Review of The Invention of Lying

Here's a film that creatively comments on our era of fact-free news and opinions by inventing a time when there was only truth -- telling the tale as a comedic fantasy where, quite literally, no one could ever think of lying. No one that is until our anti-hero stumbles upon the art by accident. Far more entertaining than non-stop punchlines and slapstick, the mirth flows naturally from the script's concept and plot. The wit missing from most of today's "laffers" abounds as a result. It's a film truly "about something" -- a story that opens your mind to looking at the world in a different way. Like great literature, each re-visit offers new insight into the human condition from the viewpoints of psychology, sociology and philosophy. Yet it's never so deep that it befuddles the viewer; eschewing a documentary or academic approach, it simply and genuinely amuses the audience on a higher human plane. One of the most thoughtful movies of our millennium -- a rare example of a film you can think of highly and often, always with a smile that's never painted on.