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Release Date: January 19, 2010
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 99 Minutes
In a world where people speak the truth and have no concept of deception, a young man about to lose everything invents the ?lie? and goes on to change not just the nature of movie-making, but creates the basis of religion. After much effort, he also gets the girl he loves.
Invention of Lying can be described as a comedy, but it really is much more than that. Yes, it's charming romantic comedy but it also takes a dramatic turn changing the tone of the film completely as it becomes a religious satire. Having said that, this film will take you on a roller coaster with your emotions as it starts out entertaining and shortly becomes and incredibly thought provoking piece of work. In this world there seems to be no need for religion since everyone is truthful and accepting though Mark soon shows ways that people can not only see the world for what it is under the surface but be better people. So he is not only trying to help himself but he is forced to help the world. As a comedy there are many bold statements including sexual references and some profanity and nothing is held back. As a drama, viewers find themselves thinking about what can be deemed a good lie and a bad lie and what are the pros and cons of these lies. Together, not enough is explored drama wise and yet too much is comedy wise. The balance is not there and being that there is a tone shift, getting to a a much bigger story, the film moves at entirely too slow a pace in getting to that point. And the ending is predictable and cheesy which, for such a bold film is unexpected. Though the cast is fabulous and there are quite a few celebrity cameos concept is fantastic and there is smart, clever writing but ultimately it tries to do too much and viewers are left feeling mildly touched.
Special Features:
Prequel: The Dawn of Lying - This small film includes the main actors of Invention of Lying as cavemen where Mark Bellison's past life shall we say finds himself in the same predicament as his present day self where he is able to lie and no one else is. Well, if there is any feature to skip it is this one as it's quite pointless. It would have made more sense if we saw Mark Bellison's "Black Plague" story come to life.
A Truly "Honest" Making of Featurette with Ricky Gervais - As this is the big screen directing debut for Ricky Gervais, the cast and crew talk about working with Ricky which opens up the features. The cast and crew had a ton of fun playing with guns on set, as viewers will see but even more entertaining is Ricky talking with each of the main cast members on set about working on the film and working with Ricky, who can't seem to keep a serious face while filming and cannot stop laughing during takes - yes during takes, not in between. Closing out the feature...Ricky's laugh is discussed amongst the cast and crew, which will make you laugh and brighten up your day just a little. This was not at all a making of featurette, it was simply a fun behind the scenes look at the cast and crew while filming with short interviews mixed in. Still, it is worth the watch.
Meet Karl Pilkington - This feature introduces Gervais fans to his dear friend who is a writer & producer and follows Karl who is in the prequel as a caveman as his scene in the film was cut in post production. It's quite a fun look at his journey working on the film though if you are not already familiar with Karl, you may not appreciate this feature as much.
Ricky & Matt's Video Podcasts - The podcast episodes featured on the DVD include, "Ricky at Home in Boston," "Office Scouting," "What's in the Local News," and "Jake Attack." The first is set up MTV Cribs style and is self explanatory from there. The second takes viewers along as Ricky and Matt scout offices to shoot at, but really just fitting themselves into cabinets... The third shows Ricky reading a gossip column of a magazine that shares the details of the "news" about Ricky & Matt scouting. The fourth follows Ricky & Matt as they attack Jake with the play guns. Honestly, instead of watching these short bits that are not quite funny, subscribe to Ricky's podcast on iTunes that will be sure to give you a laugh.
Additional Scenes - There are 5 deleted scenes, all quite interesting and comedic though only the first two I can see would have worked well in the film. "On the Way to the Restaurant" shows Anna and Mark driving to the restaurant for their date and Anna talks about herself as Mark is ignoring her because Anna starts out talking about her and Mark but ends up talking about herself, which she is very good at. "Mark and Greg at Bar" is incredibly funny and definitely worth the watch. It's a shame this was deleted though I can understand why it was. "Post Casino" is an argument between Mark and Greg about how to gain money if you have all of the money in the world and this ultimately leads nowhere and is a waste of time but it is still quite funny. "The Readers: Invention of the Fork" and "The Readers: Mathematics" are self explanatory, at least they will be after viewing the film and after watching them, I am thrilled that this world Gervais has created is not reality.
More Laughter: Corpsing & Outtakes - The outtakes start out with the cast in their cavemen wardrobe on the set of the prequel so it will seem very odd if you haven't watched the prequel. After a few moments, viewers see the outtakes from the film, as jokes are made, lines are screwed up, pranks are played, and everyone can't stop laughing. This is definitely a highlight among the special features that you will be happy you watched.
Get Invention of Lying on Blu-ray, DVD, & Download January 19, 2010.
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