The Good Liar

The Good Liar

Starring Helen Mirren, Ian McKellen, Russell Tovey, Jim Carter

Directed by Bill Condon

In the style of a classic Hitchcock thriller, "The Good Liar" brings together two thespians of the highest order for the first time (somehow it took them this long to appear in a film together) to deliver a knockdown, blowout, superior caper that's filled with tension, suspense, and mind-bending twists.  At least that's what it seemingly said on paper, but the result is something a little less stellar - but nonetheless still riveting due to the sheer caliber of the two leads.

The film centers on two older widowers - Roy (Ian McKellen) and Betty (Helen Mirren) who meet on an online dating site and immediately hit it off.  Roy suffers from a bum knee, and Betty almost immediately takes him into her home, to the dismay of her grandson Steven (Russell Tovey) - and he has a right to be concerned.  Roy is an elaborate con man who's conned his way through most of his life with the aid of his partner Vincent (Jim Carter) - and now they have their eyes set on Betty, the wealthy widower who's worth over three million pounds.  Yet as Roy attempts to complete his con, he begins developing true feelings for Betty - and that's only the beginning wrinkle in his plan as it suddenly becomes apparent that not everything is as it seems.

When you advertise a film featuring the unmistakable talents of Sir Ian McKellen and Dame Helen Mirren, you've already attained a bar set so incredibly high that pretty much nothing can compete with it, and that's the unfortunate side-effect of "The Good Liar" - you already know that this is no simple con for McKellen's Roy, and Mirren's Betty has something up her sleeve, which isn't a spoiler because otherwise it would've been pointless to feature the Oscar-winning actress in the film at all.  Oddly enough, for a film that calls for them to act like they're in love (or at least a fond companionship), they come across moreso as roommates than anything intimate, but that might be due to the story itself - nonetheless it's still strange.

McKellen gives Roy a suave, sophisticated stance but also is prone to offbeat humor and deadpan comedy that's relatively strange considering he's trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, yet his actions pretty much scream out "I'M A SCAM ARTIST!" that even a dead person could tell.  Conversely, Mirren plays Betty with an icy demeanor, but also showcases a vulnerability that may or may not be a ploy of her own - but again, she doesn't really play off the damsel in distress well, as you see the most obvious moments on her face that she's not fully believing everything being spoon-fed to her.

Speaking of being spoon-fed, that's something that director Bill Condon (who's done excellent work with films like "Mr. Holmes" and "Beauty and the Beast" - both starring McKellen) does with the audience half-way.  We follow the story through Roy's eyes as we see each beat he makes and decision he comes to with full understanding of what he's doing - yet we're kept in the dark to Betty's intentions, and again it's no spoiler to say that she has motives of her own which aren't known to the audience at all until the final reveal.  

The film does feature some nice twists and turns, with a final act that draws everything together in a nice little bow that you somewhat expect, but not the actual story itself.  Maybe that's the issue with the film - the actual story it tries to tell.  In less capable hands it would've crumbled and fallen apart before the midway point, but McKellen and Mirren hold onto it with everything they got, and are able to craft a still suspenseful tale that's not on the level of Hitchcock - but pretty darn close.  There's moments that make you wonder about Roy's ability to really be the expert con artist he thinks he is, as more times than not he finds himself accidentally bumbling into a situation to his advantage more than actually planning it, and doesn't really tie up any loose ends that could eventually come back to bite him in the behind.  Then there's the flashback story midway through the film which sorta adds to the story, but would've been fine not having it in there at all.

Essentially "The Good Liar" is a strange concoction of a slightly suspenseful feel coupled with some offbeat moments that leaves you feeling odd about it at the end, and it would've been a complete bust if not for the stellar performances by Ian McKellen and Helen Mirren.

The Score: B+