Review
Lies We Tell (Crime, Romance, Thriller) (2017)
Director: Mitu Misra
Writers: Ewen Glass (screenplay), Andy McDermott (screenplay), Mitu Misra (story)
Stars: Gabriel Byrne, Sibylla Deen, Mark Addy, Jan Uddin
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When Donald’s long time employer Demi passes away, it’s up to him to make sure Demi’s mistress Amanda knows what happened and moves on. However, just when Donald assumes his task is finished, some details that were unaccounted for come to light.
After a rough start, Donald and Amanda grow closer, as Donald stands up for her. He realizes the situation Amanda is in and decides to step in, learning of some unfortunate information and a culture clash between Amanda’s secret relationship with his former boss and her family life. As the pair gets to know each other, everything gets clearer, emotions run high, and family ties between Amanda and her family are fragile.
In what’s supposed to be a confronting introduction to Pakistani tradition and a shocking culture clash between the main characters and the audience, we’re treated to a simplistic version of how a western outsider would look upon Pakistani traditions. Woman are treated as gifts to a man and integration into a different (More culturally western) life is frowned upon, especially when it seems like you’re forgetting your roots. It’s slow in its story with static camera angles that tend to show more emotion than realistically plausible. At certain points it’s comparable to a soap opera in the style of The Bold and the Beautiful, fitting at times but mostly ridiculous and over the top. For romance and soap opera fans this might just be the perfect blend of a culture movie and an American or British soap opera, but probably not.
Standing out are some of the deeper dives into some characters, where the script doesn’t do a good job of explaining both what’s happening and why. The antagonist’s introduction is somewhat interesting but turns into an unlikely character with an improbable backstory tied to the whole Pakistani family. Forced relationships and a superficial investigation into Pakistani traditions are the majority of this film, trying to bolster it with some action along the way.
The fact that this is a directors debut is apparent, as a first movie by someone who has never even been on a film set before, it’s a success. However, with so many movies being made by very talented directors, this is far from a stand out as it feels overly simplistic and highly questionable.
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Verdict
Not as intriguing as it could’ve been, instead just a long-winded mildly interesting showing of Pakistani culture in Britain.
5,8
