Menteur menteur

Liar Liar is about a boy who, after being stood up by his big-shot lawyer father one too many times, wishes that for just one day his dad couldn't lie. This wreaks havoc on his personal life and even more on his professional life as a lawyer who makes a living putting criminals back on the streets.

Carrey is immediately and constantly hilarious in his role as the unwillfully honest Fletcher Reede. Every scene is full of awkwardly straightforward behavior and dialogue ("Whatever takes the focus off your head!) that is funny because it is so unusual and unexpected. Maura Tierney delivers one of the best performances of her career (second only to her wonderful job in Primal Fear), but Cary Elwes plays a disappointing turn from his amazing job in The Princess Bride. Seeing him as the endlessly charming Wesley in that film and then seeing him as a squirrely step-father type in Liar Liar just didn't seem to fit, but the film was able to overcome such small problems and present itself as a good and entertaining comedy.

In addition to the good comedy that Liar Liar presented, there were strange comedic scenes that Carrey had never done before. For example, I have never seen him portray a descent into madness as was shown with the blue pen, and it should be noted how well this funny man played the part of a man trying very hard not to be funny, with hilarious results. This is a bit like his role in Man on the Moon where he was a comedian playing a comedian who was often deliberately not funny, and the results there were hilarious as well. Jim Carrey's great comedy acting skills were a crucial element of this film, but they are not the only redeeming value of the movie itself. The story is solid and legitimate as well, and it is well-presented and directed, resulting in a good, fun comedy.

True the plot is a little corny, my only criticism of the movie, but Jim Carrey's wonderfully energetic and most of the time hilarious performance more than compensates. Liar Liar is easily one of Carrey's better films, I do confess I will need to see a few more of his movies before concluding which one's his best to save bias. What Liar Liar manages to do is have a slightly corny though very interesting idea, and make into a good spirited and absolutely hilarious film. The script almost the whole time verged on hysterically funny, and there are many priceless scenes, especially the courtroom scene- I needed to go to the bathroom to check I hadn't wet myself from laughing so much. The other performances were great, Cary Elwes was excellent, and the boy was very sweet and charming. Overall, a hilarious movie, that does cheer you up considerably after a hard day, I still chuckle even thinking of it. There is so much to recommend this, but at the end of the day, it is Carrey's picture. 9.5/10 Bethany Cox

I have to admit, I'm probably a little biased with this movie, as it contains two of the things I love the most in any movie; court scenes and Jim Carrey. I'll try my best to be objective in this review, though. The plot is good, and as the film barely takes 90 minutes it's fairly fast-paced(well, for a Jim Carrey comedy, anyway); I don't think there ever passes 5 minutes without one single joke. The acting is fairly good; Jim Carrey is in his element, so it's no surprise that he's good, but I did find both Maura Tierney and Cary Elwes pretty good too. I know that Elwes is English, not American, and after seeing another movie in which he has a strong English accent(Robin Hood: Men in Tights), I was impressed at how well he does American parts as well. The characters are well-written and credible. The humor is great, partly because it's, well, Carrey, but also because unlike some of Carrey's previous roles, this is fairly "clean", so teenagers and some kids will be able to enjoy it as well. The theme of the film is great; I mean, we all know that we lie several times a day(heck, it's even been scientifically proved), but what about if we, for one whole day, couldn't tell one single lie? Great theme, provokes some thought and is executed fairly well in the film, though I do think it could have been done a tad better. Overall, I don't have any major complaints with the film though; I guess it could be argued that most of what Carrey does in this film, the comedy and all, is stuff he's done before, but that's OK; it's not any less entertaining here, regardless of the fact that we've seen it(or something similar to it) earlier. The dialog is great, with some very memorable and quotable lines. All in all, a typical Carrey film, which can be a good thing as well as bad; Carrey does exactly what you expect him to, and he's very entertaining and all, but it never transcends the standard level of the typical Carrey comedy. On a final note, I think this(as well as his other work) proves that Tom Shadyac is the best there is at bringing out Carrey's talents(he also directed Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and Bruce Almighty). I recommend it to any fan of Jim Carrey and/or Tom Shadyac. 7/10

Liar Liar is one solution to the problem of what kind of movie vehicle to write for overacting, rubber man Jim Carrey. Following the success of Ace Ventura, director Tom Shaydac casts Carrey as a divorced lawyer who has no time for his young son. In the film, the word liar is a pun on lawyer, equating the two words since his character is a lying lawyer. Every time he promises to attend one of his son's school events or play with him, Carrey finds some excuse to get out of it. His son makes a birthday wish that just for one day his dad would tell the truth and it happens. Carrey is incapable of lying and when he tries to lie, his face and body go into every contortion imaginable as he tries to suppress the truth. There is a literally "off the wall" scene where he beats himself up in a bathroom. Carrey is a likable guy and carries the movie. Of course, you can't believe for a second that he's a lawyer but belief is not needed in this film. This is a movie with a message that fathers shouldn't ignore their children. For a film aimed at kids, there is a surprising amount of boob and sexual humor. Maura Tierney is very cute as his ex-wife. Amanda Donohoe plays Carrey's seductress law partner and Jennifer Tilly is a buxom, bimbo client. Director Tom Shadyac later worked with Carrey in Bruce Almighty. Liar Liar is for Jim Carrey fans and fathers who ignore their kids.

This movie is absolutely hilarious! There are few movies as humorous as this one, being "Mousehunt" one of those few - another 1997 motion picture.

Every minute of "Liar Liar" is pure fun and every minute means a good laughter. Many moments are hysterical! Jim Carrey is often a great comedian, but this is him at his funniest side.

The story is very funny and entertaining: Fletcher Reede, a lawyer with the habit of lying and breaking promises, suddenly sees himself forced to become honest during the next 24 hours after his son's birthday wish comes true. He doesn't understand what's happening to him and that is driving him insane... he can't tell any lies, not even write a little lie! Whenever he tries to and whenever he talks, it's a huge mess for sure! He even transforms the court room into a circus, seems to lose his mind and makes goofy faces! Incredibly hilarious!

The actors have great performances. Jim Carrey is great as Fletcher Reede, but there are other equally good actors, like Maura Tierney as Audrey Reede, Cary Elwes as Jerry and little Justin Cooper as Max (Fletcher's son). Max is also referred to as "Maximillian" and "Monster Max" by his father, who loves to do "The Claw" much for his son's delight. I know Cary Elwes from "Robin Hood: Men in Tights" and I do know that he is an English actor, but he speaks with a good American accent in this film. Some might think that Jim Carrey overacts here and that his humor is too crummy, but the energy he shows here is not something anybody could do. It requires a very energetic and patient comedian and Jim Carrey proves his talent to do so. The kid is cute. He almost looks like Sean Marshall in "Pete's Dragon", with that face and long hair.

At my point of view, "Liar Liar" has funny humor, not irritating or dirty humor. It is a modern light-hearted comedy. Its aim is purely fun at the highest level. I think it's difficult not laughing while watching this movie. Lots of very funny lines are another attribute.

Directed by Tom Shadyac, "Liar Liar" is the best thing Jim Carrey and Tom Shadyac ever did together and slightly superior than the later "Bruce Almighty".