Review Tuesday: 'The Invention of Lying'

Today’s ‘Review Tuesday’. I’m Jewish, so the New Testament’s not my book. But the Old Testament is. Apparently the Authorised King James Version is the Church of England’s 17th century translation of both testaments [1]. And apparently it contains the phrase ‘And it came to pass’ 452 times in its 31,102 verses (i.e. 1.45%) [2]. In darling Meg’s Spoiler Alert comment [3] on my 19 October ‘Review Tuesday’ review of Ghost Town starring Ricky Gervais [4], she confirmed my prediction that Gervais plays a similar role in his subsequent film: the 2009 comedy The Invention of Lying [TIOL] – which he co-wrote and co-directed . Last Friday evening Sweetheart Vivienne, Dieter and I watch TIOL [5, 6] – and darling Meg was correct: ‘It came to pass’. TIOL’s a US romantic comedy with a paranormal bent. It’s set in a modern US town where everyone’s 100% truthful because lies are unknown. Then Mark (Gervais’s character) begins lying, which causes his life to take a dramatic upturn. And he even gets the girl Anna (Jennifer Garner) even though Mark’s a short fat guy likely to sire short fat kids. TIOL features the ever predictable and entertaining Gervais; also several fine actors in minor roles – including Rob Lowe, Tina Fey, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jeffrey Tambor [7]. It’s good fun with a serious subtext. But I can’t tell you a lie: it’s only worth three stars. However it sure beats reading the King James Version. For me anyway. Ho hum.

Review Tuesday: 'Ghost Town'

Today’s ‘Review Tuesday’. Wikipedia describes Ghost Town as ‘a 2008 American paranormal comedy-drama…starring English comedian Ricky Gervais in his first leading role in a movie’ [1]. In Ghost Town [2, 3] Bertram Pincus (Gervais [4]) is an English dentist living in New York, who dies during a routine colonoscopy, is revived seven minutes later, and then discovers he’s able to see ghosts. Many of the ghosts follow him around, and ask him favours. One ghost asks Pincus to prevent the impending re-marriage of his widow. Pincus, an introverted loner, reluctantly obliges. And love blossoms. Eventually Pincus sees the error of his ways, and so he obliges all the requests the ghosts have made of him. This is a sweet film. Light entertainment without troubling one’s brain cells unduly. All good fun. But I can’t give it more than three stars out of five. Gervais dominates this movie. Like Harrison Ford and Hugh Grant, he plays one persona in all his roles: David Brent in The Office, Andy Millman in Extras, and now Pincus. That’s not to say Gervais doesn’t act well. But it does confine one’s view of his acting ability. I wonder what he’ll be like in his subsequent film: the 2009 comedy The Invention of Lying [5, 6] – which he co-wrote and co-directed. I won’t have long to wait – it’s top of my Bigpondmovies rental queue.