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IMDbPro

The Lies We Tell Ourselves

  • 2023
  • 1h 30m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
34
YOUR RATING
Saara Lamberg in The Lies We Tell Ourselves (2023)
a Saara Lamberg film 

Screenings at LIDO Melbourne 1st February 2024 7pm
THE PICCADILLY Adelaide 10th February 2024 4pm
ODEON STAR Semaphore 16th February 2024 7pm
Play clip2:01
Watch Official Trailer THE LIES WE TELL OURSELVES
1 Video
20 Photos
Comedy

An eccentric director on the rise travels to Cannes, Berlin, New Caledonia, Australia and England to create her latest art house film and jumps many entertaining hurdles before realizing her... Read allAn eccentric director on the rise travels to Cannes, Berlin, New Caledonia, Australia and England to create her latest art house film and jumps many entertaining hurdles before realizing her vision.An eccentric director on the rise travels to Cannes, Berlin, New Caledonia, Australia and England to create her latest art house film and jumps many entertaining hurdles before realizing her vision.

  • Director
    • Saara Lamberg
  • Writer
    • Saara Lamberg
  • Stars
    • Saara Lamberg
    • Ezel Doruk
    • Jane Badler
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.4/10
    34
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Saara Lamberg
    • Writer
      • Saara Lamberg
    • Stars
      • Saara Lamberg
      • Ezel Doruk
      • Jane Badler
    • 11User reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Official Trailer THE LIES WE TELL OURSELVES
    Clip 2:01
    Official Trailer THE LIES WE TELL OURSELVES

    Photos20

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    Top cast25

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    Saara Lamberg
    • Director
    Ezel Doruk
    • Actor
    Jane Badler
    Jane Badler
    • Jane Badler…
    Samantha Greenwood
    • The film funding executive
    David Farrington
    David Farrington
    • Counsellor
    Rhiannon Jorgensen
    • Carmen
    Gérard Darmon
    Gérard Darmon
    • Gérard
    Eeva Putro
    Eeva Putro
    • Financier
    Judi Beecher
    Judi Beecher
    • Sarah
    Xander Turian
    Xander Turian
    • Xander…
    Jamie Lee-Hill
    Jamie Lee-Hill
    • Bradley Walker
    James Glenn Dudelson
    • Sales Agent
    Andy Hazel
    Andy Hazel
    • Neil
    Brigitte Jarvis
    Brigitte Jarvis
    • Kitty
    Colin Donald
    • Tony
    Heidi Salander
    • Jody
    Sandy Mowbray-Clarke
    • Jess
    Sermsah Pepi Bin Saad
    • KY
    • Director
      • Saara Lamberg
    • Writer
      • Saara Lamberg
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews11

    7.434
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    Featured reviews

    10emilykhopper

    Hilarious frustration, the triumph of art and graft.

    Saara Lamberg's The Lies We Tell Ourselves is an improvised, re-enacted, fly-on-the-wall true-mockumentary romp through her journey of independent filmmaking. Ever wonder how anyone makes a film with no budget? By the roll of credits, you'll be astounded that such a thing has ever happened at all.

    The success of Saara's feature has her jetting to film festivals, scrambling to secure the means to realise her next cinematic vision, and collapsing onto her therapists' couch. Cajoling established actors at Cannes is a hilariously grim exercise matched only in awkwardness by the efforts of non-actors to inveigle their way into her production.

    A sleazy producer's attempt to MeToo her is played for- and gets- laughs, but the incident is a nod to the grim reality of the industry's view of how women may make themselves useful within it. Savvy enough to know any dalliance would certainly be followed by a rug-pull, Lamberg avoids this dead-end. Any impact on her dignity is blunted by the fact that it's simply another slight to toss onto the pile. The filmmaker's initiative, resourcefulness, and ability to assemble actors and crew eager to bring her visions to the screen with no budget is thrown back in her face via repeated rejections by a national film funding body that criticises her for being too prolific, wearing too many hats, and not paying anyone involved in her films.

    How can she win? Well, she IS winning. She made this film while you watched, and the talent is undeniably there The quirks of her bare-bones production simply highlight what she'd be capable of if given the financial backing to do so. Her humour buoying every scene, Lamberg manages to have you laughing and groaning with her simultaneously in each scene. She's unafraid of taboo themes, can pull off big shots and her personal exposure is in service to story and exploration of human vulnerability. There are a few shocks, but Lamberg has a deft touch as she participates in some absurdist nude scenes that gesture archly at the kind of exploitation that gets hailed as genius when it's done with a big budget... by an established, well-supported director.

    If you've ever seen a film at all, this is a film you'll enjoy seeing. Thankyou Saara Lamberg for your indefatigable efforts in getting your loopy, delightful visions of the darkness of living and feeling onto the screen. Can't wait to see where you art takes you next.
    10enquiries-58966

    Painfully relatable - review by Isaac Haskell, Winchester Film Festival

    The Lies We Tell Ourselves is an avant-garde treat about how it feels to be deep in the trenches of the creative process.

    It's easy to see how people that don't share Lamberg's experiences could find this film unapproachable with its jarring, meta-ironic humour and surreal, postmodernist style. The film is constantly interrupted by the director herself with title cards, voiceover, and scene changes. At points, it's as if the audience is seeing the editing process happen live as the film unfolds. It never allows you to settle into a relaxed viewing. Alongside a score that wouldn't feel out of place in a horror movie, The Lies We Tell Ourselves paints a picture of the pressures Lamberg feels as she tries to juggle life and creativity. It's a film drenched in anxiety and self-doubt.

    I was struck by just how painfully relatable the piece was when it came to demonstrating what it is to create art. More than a few times, I felt my own struggles and shortcomings reflected back at me. I have never made a feature film, but I am currently studying to become a professional writer. Lamberg is not afraid to be frank about the self-destruction that seems inherent with creating art; the constant strive to be better and the constant feelings of inadequacy when you can never quite get there.

    One particular scene that stuck out to me was when Saara visits her friend for a drink. The friend brings up that she's concerned for Saara's professional reputation considering she is constantly posting nude scenes from her films online. Saara gets defensive. Creating these films is Saara's profession, and the friend doesn't understand that.

    Throughout, we see the amount of effort Lamberg puts into her film in front of and behind the camera compared to the lack of support she gets from the people around her. We feel her frustration when the film industry refuses to help. In some ways, The Lies We Tell Ourselves is a darkly funny sketch show about fighting to get your work taken seriously. If your art is an extension of yourself and no one respects it, what does that say about how they see you?

    If you fall on the red carpet, will anyone be there to catch you?
    10harrisclairej

    A thrillingly original film

    The Lies We Tell Ourselves is not your typical film viewing, but more an immersive experience into the often chaotic and always fascinating mind of the filmmaker. As I heard one audience member say, "This could only have been made by Saara Lamberg" and it is true. An impressive multi-hyphenate (writer-director-producer-actor), Saara's unique vision and presence carries the film. TLWTO is a funny and thought-provoking excursion through the trials and tribulations of the creative process, from constant rejections from funding bodies (one of the film's most hilarious and memorable sequences) to the filmmaker wondering who she has to sleep with to get her movie made. In the place of a linear narrative is layer upon layer of metatextuality with the director engaging directly with the audience and confronting their expectations of what a film should be. The deadpan humour and existential angst woven throughout is reminiscent of some of the great Scandinavian absurdist film directors... Roy Andersson particularly came to mind. Now if only the funding bodies would finally throw some support behind Saara Lamberg!
    10nicholassing

    An authentic playful take on the pursuit of filmmaking.

    The film is a remarkable portrayal of the life of a budding filmmaker. Directed and written by Saara, who also stars as Saara, the film's protagonist. While the film has a playful tone, how it blends this with the themes presented makes me find this film having a deeply unique resonance with me. Which to me speaks to just how amazing Saara's talent as a filmmaker truly is.

    The narrative takes viewers on an immersive journey through the trials and tribulations that filmmakers often face. In a playful humorous way, the film explores the struggles of securing funding, working with high profile actors, facing the questions from those around oneself and being constantly overlooked.

    While overall playful and humorous in nature, the film does not shy away from the emotional challenges that many artists grapple with when feelings of uncertainty set in. It explores the inner conflicts and moments of self-reflection that one can endure where one starts to question their thoughts during uncertainty. This introspective aspect of the film provides a unique commentary on the nature of artistic creation and the emotions that can accompany it.

    The themes the film presents are able to resonate highly with not just filmmakers and other artists but anyone else who has ever struggled in the pursuit of something seemingly farfetched, faced doubters/critics, or doubted their trajectory in the face of the non-black and white issues they face along the way.

    In short, the authenticity of the journey of Saara in this film and the unique art-house style, makes this film a must-watch!
    7patricialai

    Gray

    This film is an honest and authentic expression of what it's like to be an artist. The themes that are explored are introspective and left me with much to digest afterwards. Much like life, the essence of this film is not black or white. It is both and everything in between.

    The constant reminder throughout the film is to ask oneself, "is that true? Is that false?" And "why do I think that?" Although the more prominent elements of the film centers a filmmakers life, the themes still apply to non artists as well. The type of questions this film invites the audience to ask themselves, helps one figure out who they are and how to live a life with integrity.

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    Details

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    • Release date
      • May 18, 2023 (France)
    • Country of origin
      • Australia
    • Official site
      • Official Facebook
    • Language
      • English
    • Production company
      • Innuendo Movie
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    • Gross worldwide
      • $10,530
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

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    • Runtime
      • 1h 30m(90 min)
    • Color
      • Color

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