What is truth?  Put differently, for the purposes of this review of Liar Liar (1997), what does it gain a person to lie?  These kinds of questions have puzzled philosophers of all corners of the globe for thousands of years, probably even before written record.  Truth is a big word, though modern society seems to trivialize it.  There are phrases out there like “my truth” or “as I see it.”  It is meant to be empowering, but truthfully it means nothing beyond the individual.  When we humans first began pondering this idea, it referred to something bigger than themselves, something objective.  We Christians know that this “something bigger” is God.  Over the centuries, we have waxed and waned in our acceptance of the truth.  A film like today’s does some of the right things, but also underscores how society is in one of those waning periods.

Jesus told us to be like children.  It is thus appropriate that Liar Liar begins with a child.  His name is Maximillian “Max” Reede (Justin Cooper).  He is five and his kindergarten class is being asked what their parents do for a living.  When it gets to be Max’s turn, he says his dad, Fletcher Reede (Jim Carey), is a liar.  When pressed further by Max’s teacher, the boy describes Fletcher’s profession further and we find out that the elder Reede is a lawyer.  We meet him coming out of the courthouse after another case, and he is schmoozing with everyone around him in that kind of disingenuous way you would expect of a politician.  Indeed, it is his predilection for flattery that makes him late to pick up Max.  Fletcher is divorced from his wife, Audrey (Maura Tierney), though she remains in the area in order for Max to be close to his father, who the boy worships despite the dishonesty.  Audrey, though, has a new boyfriend, Jerry (Cary Elwes), who is . . . enthusiastic.  There is nothing wrong with the guy, but he lacks personality.  Still, he treats Audrey right and Max is friendly with him.  Fletcher makes fun of Jerry, but respects him.  Anyway, Fletcher has a great day planned for his son, but he first needs to swing by the office.  While there, his boss, Miranda (Amanda Donohoe), gives him a new case.  This is Samantha Cole (Jennifer Tilly) who, despite her infidelities, is seeking half of the marital assets from her husband.  The extra work, as usual, means that Fletcher has less time to spend with Max, though Fletcher promises to be there for his son’s birthday party the following day.  This is given added importance because Audrey needs to discuss with Fletcher Jerry’s marriage proposal, which comes with his desire to move them across the country to Boston.  Instead, Jerry ends up having sex with Miranda.  Meanwhile, a disappointed Max blows out his birthday candles with the following wish: that his dad would go an entire day without lying.  The effect is immediate as Fletcher says some awkward post-coitus words to Miranda.  It continues into the next day as, on his way to the courthouse, he finds that he is physically incapable of telling a lie.  This is a problem for the upcoming Cole case because his entire strategy is to paint a false picture of her as a victim spurred to the arms of other men by a cruel husband.  Fletcher desperately asks the judge for a delay but is refused, and he is expected back in court in a few hours.  He goes back to his office and has a series of odd, Jim Carey-esque moments when he is being brutally honest with everyone around him without intentionally being so.  In talking to Audrey, he learns that Max had made the wish that is forcing the truth out of dad against his will.  Thus, he goes to Max’s school to try to convince the kid to take back the wish, even bringing a fresh cake and candle to complete the process.  Max complies, but they find that the trick does not work because he wants his father to stop lying.  It is with a sense of dread, then, that he goes back to the courtroom to argue his side in the Cole proceedings.  It is not going well, and he basically badgers his own witness into confessing to the fact that Samantha cheated on her husband.  Yet, just as all seems to be lost, Fletcher discovers a loophole about which he can be honest.  It turns out that Samantha had lied about her age.  She had married at an illegal age, thus nulling their pre-nuptial agreement and forcing the bewildered judge to give her half.  She then decides to press her luck, demanding that she also get full custody of her children.  Seeing the kids’ desire to be with their dad breaks Fletcher, and he goes into a series of hysterics that land him in jail, charged with contempt of court.  This is most inconvenient for him because he had promised Audrey that he would be there to talk to her about their planned moved to Boston.  Fletcher, luckily, is bailed out by his secretary, and he makes a mad dash to the airport, stopping the plane from taking off with a mobile stair car.  As the passengers get out, including Audrey, Jerry, and Max, it is Max that sees that Fletcher is a changed man.  Dad reinforces this by telling his son that he loves him.  We then go forward a year later and it is Max’s birthday again.  He makes another wish upon blowing out the candles.  After the lights come back on, Audrey and Fletcher are kissing.  Max denies this is what he had asked for, but it is appears that they live happily ever after.

The seminal moment in Liar Liar comes when Fletcher sits down with Max to explain why adults have to lie sometimes. He says that no one can survive in the adult world by always telling the truth.  To that, I would respond with the first sentence in the last paragraph.  God wants us to be His children, to rely on Him for everything, including truth.  Max does not understand the subtleties of communication.  What he does recognize is that his dad is not always straight with him, and that this hurts.  Yet, Max also displays Christ-like behavior in his ability to continually gives his dad chances.  Is it any wonder that Jesus tells us to be like this?  Imagine how much better the world would be if we had the same patience? At the same time, this is not an invitation to be a push over.  It is important to have boundaries.  Jesus did.  Answering His call is not about picking and choosing what aspects of the Faith you want to follow, but giving yourself over fully.  How that looks is dependent on how God calls you.  Ultimately, though, it takes you being honest with yourself.  God can guide you here, too, if you let Him.  Doing otherwise would make you a liar, and nothing good comes of such actions.

There is no mention of God in Liar Liar.  At the same time, it highlights the importance, and the simplicity, of being truthful.  It might seem trivial, but being honest in all things is not only good, it is Godly.  This film is a study in these notions, and for this reason I recommend it.  Plus, the Jim Carey antics are given their proper arena in which to flourish.