New Jersey Stage logo
New Jersey Stage Menu


REVIEW: "The Good Liar"


By Eric Hillis, TheMovieWaffler.com

originally published: 11/26/2019

Ian McKellen and director Bill Condon reteam once again for this adaptation of Nicholas Searle's potboiler The Good Liar. But where their previous collaborations - James Whale biopic Gods and Monsters and Sherlock Holmes fan-fiction Mr Holmes - saw McKellen play men battling demons and repressed desires, here McKellen gets to play an out and out wrong 'un with no such self-reflection, nor even the faintest hint of a moral compass.

McKellen is wrinkly rotter Roy Courtnay, an octogenarian con artist who sets his sights on the life savings of widow Betty McLeish (Helen Mirren), which total over £2 million. Faking a dodgy hip, Roy is invited to move into Betty's suburban home, out beyond the greenbelt of London (a striking overhead shot of the estate gives it the appearance of a crop circle planted in the middle of nowhere), if not her bed. The two form a bond somewhere between platonic and romantic, which Betty labels "companionship", enjoying trips into London to see Inglorious Basterds (which prompts an amusing post-screening discussion regarding its historical accuracy) and sample Turkish cuisine.

Roy's plan is to convince Betty to set up a joint account and then siphon her half of the funds from the fake account. He seems to be getting close to bringing her around to the idea, but her pesky grandson (Russell Tovey) has marked Roy as a bad egg from the off and keeps poking his nose into his business. There's also a previous victim of one of Roy's cons who may be out for revenge.

If you can't figure out where this is all headed within the first 10 minutes, please send me your bank account details and I will promptly deposit the sum of $1 million into your account, honestly. The Good Liar is as predictable a thriller as you'll see all year, yet it still struggles to spin its yarn in a convincing manner. Too much of its plot is driven by improbable coincidences, like one character relying on another to do something that there's no real guarantee of them actually doing. Elsewhere characters behave in a manner that makes no sense when their true motivations are later revealed.

As a thriller, it's a mess, and if you're only interested in seeing The Good Liar for its twisty plot, you'll be highly frustrated with how insulting it is to the audience's intelligence. It manages to get by for its first half, until a diversion to Berlin, which brings in wartime flashbacks that plunge the film into a pit of silliness it never manages to claw its way back out of. The finale involves a revelation that is so dark it completely jars with the knockabout caper tone the movie had adopted up to that point.




New Jersey Stage provides affordable advertising for the arts, click here for info



As nonsensical as The Good Liar is, it's undeniably a lot of fun watching McKellen and Mirren lend some class to the proceedings. McKellen has always had two sides to his screen persona, the affable English gent and the malevolent villain, and the role of Roy allows him to exploit both. It's a thrill watching him switch from the doddery old codger who claims to be happy with Betty's companionship to the foul-mouthed mobster we see whenever she's not around. At a time when actors over a certain age are too often saddled with stately but dull roles, it's a blast watching someone like McKellen get to revel in "he's behind you" panto villainy. I can't think of many younger actors who could save The Good Liar from itself in the way McKellen and Mirren have with their worldly charms.



The Good Liar - 3 Stars out of 5

Directed by: Bill Condon

Starring: Helen Mirren, Ian McKellen, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, Jim Carter, Russell Tovey



 



Eric Hillis is a film critic living in Sligo, Ireland who runs the website TheMovieWaffler.com




New Jersey Stage provides affordable advertising for the arts, click here for info



FEATURED EVENTS

To narrow results by date range, categories,
or region of New Jersey
click here for our advanced search.


2025

2025 United States Super 8 Film & Digital Video Festival Day 1 – Program 2

Saturday, February 15, 2025 @ 12:00am
VIRTUAL
category: film

Click here for full event listing

 

2025

2025 United States Super 8 Film +DV Festival Day 1 - Program 1

Saturday, February 15, 2025 @ 7:00pm
NJ Film Festival
71 Hamilton Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
category: film

Click here for full event listing

 

2025

2025 United States Super 8 Film & Digital Video Festival Day 2 - Program 2

Sunday, February 16, 2025 @ 12:00am
VIRTUAL
category: film

Click here for full event listing

 

2025

2025 United States Super 8 Film and Digital Video Festival Day 2: Program 1

Sunday, February 16, 2025 @ 5:00pm
NJ Film Festival
71 Hamilton Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
category: film

Click here for full event listing

 

World

World Cinema Series - "The Look of Silence"

Thursday, February 27, 2025 @ 6:00pm
Monmouth University - Pollak Theatre
400 Cedar Avenue, West Long Branch, NJ 07764
category: film


Click here for full event listing

 

More events

Event Listings are available for $10 and included with our banner ad packages




 

EVENT PREVIEWS

Algonquin

Algonquin Arts Theatre presents Asbury Short Film Concert: World's Best Short Films

(MANASQUAN, NJ) -- Asbury Shorts USA, New York City's longest running non-competitive short film showcase returns to the revered Algonquin Arts Theatre in Manasquan on Saturday, March 8, 2025 to present their national touring "44th Short Film Concert- An Evening of the World's Best Short Films."



2025

2025 United States Super 8 Film + DV Festival line-up for Saturday, February 15!

The 2025 United States Super 8 Film + DV Festival begins this Saturday, February 15. Here is the line-up for the two programs slated for this date.



2025

2025 United States Super 8 Film + DV Festival Video Q+A with Memory Film Director Jeni Thornley

Here is the 2025 United States Super 8 Film +DV Festival Video Q+A with Memory Film Director Jeni Thornley, as well as New Jersey Stage entertainment writer Anran Li and Festival Director Al Nigrin.



Celebrate

Celebrate Valentine's Day with Two Unforgettable Screenings at The ShowRoom

(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- Get into the Valentine's Day spirit at The ShowRoom in Asbury Park with two special screenings that capture romance, mystery, and timeless storytelling. The films are Picnic at Hanging Rock and Casablanca. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at showroomcinemas.com.



Teaneck

Teaneck International Film Festival Offers Online Screening of "Home Court"

(TEANECK, NJ) -- The Teaneck International Film Festival offers an online screening of the documentary film Home Court by Erica Tanamachi, Jenn Lee Smith, and Brandon Soun on Wednesday, February 26, 2025. The screening is part of a five documentary film series called Indie Lens Pop-Up.










New Jersey Stage provides affordable advertising for the arts, click here for info