The Invention of Lying? Help!

Last night my friends and I went to see The Invention of Lying. The night started off very well. We met for a good old drinkio (actually two....) at The Churchill Arms on Kensington Church Street. If you want to be surrounded by flowers, pots and pans hanging from the ceiling, and an interesting red light, which makes you feel like you are in a weird kitchen utensil sort of red light district - go Churchill it up. No seriously, it is a charming pub - and you have a good giggle when you step into the redness...Also if your a girl, and have to pee, be careful on the path to the Ladies room. A path of flowers, and little babbling brooks...even the Toilet's are lined with flowers! Amazing! There is great hand soap and cream provided, thumbs up, you can never get enough of great hand care...

So anyways, where was I? Ah yes, the movie. The Coronet in Notting Hill does £3.50 tickets on Tuesday's. They are, awesome. It is a charming cinema, an old theatre. Which always give me butterflies in my tummy - there is something about the smell of carpet, old curtains, worn out seats, murky air, that makes me think of all the sweat blood and tears that went into putting on shows in an old theatre....Alas, I fear the same can not be said of Ricky Gervais' last movie.

Set in an alternative reality in which everybody can only tell the truth, Ricky Gervais manages to firmly underline how everything, and I mean everything we believe in, is a lie. A big fat juicy cherry on top, Lie. Lie lie lie lie lie! Mark Bellison (Riky Gervais) lives in a world in which his chubby physique and "snub nosed" features are constantly commented upon. In a world where lying does not exist, blunt remarks escape people's lips quite freely. Religion does not exist, nor does fiction, or advertisements (which are quite amusing actually - a coke add is just a bored looking man saying, "please do not stop buying coke"). When Mark goes on a date with Anna McDoogles(Jennifer Garner) she openly informs him that they will not be having sex, nor will they ever go on another date again, ever. Fair enough. Sometimes we all wish we could say those things. And yes, we do think, or at least I have thought things I wouldn't want other's to hear.... about people's looks (eeeek! Oh the shame!)

Mr. Gervais, who I do love and admire greatly, however, in my humble opinion, took it all a little too far. I knew the movie would be a tad self indulgent, but when the movie takes a turn and Mark discovers he can lie when he goes to the bank, and firmly states he has $800 in his account (when he actually only has $300...how I wish I could do this!!) - it starts to snow ball into a big fat rant by Señor Gervias, kind of pointing a finger at us, and scolding the audience for living a lie. Mark invents the, "Man in the sky", and a place in the sky one goes to after death, where you all have mansions...etc etc..... Anna obsesses about how she must find someone with the right genetic make up, so that she can have beautiful children. She can't marry Mark, as that would mean her children would be "chubby and snub-nosed". If I ever hear the phrase "genetic make up" again... I will barf. Ugh.

I left the theatre feeling deflated, and sort of lost. Surely Mister Gervais did not intend to make the audience feel like shit? I went to sleep and dreamt of genetic make up, lying, and woke up today feeling a bit sad. His film was a bit to cynical for me. He already expresses his opinions in his stand up, and that he does in a charming, witty, clever way....in short he does it extremely well. In this film, he kind of hammers it home, a bit too much, and repeats himself...too...many times. Sorry guys. Thumbs down for our ole' pal Ricky. But I still love him. I am just a bit...(here comes the dreaded word, hate to use it..but argh must..!) disappointed. There I said it.

"By the Beard of Zeus" I feel this got a bit serious.....but hey, I vented. I am off to have edamame and miso soup. My latest obsession these days. I better go before I start repeating myself, and hammering home the same point, again and again...

Besos....muchos besos,

Aynanita

p.s. Here is the link for the wonderful Coronet cinema:
http://www.coronet.org/

p.p.s. And of course, a link for The Churchill Arms:
http://www.pubs.com/pub_details.cfm?ID=159