The Invention of Lying (2009)

A comedy set in a world where no one has ever lied, until a writer seizes the opportunity for personal gain.

Directors:

Ricky Gervais, Matthew Robinson

Writers:

Ricky Gervais, Matthew Robinson

Stars:

Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Jonah Hill

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ricky Gervais	...	Mark Bellison
Jennifer Garner	...	Anna McDoogles
Jonah Hill	...	Frank
Louis C.K.	...	Greg
Jeffrey Tambor	...	Anthony
Fionnula Flanagan	...	Martha Bellison
Rob Lowe	...	Brad Kessler
Tina Fey	...	Shelley
Donna Sorbello	...	Anna's Mother
Stephanie March	...	Blonde
Ruben Santiago-Hudson	...	Landlord
John Hodgman	...	Wedding Overseer
Nathan Corddry	...	News Reporter (as Nate Corddry)
Jimmi Simpson	...	Bob
Martin Starr	...	Waiter #1

Storyline

It's a world where everyone tells the truth - and just about anything they're thinking. Mark Bellison is a screenwriter, about to be fired. He's short and chunky with a flat nose - a genetic setup that means he won't get to first base with Anna, the woman he loves. At a bank, on the spur of the moment he blurts out a fib, with eye-popping results. Then, when his mother's on her deathbed, frightened of the eternal void awaiting her, Mark invents fiction. The hospital staff overhear his description of Heaven, believe every word, and tell others. Soon Mark is a prophet, his first inventive screenplay makes him rich, and he's basically a good guy. But will that be enough for Anna?

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Plot Keywords:

love | truth | screenwriter | lie | genetics | 

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Taglines:

In a world where everyone can only tell the truth... ...this guy can lie.

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Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for language including some sexual material and a drug reference

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Ricky Gervais - Blog

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 October 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

This Side of the Truth

Filming Locations:

Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$18,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£1,735,326 (UK) (2 October 2009)

Gross:

$18,439,082 (USA) (11 December 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Radar Pictures, Media Rights Capital

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director, writer and actor Ricky Gervais sponsored an online Photoshop contest related to the movie theme by asking contestants to edit known movie posters as if those posters were usually lying to the audience.

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Goofs

When the Blonde lies on the bed in the hotel room, where Mark has brought her, we see her belt unbuckled and stretched out on each side of her. In the very next shot, it is buckled again.

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Quotes

Richard Bellison: [surprised by the homeowner during a burglary] What are you doing here? It's Monday at noon. You're not supposed to be home now!
Man at the Door: If you must know, I'm incredibly stressed at work, I've come home early, I'm having a bit of me-time. More importantly, what are you doing?
Richard Bellison: Well, I was gonna rob your house.
Man at the Door: I don't like that idea. Not a fan of that at all.
Richard Bellison: I'm not gonna do it now, because you're in.
Man at the Door: Do you know what's gonna happen? I'm gonna call the police, you're gonna be arrested.
Richard Bellison: Well, I'm just ...
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in Live Free or Die Hard (Project 12, 8/12) (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Sitting"
(1972)
Written by Cat Stevens (as Yusuf Islam)
Performed by Elvis Costello

User Reviews

constantly funny it may not be, but clever it is

There is a certain re-training of the mind that a film expects of us in order to fully enjoy the place it seeks to take us. This film, in the first act we are taught, in a rather funny way that the world of this film is to say the least - honest. Everyone coldly delivers, whether asked or not - exactly what is on their mind. It takes a good 1/4 of the film to fully understand exactly the world where there is no opposite to truth. And those moments are worth the price of admission alone.

As a viewer I enjoyed the random interactions that a world where truth is embedded in the framework of all social interaction. With no deviation.

By the time Gervais comes across the knowledge that an alternate way of communication exists in "saying what wasn't" we embark on a tale of a man who essentially won the "lying Lottery".

The humour is subtle, the contrast of religious themes are not so, and that may have been the weakest of elements in the film. Sadly those who think there is a single element of disrespect towards religion from within the world of the film are I believe incorrect. While religious digs may have been the impetus for the films creation, from within the film, Mark's character seems to make a clear delineation between an evil lie and a white lie. And his character never seems comfortable for too long with a lie that affects the lives of many.

The film does have a one of the more sweet and quietly powerful scenes where Mark creates an alternate afterlife for his mother. Because I don't view this film through a filter of religious expectation I found this scene to be simply powerful and poignant.

I enjoyed it, as did my partner. We talked the whole way home, and recreated some of the laughs on the way to the car. That is not a lie.