**THE BAD: ‘THE LIE’**

WRITING: 15
ACTING: 40
LOOK: 50
SOUND: 50
FEEL: 20
NOVELTY: 25
ENJOYMENT: 10
RE-WATCHABILITY: 0
INTRIGUE: 10
EXPECTATIONS: 10

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**The Good:**

I like the ending, that somehow turns a bad situation to something seemingly better, but still much worse.

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**The Bad:**

The acting and the way this film has been written and directed make The Lie seem very stiffly produced. It feels very thin and rough around the edges like the people involved weren't fully immersed in their jobs.

We are thrown straight into the story with little to no context or backstory given and the film fails to deliver that later on as well. This results in flat characters and a rushed plot.

Something is missing from this film dramatically. I can't feel the tension or desperation, perhaps because the characters feel so distant.

The plot just kind of floats around and gives the characters very little to do before it's time to wrap things up.

I've never seen more unsympathetic cops with less charisma anywhere. It doesn't help that the actors portraying them are stiff.

The acting is mostly devoid of depth or emotion, which is a shame because I know some of them are capable of more. It's frustrating when they don't react the way I’d expect them to in some situations.

The characters act stupidly, which adds to the frustration with this film. They make thing unnecessarily hard for themselves, considering that Rebecca is a former police. They don't even get to cover up things properly before the cops are after them.

The director never makes it clear what kind of film she wants The Lie to be. It's a lousy crime film but an even worse drama, thriller or horror.

Most of the tension and danger feels uncomfortably tacked on, mostly since the script doesn't handle the characters or the overall plot very well at all.

What a stupid ending, rendering the entire film pointless.

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**The Ugly:**

I spent most of this film believing it’s based on real-life events until I realized that no one would act as stupidly as the characters do here.

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**VERDICT:**

_A lousily written and directed psychological “horror” that never quite seems to know what it wants to be and consequently falls flat on just about every possible aspect._

**23% = :x: = BAD**