Where the Truth Lies (2005)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Atom Egoyan

Writers:

Atom Egoyan (screenplay)
Rupert Holmes (novel)

Release Date:

7 October 2005 (Canada)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

K. O'Connor, a young journalist known for her celebrity profiles, is consumed with discovering the truth behind a long-buried incident that affected the lives and careers of showbiz team Vince Collins and Lanny Morris.

Plot Keywords:

Comedy Team | Hotel Room | Duo | Anal Sex | Mansion

Awards:

2 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Kevin Bacon	...	Lanny
Colin Firth	...	Vince
Alison Lohman	...	Karen
David Hayman	...	Reuben
Rachel Blanchard	...	Maureen
Maury Chaykin	...	Sally Sanmarco
Sonja Bennett	...	Bonnie
Kristin Adams	...	Alice
Deborah Grover	...	Mrs. O'Flaherty
Beau Starr	...	Jack Scaglia
Arsinée Khanjian	...	Publishing Executive
Gabrielle Rose	...	Publishing Executive
Don McKellar	...	Publishing Executive
David Hemblen	...	NY Hotel Concierge
John Moraitis	...	Irv Fleischman

Also Known As:

Somebody Loves You (Canada: English title) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexuality, nudity, drug use and language. (DVD version)

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

Canada | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Ireland:18 | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | UK:18 | Canada:18A (British Columbia/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | USA:NC-17 (original rating) | USA:Open (rating surrendered) (2005) | Australia:R | Canada:18A (Alberta/Manitoba) (re-rating on appeal) | Canada:R (Alberta/Manitoba) (original rating) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | USA:R (DVD version) | Portugal:M/16 | Hong Kong:III | Germany:16 | Finland:K-15 | Malaysia:(Banned) | Japan:R-18 | Hungary:16 | Sweden:11 | Argentina:16 | South Korea:18 | USA:TV-MA (TV rating) | Singapore:R21 (cut) | Netherlands:12 (TV version) | Netherlands:16

Filming Locations:

Brantford, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Serendipity Point Films

Trivia:

Director Atom Egoyan made cuts to the film, including an orgy scene, in a failed attempt to challenge the NC-17 rating given by the MPAA. ThinkFilm has since announced that the version shown in US theaters is the same as the one shown at the Cannes Film Festival.

Goofs:

Continuity: Karen wears a ring on her right hand throughout the movie except when she leaves the hotel after spending the night with Lanny. When she addresses the concierge the ring is on her left hand.

Quotes:

Lanny Morris: Having to be a nice guy is the toughest job in the world when you're not.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Indie Sex: Censored (2007) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Just a Gigolo

Hugely entertaining film + Bad critics + Tasteful love scenes.

Hugely entertaining film + Bad critics + Tasteful love scenes.

I was very entertained. There wasn't a single boring minute in "Where the Truth Lies". I almost believed some newspaper critics' reviews and was prepared to be at least a little bit disappointed either with the actors (critics said were miscast), the sex scenes (critics said were explicit) or the ending. I was sitting there and waiting for a disappointment but it never came. It is a superb murder mystery with at least 3 top notch twists and in the end I was completely satisfied.

In my opinion, (and I know a thing or two about this) the love scene between "Alice" and Alison is one of the most beautiful ones ever performed (on the screen). I mean the (tastefully made) oral sex scene. ("Alice" stops for a moment, looks up at Alison with a trace of a smile ... the moonlight illuminates Alice's slightly wet mouth and chin... she looks down and continues. I haven't seen in any other film a more gorgeous pose than that of Alison during this exercise. Americans can make love as beautifully as Europeans and this film is the only proof so far. It even surpasses the straight love scene with Luisa Ranieri in Antonioni's "Eros"). The film is not about sex, though it is wonderfully choreographed. The most impressive thing here is certainly the story.

(P.S. Critics really did a disservice to us. Some of these same guys, I remember, used unbelievable superlatives while reviewing poor horror movies. One begins to question their motives).