Tuesday, January 19, 2010

The Invention of Lying


The Invention of Lying

Synopsis

I watched it yesterday and forgot to blog about it. TIOL is set in an alternate reality in which no one is capable of lying. There is no such thing as "truth" or "lie" because all they speak of is the truth. One faithful day when things turn grimmer than grim, Mark (Ricky Gervais) stumbles upon a revolutionary discovery. He described it as... "saying something that wasn't (true)." The word true is never mentioned because it doesn't exist, so wasn't was the only way he can describe it. It was hilarious because whatever he said, people believed him. He made the most outrageous remarks and people did not question him at all. The story shows how cruel the world can be without lies. People such as Mark get the short end of the stick. Not only do people tell him he's fat, unattractive, but they say the harshest things in his face without consideration of his feelings. On his date with Anna (Jennifer Garner), she immediately told him that she did not feel attracted to him and that she was "out of his league" and they will never go out on a second date ever again. There was nothing he can do but accept it. However, his life turns around when he starts to lie and all sorts of stuff happens.


My life sucks lol.

Thoughts

The movie was definitely insightful. Lying isn't all bad. In fact you get to see what happens when people speak nothing but the truth. People hurt each other all the time and they simply accept it. This movie is also a religious satire. When Mark's mother was on her deathbed Mark tried to comfort her about death and told her that she was going to a better place after death. The doctors over heard his conversation with her and immediately the entire world wanted to know what was after death. He goes on ranting about what happens after death, including there is a "man in the sky" who controls everything. This is a play on religion. Think about it, what if what you believed in was simply made up by someone a long time ago, with the intention of comforting someone during their final hours? I don't want to raise a topic on religion because I'll go on for hours. Back on topic, this movie is definitely worth watching, whether you watch it for the jokes or the way people behave in a world without lies, it will be entertaining.


3 comments:

the berryy said...

i actually thought you copy and pasted the synopsis from somewhere 'cause it was pretty good. and... it might be more interesting than your rants on how bad life is :P

QQ said...

I never plagarize. If I copy I put it in quotes so in your face!

Anonymous said...

L2 TO USE A SPOILER WARNING?