Lying is the mother of invention

Ricky Gervais, the genius behind "The Office" (the inspiration for "Stromberg") and "Extras", enjoys genuine cult status not only among his many fans, but especially among his colleagues in England and the United States. With "Lügen macht erfinderisch", Gervais now delivers his first work as a feature film director, in which he also serves as co-writer and lead actor. A wonderful basic idea and guest appearances by stars such as Edward Norton and Philip Seymour Hoffman are actually the best prerequisites for a real comedy smash hit. And yet "Lügen macht erfinderisch" is only partially successful.

The story takes place in an alternate reality where people have never acquired the ability to lie. Here, people mercilessly tell each other the truth, no matter how painful it may be. Mark Bellison (Gervais) has to experience this on a daily basis, both in his professional and personal life. For example, his blind date Anna (Jennifer Garner) opens the door and tells him that she is not attracted to him and that his financial situation does not help to compensate for this shortcoming. The day after the disappointing date, Mark also loses his job as a screenwriter. But just when it thinks he's completely screwed, Mark discovers something that will change his life forever: lying!

advertisements that always tell the truth ("Pepsi - If There's No Coca Cola"), big summer blockbusters that aren't fictional stories but read aloud historically proven truths, or unflattering terms for institutions like nursing homes are all things that make "Lügen macht erfinderisch" so worth watching, especially in the first half. It's a pleasure to listen to a couple having their uninhibitedly honest argument, or to watch Mark turn his life around with his first walking attempts at the newly discovered ability to lie.

But then the tide turns with the death of Mark's mother, and the man labeled a loser by Allen has to resort to a lie that catapults him into the center of world attention all at once. Although the film still manages to entertain with some very funny ideas, the turn the events take here is without a doubt the film's biggest weak point, from which it doesn't really recover until the end. As good and above all interesting as the idea may be, the production suffers from the lack of bite that has made Ricky Gervais' previous TV work so successful.

So "Lügen macht erfinderisch" is a very well cast (especially Louis C.K. inspires as Mark's best friend Greg) comedy with some ideas that can be called ingenious with a clear conscience, but which fails in the end because of its own ambitions and a too well-behaved, pleasing staging. And so, in the end, the film is unfortunately just nice entertainment - nothing more, but fortunately nothing less either

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp