MatthewRobinson Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Ricky Gervais's The Invention of Lying is taking hits in some places -- and earning praise in some other places -- for sneaking an unabashedly atheistic message inside a fairly conventional rom-com structure. I agree that the movie is astonishingly gutsy in this respect: in a country where a politician cannot publicly avow a lack of belief, a movie that declares religion to be a sham to comfort the gullible got a major distributor and a 2,000+ screen release how? (The obvious counterpoint is Bill Maher's Religulous, but that was a niche documentary that preached to the choir and was honestly marketed as anti-clerical; The Invention of Lying is a mainstream comedy whose ads did not contain a hint of where it was heading.) But is Gervais's movie really as anti-religious as it seems?

Consider that Gervais's portrayal of a world without religion is hardly utopian. His Mark Bellison lives in a shallow, blatantly classist society, obsessed with material wealth and physical appearance. His quest for romantic companionship is consistently undermined by his portliness and his "snub nose" -- obstacles in most civilizations, to be sure, but here the grounds for denying him sex and companionship are downright eerie. It's not just that the beautiful, successful Anna McDoogles (Jennifer Garner) isn't physically attracted to him. It's that, she tells him time and again, the two of them are not an optimal "genetic match." Mark's hunky colleague (Rob Lowe), on the other hand, is a far better "genetic match" -- and thus a better mate despite being, by all accounts, a huge douchebag.

Warm, witty, and wise are all words I would happily use to described The Invention of Lying. Ricky Gervais, who co-wrote and co-directed with Matthew Robinson, stars as a screenwriter in an alternate universe. (Jennifer Garner, Jonah Hill, Rob Lowe, and Louis C.K. also star.) It's a world that resembles our world, except that everyone is compelled to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, at all times -- not simply be honest when asked, but volunteer all manner of unflattering information. It's a cute premise that allows the dark, droll humor of Gervais to prevail, resulting in a very funny movie that eventually morphs into a treatise -- some would say a broadside, but I think it's far too kind and empathetic -- on religion, spirituality, and the importance of leading a "good" life.

Here's the rub: Gervais' character is also a wee bit hypocritical. (OK, a whole lot.) As he admits in the film, he's a middle-aged, overweight, snub-nosed little man, not much in the physical looks department. His charming personality, keen intelligence, and acerbic humor all serve to balance the books nicely as an overall package, but not in the eyes of Jennifer Garner, who plays a shallow-minded woman. All she wants is a good match in the gene pool, and Gervais doesn't measure up. So why does he pursue her?

Maybe I'm just indulging with some wishful thinking, but with a cast like this in a story from the mind of Ricky Gervais, what could possibly go wrong? The Hollywood Reporter announced that Jonah Hill has signed up for a role in Gervais' romantic comedy, This Side of the Truth. Hill will be joining Gervais, Rob Lowe, Jennifer Garner and Louis C.K. in the story of the first man who more or less invents the art of lying.

The official story is described as "a storyteller whose job is to ramble on about the 1300s. Faced with losing his job because his terrain is a boring period in history once he gets beyond the Black Death, he invents lying as a way to save himself." Of course he becomes seduced by this awesome power and uses it to woo a woman who is way out of his league. Garner stars as that woman, Hill will play Gervais' depressed neighbor, and comedian C.K will appear as Hill's loser roommate.

The film is Gervais' first stab at directing a feature film and he will be sharing the duties along with his writing partner Matthew Robinson. Personally I was hoping for someone a little, well, funnier for the part of 'the girl' but maybe this is Jennifer Garner's chance to finally be funny (especially since I like to pretend that the irritating and somewhat sexist comedy 13 Going on 30 never existed). I guess I'll find out just how funny Garner can be when This Side of the Truth arrives in theaters sometime in 2009.

Prepare to suspend disbelief -- Variety is reporting that Ricky Gervais and Jennifer Garner will be romancing each other in an upcoming comedy. Only in the movies (and in Beverly Hills) can people on such opposite ends of the attractive-o-meter find love. The indie flick, currently titled This Side of the Truth, is "set in a world where lying doesn't exist." Gervais wrote the screenplay with Matthew Robinson, and the pair will co-direct as well. The screenplay "centers on an Everyman (Gervais) who figures out how to lie and uses his newfound ability to woo a beautiful woman way out of his league (Garner) and become a success at work."

It sort of sounds like a reverse Liar Liar, and I can pretty much guarantee with Gervais so heavily involved, this will be one funny flick. If you're not familiar with RIcky, by all means check out BBC's The Office, the original (and still best) British version of the hit Steve Carell show. Gervais just won an Emmy for his performance on the very funny sitcom Extras, which will air an hour-long Christmas special Sunday, December 16th on HBO (Yay!). Garner of course is Mrs. Ben Affleck, and might just be in the running for a supporting actress Oscar nomination for her work in the terrific upcoming comedy Juno. I speak the Truth.