look more into him - and I was merely intrigued by the title. Got it like 5 days after the release, and it's now one of my favorite films. Just cos it's sweet, sincere, funny and genuinely interesting in a sociological aspect :)

.. and when I'd gotten more into Ricky, Steve and Karl, and had watch Extras and then saw this again I of course BURST with laughter when I realized it was Steve and Barry!

[likeotherfruit]

That Double Feature podcast went up, and it's a reaaally favorable review.


Kiss Kiss Bang Bang + The Invention of Lying

More analytical than review, I'd say.