Film File - The Invention of Lying

Trust Ricky Gervais to come up with a concept everybody can relate to - the art of lying. The creator of television shows like 'The Office' and 'Extras' travels to an alternative universe for his first feature as writer and director, 'The Invention of Lying'. In this very strange land he's created, lying (even the concept of a lie) does not exist. Everyone from politicians to advertisers to the man and woman on the street speaks the truth and nothing but the truth - yes, folks, a very strange concept. When a down-on-his-luck writer named Mark Bellison (Gervais) suddenly develops the ability to lie, he finds that dishonesty has its rewards. In a world where every word is assumed to be the absolute truth, Bellison learns quickly and lies his way to fame and fortune. But lies have a way of spreading, and things inevitably get out of control when some of his tallest tales are being taken as gospel. With the entire world now hanging on his every word, there is only one place Bellison has not been able to lie his way into: the heart of the woman he loves. His work involves writing for a film company, but in this peculiar world, films are simply people reading historical facts or scientific facts on camera with titles like 'The Invention Of The Fork' and suchlike. Bellison is lumbered with the 14th century, including the Black Plague - an area that leaves little room for career advancement. His boss, Anthony (Jeffrey Tambor), attempts to fire him daily but puts it off whenever he comes face-to-face with the task - another very un-Hollywood operating procedure. Only his acerbic, gossipy receptionist Shelley (Tina Fey) provides any glimmer in his dreary existence. As the film opens, Mark Bellison is 40 and single, caring for his dying mother, Martha (Finnuala Flanagan), and preparing to embark on his first date with Anna (Jennifer Garner), the long-time object of his affection who's completely out of his league. "Believe it or not, I've cast myself as a tubby, middle-aged loser - it's a stretch," quips Gervais on his directing debut. With his co-writer/director Matthew Robinson, the man who made 'The Office' a global hit latched onto the concept for his story after watching episodes of 'The Twilight Zone', resulting in this comedy/fantasy where lying doesn't exist and people say exactly what's on their minds. What the world would be like if people utterly told the truth, completely unfiltered, was "both hilarious and sort of philosophically fascinating to me," he said. Inevitably, things change with that first little lie which begins innocently enough, but the outcome goes far, far beyond his expectations when one fib begets another and the floodgates open, bringing initial success and then the inevitable moral reckoning. Taking obvious cues from movies like 'Pleasantville' and 'The Truman Show', Gervais makes full use of his original concept for a number of scenes where lying and its expert delivery create the expected chuckles in the hands of such an experienced writer. In a world where the noble virtue of honesty encompasses every facet of daily life, the clash with the more base human desires of greed and avarice make for a sharp and funny first half where the action clips along at a steady pace. For the second half of the film, however, the one-trick pony concept does wear pretty thin at times, resulting in staged humour that often fails to ignite. Anchored by a good cast including Rob Lowe and Jonah Hill, Gervais squeezes the maximum possible from his debut but falls down through the absence of an ending as smart as the film's first 45 minutes. Still, Ricky Gervais is a good observer of humanity and does land some telling jabs on things like organised religion and the need for fantasy to brighten up the relentless reality of a world without porkies. It's not quite 'Extras' or 'The Office', but good for a midweek trip to the cinema all the same.