'The Invention of Lying' review

Jennifer Garner and Ricky Gervais (Credit: Sam Urdank/Warner Bros.)

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Imagine an alternate reality where the concept of lying (including all fiction and flattery) doesn’t exist. That’s where Mark Bellison (Ricky Gervais) works as a screenwriter—meaning he takes historical facts and writes them down for people to recite on film—without much success professionally or personally. About to be fired and evicted from his apartment, Mark tells the world’s first lie. He discovers he has immense power when everyone simply believes whatever he says and becomes a celebrity, attracting the interest of his dreamgirl, Anna (Jennifer Garner). But Mark doesn’t realize his lies have unintended consequences that make life more complicated than ever before.

The buzz: Gervais co-created and starred in two of television’s best comedy series—“The Office” and “Extras”—but has yet to become a major mainstream star. His work in last year’s sweet-natured romantic comedy “Ghost Town” should’ve helped, but the movie bombed. Now Gervais has collaborated with debut screenwriter Matthew Robinson to co-write and co-direct his first film. And they’ve lined up an impressive roster of talent for cameos and supporting roles including Louis C.K., Rob Lowe, Jonah Hill, Tina Fey, Jason Bateman, Christopher Guest, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Edward Norton.

The verdict: Far more than your average high concept comedy (“It’s ‘Liar Liar’ in reverse!”), “The Invention of Lying” delivers sophisticated satire with big laughs and bigger ideas. Robinson and Gervais craft snappy, sharp dialogue that consistently hits targets big and small, from awkward dates (“I’m not really looking forward to tonight in general”) to advertising (“Coke. It’s very famous.”) to wedding vows (sorry, not spoiling that one). And when the film’s world view expands to the afterlife, the bold humor provokes questions about spirituality and religion without coming off as mean-spirited or didactic. Tying it all together is a winning romantic throughline, sparked by surprisingly strong chemistry between Gervais and Garner. The movie is a little too drab visually—an arguably appropriate aesthetic for a world without imagination—and some stronger definition of the supporting characters would help, but “Lying” ambitiously stakes its claim to the highest level of film comedies. And by doing so, it just might be the best comedy of the year. Honestly.

Did you know? Robinson claims he got the inspiration for the film’s concept after a weekend of watching “The Twilight Zone” and reading Harlan Ellison.

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